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OAS Secretary General Welcomes Agreement for Honduras's Return to Organization

  May 22, 2011

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José Miguel Insulza, welcomed the agreement signed today in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, by the President of Honduras, Porfirio Lobo, and its former President, Manuel Zelaya, in the presence of the President of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, that opens the way for Honduras' return to the hemispheric Organization.

In addition to congratulating the role of Presidents Santos and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, Insulza noted that the principal points of the agreement reached in Cartagena are aligned with the goals the General Secretariat had been working on for nearly two years for the purpose of reestablishing internal trust and reaching the conditions necessary for the return of the Central American country to the bosom of the OAS.

The head of the OAS, who received the text of the agreement from Colombian Foreign Minister María Ángela Holguín, said he will submit it tomorrow to the OAS Permanent Council. At the same time, he expressed confidence regarding the fulfillment of the points that will ensure the return under normal conditions of former President Manuel Zelaya to the Central American country he had to leave against his will after the coup d'état of June 28, 2009.

Secretary General Insulza expressed his firm wish for the region to avoid events that alter the process of consolidation of democracy, to which the OAS is firmly committed, and warned that the social and economic development of the countries of the hemisphere is only possible through the strengthening of democratic institutions.

Starting tomorrow, Monday, the OAS Permanent Council will decide the date of the special General Assembly that will reestablish Honduras' seat in the Organization.

Reference: E-680/11