Honduras, brink of civil war

Chavez, Lula, Obama Make Honduras Unstable

Commentary by Alexandre Marinis

Oct. 6 (Bloomberg) -- If Honduras descends into civil war, we can thank Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and credit Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva with an assist.

Pushing the Central American nation to the brink is precisely what Chavez accomplished when he persuaded Lula to welcome ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya inside the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa, the capital, last month.

Reasonable people can argue whether Zelaya deserved to be tossed out of office. The fact is his ouster was legal, according to a detailed report issued by the U.S. Congressional Research Service.

The Honduran Congress has the authority to rebuke the president and decide constitutional intent, the report says. “In the case against Zelaya, the National Congress interpreted the power to disapprove of the conduct of the president to encompass the power to remove him from office, based on the results of a special, extensive investigation,â€