Manuel Zelaya
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| Manuel Zelaya Rosales | |
 (Photo: Marcello Casal Jr/ABr., 2006) |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 27, 2006 - January 27, 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Ricardo Maduro |
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| Succeeded by | incumbent |
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| Born | September 20, 1952 Catacamas, Olancho |
| Political party | Liberal Party of Honduras (PLH) |
| Spouse | Xiomara de Zelaya |
José Manuel Zelaya Rosales, also known as Mel Zelaya, (born September 20, 1952) has been the President of Honduras since January 27, 2006. On November 27, 2005, as the Liberal Party of Honduras (PLH) candidate he beat the National Party of Honduras (PNH's) Porfirio Pepe Lobo in the presidential election, replacing Ricardo Maduro as President of Honduras on January 27, 2006 as the PLH's 5th President in the national stadium in Tegucigalpa in front of 250 dignitaries, including leaders from other countries. His presidency has been markedby a sense of fragility, especially as the PLH do not hold a majority in the Congress, and by the attempt to hold a Licitacion Internacional (International bidding) to obtain cheaper oil, something many observers see as putting him on a collision course with the United States.
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[edit] Background
Zelaya was born the eldest of four children in Catacamas, Olancho into a family with a notable political history. He has a brother called Carlos, while his mother has been described as his best campaigner. He attended the public National Honduran University (UNAH), but did not graduate, engaging instead in business activities, and specifically timber and cattle. He is a landowner in Olancho (a Department in Honduras) who has worked his own property as a rancher. In June 1975 his family was suspected of involvement in the murder of two priests on their land in Olancho, one from the United States and the other from Colombia though Zelaya has always strongly denied any involvement.
[edit] Political career
He joined the PLH in 1970 and became active a decade later. He was a deputy in the National Congress 3 consecutive times between 1985 and 1998. He held many positions within the PLH and was Minister for Investment in charge of the Honduran Social Investment Fund (FHIS) in a previous PLH government. During the government of Carlos Roberto Flores Zelaya introduced an Open counties programme to decentralise decision making and return power to the local communities. He used both the official division according to Municipality and another method which categorised people according to their indigenous or traditional communities, with said categorisation creating 297 different groups and he is planning to revive this scheme once he becomes President.
During the election campaign Zelaya promised to double police numbers from 9,000 to 18,000. He also promised to initiate a programme of re-education amongst the Mara Salvatrucha gangs. In this question his approach was very different from that of his main rival Pepe Lobo, who advocated the death penalty for these groups of delinquents, leading the Honduran media to describe the country as having chosen reconciliation over confrontation.
[edit] Presidency
His government has been described as fragile and while he is considered a good leader by some of his followers, the problems his government is facing from delinquency, corruption and poverty are overwhelming. The dominant theme of his government has been the bidding process organized by the government to try and reduce the cost of petroleum in Honduras. The cancelling of all visa applications on Friday June 16, 2006 by the United States Embassy, although ostensibly for a case of corruption involving the Honduras Migration, the Registro Nacional de las Personas (People National Registry Office), which issues the National Identification Card, has been seen by many as observers as a way of the US government to try and pressure Honduras into not developing closer relations with Venezuela and its President Hugo Chávez. The US Embassy in Honduras renewed the process of appointments for visa applications on Monday June 26, 2006. As October 27, 2006 the process of appointments for visa applications was again suspended indefinitely and later the process was resumed again.
A ten-day strike from August 1 to August 10, 2006, by elementary, middle school, and high school teachers demonstrated that his ability to govern is very limited. This prolonged strike was solved after several days and nights of dialogue between the educators' leaders and several cabinet members and financial analysts.
In the first year of Zelaya's presidency, several cabinet members have quit their jobs protesting over the President's leadership style and skills. In addition, in December of 2006 an evaluation of all the Ministries and their head Ministers took place. This evaluation was based on passing and non-passing grades. Several members of Zelaya's cabinet questioned such evaluation and eventually led to the resignation of the Minister of Education and the replacement of other members of his cabinet. There has also been national concern about who really runs the country, him or his political party. This question is raised after so many public appearances with Patricia Rodas (President of PLH), even though she doesn't have a job with the government.
He is married to Xiomara de Zelaya, who is now the first lady of Honduras.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Ricardo Maduro |
President of Honduras 2006 – 2010 |
Succeeded by current |
