July 22, 2009

Dear Friends,

On June 28th I was in Copan with a study tour. My plan for the day was to get group to the hotel in San Pedro Sula, a three-hour trip, so they could leave the country the following day. There had been growing tension in the country due to the presidential plan to hold a survey deemed unconstitutional by the supreme court of Honduras.

There are days that stand out in our memory very vividly, like the day JFK was killed. I remember the day that Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras at the end of 1998 and the struggle I had just to get home safely with family in tow, avoiding flood waters.

June 28th proved to be one of those days. I felt as if I were witnessing history in the making. News came over the radio and CNN around 6:00 a.m. that the president had been taken from his bed by force and flown to Costa Rica. Seeing a president in his pajamas captured the world’s attention but obscured what had been building up for months and what has been happening afterward.

The roads were eerily quiet and deserted as we traveled that day. I was able to leave the group at the hotel in San Pedro Sula and go on to Tegucigalpa despite the demonstration in favor of the deposed president in the downtown area. The ensuing weeks have proven to be anything but quiet. There have been demonstrations every day in a very polarized atmosphere. Gloria left the day after the coup to take a youth mission team to a rural village in western Honduras. We give thanks that they, too, were able to finish their experience without any problems.

Some of the stories are incredible—material for best sellers. Some campesino groups were told that the next day they would have to go out and take over a government building or a major road. Some workers weren’t sure about getting to work and back. Some teachers went on strike and others broke union orders by giving classes. Angry parents demanded the opening of schools and classes for their children; there were news flashes of all kinds and declarations from the international community; possible economic sanctions loom, and threats were made by pro-Zelaya spokesmen; rumors spread like wild fire, which people chose to believe or not, according to which side they were are on.

The “caretaker” or de facto government promised to pay teachers and all government workers even if they hadn’t gone to work in over two weeks. A comment made by an analyst struck us as especially accurate: In this situation, the line between truth and falsehood is the width of a razor blade (and both sides have been on both sides of that razor blade). It’s impossible to know the whole truth behind reported facts, actions, and statements; the climate has been one of chaos and division. We know of families that are on different sides of the issue, making even peace at home difficult. We find ourselves challenged to relate in a neutral way to friends, co-workers, and villagers since, as missionaries, we do not take sides in the political struggle. We continue to look for ways to stand in solidarity with the people we serve—the displaced, the landless, the incredibly impoverished, all of whom are so rich in spirit.

No doubt, by the time that you read this letter much more of this story will have unfolded. Maybe the talks now scheduled to resume will result in an acceptable resolution to this political stalemate. Perhaps tensions will rise or maybe teachers will have gone back to the classroom. Whatever the outcome, we see hope in two places. First, a lot of attention has been focused on the poor people of Honduras and the fact that not much has benefited them during the last 27 years of continuous democratic rule that followed a series of military governments. Democracy has only worked so so, and it has benefited only some of the people. We hope that the new Honduras, whatever it looks like after this political crisis will take into account the needs and wishes of poor people.

Secondly, there could be more respect for the law in the future. The crisis has put what is legal and constitutional under great scrutiny, so maybe this regard for the law will carry over to whatever comes next. Recently, in a much publicized case, an ex-functionary of the government was jailed while he awaited trial on corruption charges. This is a first in Honduras.  The law, when broken and ignored and when respected and obeyed, is wrapped up the current situation.  An emerging view is that no one will be above the law in the new Honduras. Maybe the democratic process will be strengthened as a result of the crisis, and everyone will be winners.

We think of people who suffer due to this situation, and we ask for prayers for them. We ask for prayers for families divided over the situation, children who are missing school, demonstrators confronted by violence, church-goers trying to maintain a community of faith, and for people directly involved in the negotiations—that they put the future of the country first and personal interests last.

Thank you for your support and prayers at this time and for your ongoing interest in Honduras. All of the mission teams during the summer have canceled their trips. Some days we stay home to avoid street demonstrations and road takeovers. Other days we go to the office or travel to rural communities. We watch the news a lot, both local and international, hoping to find a glimmer of hope for a peaceful settlement. Communities are waiting to move ahead, mission teams are scheduled to come this fall, elections are scheduled for November, and a new chapter of history in the making.

Faithfully,

Tim and Gloria Wheeler

The 2009 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.281