[News] Honduran Cartoonist and daughter kidnapped by military

[Anti-Imperialist News]

Honduran Cartoonist is kidnapped along with his 17-month-old daughter

Written by Verenice Bengtsson (a Costa Rican residing in Switzerland)

Translated by Nina Serrano, Daniel del Solar (USA)

Monday June 29, 2009

I am addressing this to you with the expectations of denouncing and 
making public that today, at 1 AM Swiss time, I was informed by the 
well known cartoonist Allan Mc Donald that he was detained by 
Honduran military forces along with his 17 month old daughter, Abril.

Allan Mc Donald is a cartoonist whose work is published in the daily 
"El Heraldo de Honduras," "Times," and 
<http://www.rebelion.org>www.rebelion.org putting his support for the 
constitutional referendum put forward to a popular vote by government 
of President Manuel Zelaya Rosales.

Allan informed me from a hotel room where he was detained along with 
the Venezuelan Consul and two women journalists from Spain and Chile, 
whom he did not know previously. On Sunday, June 28, 2009, after the 
coup, a group of Honduran military had arrived at his house in the 
Santa Lucia community, 8 kilometers (5 miles) from the capital, 
Tegucigalpa, and kidnapped him and his daughter.

Later they made a bonfire with all of his cartoons and drawing 
supplies. He was removed from his home with his daughter, who had not 
eaten anything in almost 24 hours. They were only allowed water. He 
was not permitted to take any possessions or money other than his passport.

The communication did not last more than 5 minutes; it was from a 
portable computer belonging to a Venezuelan. He told me there was no 
electricity and the computer battery was about to give out. Also with 
them were Eduardo Maldonado and Esdras Amado Lopez, who were also 
well known for their strong support for the Zelayas Civil Referendum.

Maldonado and Lopez had been kidnapped hours earlier and they did 
know where they were going.

At the moment of farewell, Allan said to me, "Resist and denounce 
this act." This I had seen only on TV in the 1973 (Chilean) coup.

The communication ended with his words, "they are coming for us." 
Apparently they were taken by bus out of the country through the "El 
Espino Border" and I know nothing more about the fate of the pair, 
Allan Mc Donald, his daughter, and their companions.

This is a national and international condemnation, and a call to 
conscience.  This is a clear return to the decade of the 80's that 
seemed to be behind us, is a clear rejection of human rights by a 
national congress and Supreme Court acting in concert. They are 
violating the fundamental rights of the poor Honduran majority and 
all of the acts of this illegal/usurper government reflect only a 
thin veneer of democracy by our political elite/class.

I beg you who are in Honduras and other countries that you share this 
information with your contacts, denounce this act by Internet,  TV, 
and international news services and other nations and their local media.

Ask human rights organizations to put their resources to mount a 
campaign about Allan Mc Donald and his daughter, Abril.

Don't forget that silence makes us complicit in crimes that are being 
carried out now. I ask the International Community to energetically 
reject this (Honduran) de facto government that has kidnapped the 
Honduran people. The Honduran people are without access to 
information, terrorized and deprived of their basic rights.

Attached are cartoons that show the reasons for the persecution and 
detention of Allan Mc Donald and a photo of Allan and his daughter.

Verenice Bengtsson

Via Jorge Dalton (El Salavador)

( <mailto:herido_desombras at yahoo.es>herido_desombras at yahoo.es )

#30



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