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| Honduran President Porfirio Lobo (1st L) signs an amnesty decree during his inauguration ceremony in the Tiburcio Carnas Andino National Stadium in Tegucigalpa Jan. 27, 2010. Lobo signed on Wednesday an amnesty decree to pardon those involved in a coup on June 28, 2009 against then president Manuel Zelaya. (Xinhua/Rafael Ochoa) |
TEGUCIGALPA, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- President Porfirio Lobo was officially inaugurated on Wednesday and pledged to lift the country out of its current political crisis through a variety of measures.
SEEKING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT
Lobo, the opposition leader, won the Nov. 29 presidential election amid controversies, as the elections were hosted under the de facto regime of then Congress Speaker Roberto Micheletti.
Most of the international community has refused to recognize Lobo as the leader of Honduras, and instead demanded a reinstatement of former President Manuel Zelaya who was ousted in a military coup last June.
To solve the political stalemate and seek international support, Lobo finally reached agreements with Donimica on the fate of Zelaya.
Zelaya was allowed to leave the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa, where he had taken refuge since September 2009, after Lobo promised to offer safe passage to Zelaya, who flew into exile with his family to the Dominican Republic on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Lobo asked Micheletti, the acting president, to resign in advance. Micheletti left his post last week, which helped bring the country out of the turmoil of "one country, three presidents."
Jose Miguel Insulza, secretary-general of the Organization of American States, last week applauded the efforts Lobo made in restoring Honduras' democratic order, hoping to restart dialogues between the OAS and Honduras in a bid to normalize ties suspended after the coup.
LOOKING FOR NATIONAL RECONCILIATION AND ECONOMIC REFORM
Lobo signed an amnesty decree during his inauguration on Wednesday to pardon those involved in the coup. The decree was believed to help solve both political and social conflicts and bail the country out of the current crisis.
The crisis expanded the impact of the global recession on Honduras' economy, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) said earlier.
The domestic political stalemate has also diverted the country's attention from revealing an anti-crisis plan against the backdrop of the global financial crisis. Given the country's grave economic situation, the ECLAC noted that the new government led by Lobo would face a difficult situation.
Lobo said his country is in the most difficult economic situation in its history with a debt of some 3.5 billion U.S. dollars. The country also could not receive more than 2 billion dollars in international funds because of the political turmoil.
Therefore, the newly inaugurated president has set stimulating economy, improving employment rate and decreasing proportion of the poor population as major goals for the country.
Lobo also promised that the authorities would pay attention to the interests of low-income groups and fight corruption.
