Zelaya says U.S. brokered pact has failed to end political turmoil
Speaking from sanctuary in the Brazilian embassy in Honduras, deposed President Manuel Zelaya said the pact between his supporters and the regime that overthrew his government is dead. The deal, which was hammered out last week, required that a unity government be formed by midnight Thursday. Zelaya said the agreement is null because congress did not vote on whether to reinstate his presidency, whereas interim President Roberto Micheletti says that vote was not part of the deal, and that a government was already formed and awaiting Zelaya’s participation. This is a major setback for those attempting to resolve the four-month conflict, which may now continue through the November 29 presidential elections. Several Latin American nations and thousands of Zelaya supporters say they will refuse to recognize the results of those elections if they are carried out under a coup-installed government. “We completely do not recognise this electoral process,” said one of Zelaya’s negotiators. “Elections under a dictatorship are a fraud for the people.”