Xiomara Castrothe first woman to rule Hondurasassumes this Thursday a country hit by poverty, migration, drug trafficking and corruption, while quelling a crisis in Parliament that threatened his leadership.
(Read here: Is Xiomara Castro consolidated or in danger before assuming the government?)
62 years old and wife of the ousted former president Manuel Zelaya (2006-2009), Castro ended a right-wing supremacy with a coalition led by his party, Liberty and Refoundation (Free).
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“Twelve years of struggle and 12 years of resistance. Today the people’s government begins. Good morning, Honduras,” Castro wrote on Twitter. Since dawn, large lines were formed in the National State, where some 29,000 people will participate in the swearing-in ceremony.
They arrive with flags from Honduras and red, from the Free Party. Pepe Palacios, a 50-year-old engineer, waves the flag of diversity. “We feel recognized, we have received an invitation to be here and be able to freely express ourselves. That had never happened before,” he assured.
Castro has been open to discussing same-sex marriage in a highly conservative country. The ceremony has as stellar guests the vice president of United Statesyes, Kamala Harris, and the King of Spain, Felipe VI.
The crisis in Honduras
To develop his government plan, Castro needs the support of Parliament, where he does not have an absolute majority. Worse yet, Libre was divided by electing different presidents of Congress, generating a crisis.
However, the picture seemed to clear up. This Thursday, deputy Luis Redondo, supported by Castro’s party and his allies, opened the session as president of the Congress.
Meanwhile, the rebel Jorge Cálix, who had also proclaimed himself head of the legislature backed by right-wing opponents and twenty dissidents from Libre, remained silent.
On Wednesday he was offered a position within the government, and his response was awaited. Calix had rebelled against Libre’s agreement with his allies in the Salvador Party of Honduras (PSH), which is part of Redondo, to preside over Congress.
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Castro accused the dissidents of allying with the National Party of outgoing President Juan Orlando Hernández to prevent the transformations he promised. Hernández has been accused by New York prosecutors of maintaining links with drug trafficking.
His brother, former deputy “Tony” Hernández, is serving a life sentence in the United States for that crime. Both deny the charges.
“It is key that Castro has a cabinet with a history of honesty, because there is a whole history of links with organized crime from the outgoing party,” commented analyst and professor at the National University, Eugenio Sosa.
Castro announced on Thursday some of his ministers, including Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina and Finance Minister Rixi Moncada.
(In other news: Xiomara Castro, the first president of Honduras returns the left to power)
The migration crisis
Under the proposal of a “democratic socialism”, Castro proposes changes in a country where poverty reaches 59% of its almost 10 million inhabitants, according to official figures from 2019, although the NGO Social Forum of Foreign Debt and Development of Honduras (Fosdeh) places it at 71%, according to data from 2021.
There is also a high homicide rate of almost 40 per 100,000 inhabitants, generated by drug cartels and gangs. All this, added to the pandemic, pushes strong migratory currents towards the United States in search of employment.
“If there are more job opportunities here, there is no need to go looking for another country. With Xiomara’s inauguration that will change, she brings more opportunities,” considers Jensi Dávila, a university student.
Harris will have a meeting with Castro this Thursday to “address the root causes of migration in Central America,” according to a high-ranking US administration official in Washington.
United States and Taiwan
Although Castro was described as a communist during the campaign, “the United States has understood that she does not represent a radical left, but rather a hope for the Honduran people,” considers sociologist Sosa.
Castro needs international support to renegotiate a foreign debt that exceeds $11 billion. For former Foreign Minister Edgardo Paz, this issue requires an arrangement “with the multilateral institutions, where Washington has a lot of influence.”
Vice President Harris said her visit to Tegucigalpa will be “an opportunity” to deepen cooperation “on key issues, from fighting corruption to economic recovery.”
Washington has welcomed Castro’s call to the UN to install an International Commission Against Impunity in Honduras (CICIH).
Taiwanese Vice President William Lai will also meet with Castro, whose country is one of the last diplomatic allies that the Asian island has in Central America, apart from Guatemala.
Both Sosa and Paz believe that it is not a priority for Honduras to restore the relationship with China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory and does not accept diplomatic ties with those who recognize that island as an autonomous state.
AFP
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