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WORLD> America
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Zelaya says he's met with govt, begun dialogue
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-09-25 13:58 Micheletti has pledged to arrest Zelaya if he leaves the shelter of the diplomatic mission. Zelaya told Radio Globo in Honduras on Thursday that "calm will not return to the country as long as its president is locked up." International leaders, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and President Barack Obama, have called for Zelaya's reinstatement ever since he was ousted, and his surprise arrival in Honduras has prompted new calls for Micheletti to step down. The UN Security Council scheduled consultations for Friday on a letter from Brazil seeking an emergency meeting on Honduras. Rene Zepeda, the interim government's information minister, said Honduras has no intention of breaking ties with Brazil so it can go after Zelaya inside the compound. But he added: "Brazil should make Zelaya be quiet and provide the conditions so that he can dialogue with our government instead of unleashing violence in Honduras." Brazilian presidential spokesman Marcelo Baumbach said that Zelaya can stay as long as he needs to in the Embassy. And in an interview with PBS' "News Hour with Jim Lehrer," Silva called Zelaya and his followers "refugees." "It's not the first time in the world's history that people who are being persecuted want refuge in foreign embassies," Silva said. "They are refugees." About 3,000 Micheletti supporters marched toward the Brazilian Embassy and stopped in front of soldiers guarding the compound Thursday. The group of smartly dressed lawyers, wealthy homemakers and others held signs saying "Get out, Brazil!" as they chanted "We want elections not intervention!" Pro-Zelaya protesters held marches in working-class neighborhoods. Micheletti has said the conflict will be resolved when Hondurans elect their next leader November 29, although the US and other countries have said they may not recognize the vote if Zelaya is not reinstated. Former US President Jimmy Carter, whose nonprofit center in Atlanta is dedicated to resolving conflicts, has been in touch with the Honduran government to express concern about the current situation, Carter Center spokeswoman Deanna Congileo told The Associated Press in an e-mail. Micheletti invited the Nobel Peace laureate to mediate new talks but Congileo said Carter is simply supporting efforts made by the Organization of American States and Costa Rican President Oscar Arias -- another Nobel Peace laureate who moderated previous US-backed talks. Those negotiations broke down after Micheletti's government refused to accept a plan that would allow Zelaya to return to the presidency with limited powers and prohibit him from attempting to revise the constitution. Zelaya's term ends in January. Micheletti announced in a statement Thursday that he told Carter he hopes Arias visits Honduras to hold talks with him and Zelaya.
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