We’ve just met our first tourist refugee from Honduras. He was in the capital when the tanks arrived, apparently there was a lot of fighting. Following his government advice to lay low or get out, he decided to get out. Arriving at the El Salvadorian border he was told it was closed. Apparently it was anarchy, tyres burning etc, but the locals offered to show him another crossing. There he was robbed of everything he had at gun point. With literally just the clothes on his back he had to beg money to make it to San Salvador, where the US embassy could not lend him money. Without a passport he even had trouble checking into the hostel where we are staying.
We will shortly be joining the many travellers trying to get to Nicaragua before the borders close. There are inconsistent reports of whether they are open, but the luxury inter country buses still seem to be running - so we will splash out and use some of our “earthquake, pandemic, coup” contingency budget.
Other than that we haven’t done much today - as my protozoa infection returned with vengeance, but I’m back on medication so should be OK soon.
We`re stil not sure what to make of the coup, but it certainly sounds like it was not an enforcement of democracy supported by the overwhelming majority of the population as some Hondurans are claiming. We`re a bit biased by our advanced warning and explanation of events. But sending in the army to remove a president the day before a referendum, removing free press, introducing curfews, new powers to arrest anyone etc. doesn`t sound like a democracy. | 