Read the Wall Street Journal’s report here. And the New York Times here.
In the first coup in Central America since the end of the Cold War, Honduran soldiers forced the president to flee to Costa Rica on Sunday.
Tensions had escalated in the country recently as President Zelaya sought to proceed with a referendum to approve adding another term to his office. Currently the Honduran president is limited to a single term. The Honduran Supreme Court ruled at least part of Zelaya’s effort unconstitutional (it’s a little unclear to me what part exactly.) Zelaya continued with his efforts until the coup yesterday.
Zelaya is largely seen as an advocate of the poor and an ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. His close ties to Chavez increasingly worried the wealthy and business leaders, according to the New York Times report.
As of now neither the US nor the EU have recognized the coup leaders as the new government of Honduras.
It is unclear how the coup will affect coffee producers and exporters. Currently the biggest concern seems to be the uncertainty and instability the coup has left in its wake. Here is a news story specifically about the situation the coffee industry finds itself in today.
Thankfully so far violence has been very limited.
