(RNV)The president of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, and host of the 39th Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) said this Tuesday that the member countries of this regional body "are not going to be accomplices of the old and worn error" committed in 1962 to expel Cuba from the Inter-American system.
At this quote "We will not be accomplices of that (...) the errors of 62' are in the past, we are the future and the future we must defend with integrity and democracy, we can not go without derogating the action of that time, " he said. He also urged to "find alternatives to development".
"All of these principles that originate in the social strength of the people must be gathered today in this Assembly with sound principles of the 21st century. We can not leave this Assembly without repairing that error and this infamy," remarked the Central American president.
To the fraternal people of Cuba, continued Manuel Zelaya, the U.S. has kept for 47 years "a pointless and unjust blockade (...) but in that island there is a people willing to resist, to sacrifice for their sovereignty," held the president, and added that, to ignore the issue "makes us accomplices."
Later, the president of Honduras said that it is necessary to strengthen all the regional processes and highlighted the proposals created in agencies such as the Bolivarian Alternative for the Peoples of Our Americas (ALBA) and the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR).
He exemplified, in this regard, the establishment of a Single Regional Compensation System (Sucre), a local initiative to compete with the dollar and the euro. "
The Sucre "is an ingenious proposal because we should seek new opportunities in the framework of development. Today, these proposals are part of the efforts to confront the crisis," remarked Zelaya.
Likewise, he considered fundamental "the restructuring of the international agencies," because the defense of freedom and democracy also requires us to have to face different international and local orders.
"The economic and political power of some sectors also prevent many changes," denounced Zelaya, while adding on the need for in a society to exist the right to disagree.
"Opportune Moment"
Referring to what was stated previously by José Miguel Insulza, in the midst of the international financial crisis, the Central American president considered that "we are in an opportune moment for our nations."
"For us, who share many of the problems of the nations here present, we feel that what he says (Jose Miguel) Insulza, -OAS Secretary General- is entirely correct," assured the Honduran president.
Likewise, he added that "Just when Latin America was expressing levels of growth and development, and showing positive results, we have been affected by a highly speculative crisis of global capitalism and that has made the violence grow, not since now, but since very long ago in a special way in our developing countries. "
Despite the negative sequels of the global crisis, he considered this an opportune moment for the region because "we believe that it is being initiated, at a level of our continent and the different places in society, the opening of a new era of both international relations as in progressive measures that need reforms in the field of the rule of law, "said Manuel Zelaya.
"The crises are also opportunities, if we know how to seize them," stressed the Head of State.
In this regard, said that under the ignorance of cause -regarding the international crisis- "the developing countries must make a double effort (...) seems like we are alone and that we found little support in this crisis," for which It is important to correct the forms of work, said Zelaya.
"Honduras over the past three years has become the most dynamic economy in Central America," he assured, and added that "we have achieved growth rates in 2006 and 2007 of more than 6.3 percent, and even in 2008, already with the impact of the crisis, we managed to grow a 4.3 ".
Regarding the current year, said that there is in project a growth of at least 1 or 2 percent, "but always positive", he said.
"Honduras has gone from being a poor and heavily indebted nation to be a low-middle income nation," emphasized the Central American president, while detailing that his Government' management has achieved to keep the exchange rate of the local currency, in addition to a very low fiscal deficit.
"We managed to lower the interest rates to an average of 9 percent and 10 percent, especially to the productive and export sectors. It was improved the tax collection without raising rates nor putting new taxes, only with the State's efficiency," continued the host president of the 39th Assembly of the OAS.
In the scope of the international financial crisis, he insisted that it needs an immediate response in all sectors. "It is not only to support the large firms, not just to give funding to these international economic groups, but it is also to compensate with the workers and laborers," he added.
An example of this is -according to Zelaya- that the energy dependency that has Honduras is remarkable: 70 percent of our production capacity we have to export from developed countries, which he stressed it must change "because it is the product of neoliberal governments."
Zelaya, at the beginning of his speech, expressed his deepest sympathy to the victims of the Air France plane that crashed in the Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and France. "My condolences to the Representative of France, as a member of this Assembly, and to the families," he added.
Likewise he addressed to the families of the victims of the tremor -of 7.1 on the Ritcher scale-, which happened "right here in the Atlantic Coast of Honduras. To the families our condolences," stressed Zelaya, and thanked the countries for their solidarity.
