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Consider O'Grady's support for the Washington-backed June 28 Honduran coup ousting a democratically elected president. It was followed by months of mass arrests, disappearances, killings, targeting the independent media, suspending the Constitution, declaring martial law, and threatening the Brazilian embassy's sovereignty where President Manuel Zelaya took refuge after returning.
In one of her many pro-coup articles, O'Grady (on July 13) headlined "Why Honduras Sent Zelaya Away." In a "perfect world," according to her, he "would be in jail in his own country right now, awaiting trial. The Honduran attorney general (part of the coup regime) has charged him with deliberately violating Honduran law and the Supreme Court (stacked with pro-coup justices) ordered his arrest in Tegucigalpa on June 28," the day of the coup.
"But the Honduran military whisked him out of the country, to Costa Rica," to save itself the embarrassment of jailing a democratically elected leader whose lawful actions were endorsed by the majority of Hondurans wanting progressive constitutional change and a president willing to give it to them.
Yet according to O'Grady, "Mr. Zelaya's detention was legal, as was his official removal from office by Congress....Besides eagerly trampling the constitution, Mr. Zelaya had demonstrated that he was ready to employ the violent tactics of 'chavismo' to hang onto power. The decision to pack him off immediately was taken in the interest of protecting both constitutional order and human life."
In fact, Zelaya neither espoused or practiced violence, and his call for a public June 28 vote on whether to hold a referendum for a new Constitutional Convention at the same time as the November elections lawfully asked for a "yes" or "no" on one question:
"Do you think that the November 2009 general elections should include a fourth ballot box (the other three were for candidates) in order to make a decision about the creation of a National Constitutional Assembly that would approve a new Constitution?"
According to Article 5 of the 2006 Honduran "Civil Participation Act," government officials may hold non-binding inquiries (referenda) to determine popular support for proposed measures. Gauging sentiment for a National Constituent Assembly for a new Constitution is legal.
Yet in her June 28 article titled, "Honduras Defends Its Democracy," O'Grady falsely claimed Zelaya planned "a constitutional rewrite (following) a national referendum" only the Congress can approve. In fact, Zelaya called for a vote to assess public sentiment, pro or con, on whether Hondurans want a Constitutional Convention, an act no different from a public opinion poll that's perfectly legal or should be anywhere. But according to O'Grady, Zelaya "decided he would run the referendum himself." It's typical O'Grady truth reversal that earns her weekly space on the WSJ's op-ed page.
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