Top Honduran Judge Seized as Crisis Grows

Police arrested Ramon Valladares Soto, the new chief justice of the Honduran Supreme Court on Friday, hours after he and four other justices were sworn in by Congress in a mounting power struggle with President Roberto Suazo Cordova.

Eva Reina de Valladares, the judge’s wife, said he was taken away by secret police, who are equivalent in some respects to the FBI in the United States. A secret police spokesman confirmed that Valladares is being held.

Another of the new judges, Miguel Angel Rivera, fled from his office when police agents arrived, the judge’s secretary said.

The leader of Congress, Efrain Bu Giron, the president’s political adversary, called the arrest of Valladares arbitrary and illegal and convened an emergency session of the legislature. About 50 members, eight more than is needed to conduct business, attended.

Escort Party to Chambers

During the 30-minute session, the legislators agreed to accompany the four new judges today as they move into their Supreme Court offices. The assembly will then hold another session.

Bu Giron also appointed a commission to draft a letter of protest to the head of the armed forces, Gen. Walter Lopez. He also sent a telegram to the U.S. Senate, and to parliaments in Latin America and Europe, denouncing the detention and calling for “solidarity to maintain democracy, justice and the rule of the constitution.” Honduras is a key American ally in the Western Hemisphere.

A military spokesman declared that Suazo Cordova had ordered the arrests of all five new justices and asserted that Lopez “is willing to carry it out.”

Earlier Friday, the president called Congress’ removal of five of the nine justices and swearing in of the new judges “a technical coup.” He said he would “not permit the installation of judges elected illegally in open violation of our political constitution.” Suazo Cordova placed the armed forces on a state of alert.

Coup rumors have been frequent here during the last six months. In the past 20 years the armed forces have staged four coups.

The 82-member Honduran legislature, in a 15-hour session that ended early Friday morning, voted to remove the five justices on the grounds of corruption.

Bu Giron told lawmakers before the vote: “When the stated principles are not fulfilled exactly, as occurred with the former justices, the democratic regime declines and opens the doors to social unrest.”

The high court is appointed by the legislature but has had the president’s backing. The nine justices were known to be his friends.

Orlando Gomez Cisneros, a leader of the president’s Liberal Party, said during the Thursday night session, that “what is occurring is simply the weakening of the unfortunate influence of Suazo Cordova in his attempts to control the government powers and the political, social, student and professional organizations of the country.”

However, Suazo Cordova says he has the backing of the armed forces “to maintain order and avoid chaos and anarchy in Honduras.” As president, he is commander of the military forces.

Andres Victor Artiles, secretary general of the Honduran labor federation, said “the irregularities detected in the judicial power, which was favoring the powerful, the rich, prejudicing the great humble majority of our nation, were no secret to anyone.” The organization includes unions with 400,000 members.

The constitution says magistrates may not be removed, suspended or transferred from their posts after being elected by the legislature to four-year terms. It also says the executive, legislative and judicial branches of the goverment are complementary and none is subordinate to the other.

The confrontation stems from the falling out between Bu Giron and the president, who recently made it known that he will not back the congressional leader’s bid for president in November’s elections. By law, Suazo Cordova cannot seek reelection.

A legislative commission, appointed by Bu Giron to investigate allegations of corruption in the judicial system, submitted a report Wednesday, saying it found 14 cases of corruption committed by five of the nine judges.

Four political parties accused Suazo Cordova a month ago of repeatedly violating the constitution, allowing administrative corruption, violating human rights, making commitments that compromised national dignity and sovereignty and contributing to the deterioration of national values and government powers.

Before the arrests, State Department spokesman Edward P. Djerejian said, “In overall terms, the United States fully supports the ongoing democratic process in Honduras and expects this dispute between two branches of a democratically elected government to be resolved peacefully within the framework of the Honduras constitution.”