Thousands of government supporters marched Saturday in the capital of Honduras to commemorate the anniversary of the 2009 coup that ousted then-leftist President Manuel Zelaya, the husband of current President Xiomara Castro. The gathering also served as a political rally for former Defense Minister Rixi Moncada, the presidential candidate for the left-wing Libertad y Refundación (Libre) party in the upcoming November 30 election.
Zelaya, who had taken office in 2006, was ousted by a civic-military alliance that accused him of seeking re-election outside the bounds of the Constitution to implement Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez’s “21st Century Socialism.” Chávez died in 2013. “I came because we’re commemorating the coup that set our country back,” said Juan Carlos Izcoa, a 54-year-old construction worker, during the march to the Presidential Palace.
He added that the march represents “popular resistance to prevent future coups.” In January, three retired generals were arrested for the death of a protester during demonstrations against the interruption of constitutional order. One of the military officers, Romeo Vásquez—who led the 2009 coup—is currently a fugitive after fleeing house arrest.
“A woman will hand over the presidential sash to this woman who is speaking to you today,” Moncada told the crowd of supporters dressed in the ruling party’s red and black colors. President Castro, absent from the rally, stated during an earlier ceremony at the Presidential Palace that the date was being commemorated “so that never again will democracy be threatened in this country.”
In contrast, opposition lawmaker Tomás Zambrano from the right-wing National Party said the upcoming elections are “the last chance to save democracy” in Honduras. “The socialists from Libre know they have no legitimate chance of winning,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Moncada’s main challengers are right-wing candidates Salvador Nasralla and Nasry Asfura.
