CEPR - Center for Economic and Policy Research : International Community Should Defend Democratic Government in Paraguay From Coup Attempt, CEPR Co-Director Says
06/22/2012| 06:40pm US/Eastern
Recommend:
June 22, 2012
"Opposition Attempting a Coup - Removal of the President
Without Due Process"
Contact: Dan Beeton, 202-239-1460
Washington, DC - The international community should stand by
Paraguay's democratic institutions and against the coup
attempt being perpetrated by President Fernando Lugo's
opponents in the Congress, Center for Economic and Policy
Research (CEPR) Co-Director Mark
Weisbrot said today. Paraguayan opposition members of
Congress, led by the right wing Colorado party, have filed
five charges of impeachment against Paraguayan President
Fernando Lugo, but are not allowing him adequate time to
defend himself from removal.
"It seems that the Paraguayan opposition is attempting to
roll back short-lived institutions and principles of
democracy," Weisbrot said. "Impeachment is a legal
procedure under Paraguay's constitution; but this is not
impeachment. There is no due process - this is a
coup."
Paraguay's Congress gave Lugo less than 24 hours to prepare
his defense against impeachment, and only two hours to
present it. "I don't see how anyone in the world could
call that due process," said Weisbrot. "Not to mention that
the accusers did not provide evidence for any impeachable
offenses."
The charges center on a clash over land - owned by a Colorado
party politician - between landless workers and the police
which left over 17 people dead. Lugo's opponents in the
Congress have not presented evidence for his responsibility
for the deaths, however, and Lugo's calls for an
investigation into the events have gone unanswered.
Foreign Ministers from each of the Union of South American
Nations (UNASUR) member countries have traveled to Asunción
to meet with the President of the Congress, and UNASUR
officials have warned that they would potentially break in
relations with Paraguay were Lugo to be ousted without due
process and a new government emerges.
The U.S. response so far has been tepid. U.S. Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton has said that the political situation
should be resolved in accordance with the constitution.
"The Obama administration should support UNASUR's efforts to
preserve democracy in Paraguay, and oppose this coup
attempt," Weisbrot said.
###
distributed by
|
|
Recommend :
