Honduran President to Briefly Step Down During National Elections

The Wall Street Journal
By JOSE DE CORDOBA

Honduras' interim president Roberto Micheletti will step down temporarily from his post for a week during the country's coming national elections, the Wall Street Journal has learned.

The move, while largely symbolic, is an effort by the interim government to boost international legitimacy for the Nov. 29 vote, which the government hopes will put an end to a political crisis that began with the June 28 ouster of President Manuel Zelaya.

In a speech to be delivered late on Thursday, Mr. Micheletti is expected to say he will hand the reins of government to his council of ministers – basically, the cabinet – from Nov. 24 until his return to power on Dec. 2, according to a copy of a speech obtained by the Wall Street Journal. The president-elect is scheduled to take power in January.

In the remarks, Mr. Micheletti says his temporary absence from his post is meant to help Hondurans concentrate on the presidential elections instead of the political crisis, which erupted when the army kicked the president out of the country for allegedly wanting to extend his stay in power. Mr. Zelaya, a close ally of Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, denies the charges, and has called on Hondurans to boycott the vote. Read Entire Article