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Hondurans rap president’s plans to seek office again

Sunday, 28 August 2016 8:09 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 28 August 2016 10:45 AM ]

Xiomara Castro (R) poses for a photograph with her husband, former Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, during a political rally in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, August 27, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

Thousands of people in Honduras have taken to the streets in the country’s capital of Tegucigalpa, protesting President Juan Orlando Hernandez’s plans to once again run for the highest office in the country.

The Honduran left-wing opposition party, headed by former President Manuel Zelaya, staged the protest rally on Saturday, attracting — by some estimates — about 15,000 people to the rally.

Waving red and black flags in front of the country’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal building in Tegucigalpa, the protesters chanted “Respect the Constitution: Out JOH,” referring to Hernandez by his initials.

A supporter of former Honduran president Manuel Zelaya’s party stands between flags during a political rally in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, August 27, 2016. (Photo by Reuters)

A constitutional clause prohibited the participation of Hernandez in elections due in November 2017, but the Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that the clause was itself unconstitutional.

Zelaya, who was attending the rally, delivered a speech, proclaiming his wife, Xiomara Castro, the presidential candidate of his party in the next-year elections.

“Xiomara will lead for eight currents as the most popular presidential candidate,” he said, adding that, “The government has the capacity to stem the tide of people against the continuity of Juan Orlando Hernandez.”