What else would you call a $150 million loan to the coupists:
But it’s looking more and more like the same old IMF on steroids. Last week the IMF disbursed $150.1 million to the de facto government of Honduras, and it plans to disburse another $13.8 million on September 9. The de facto government has no legitimacy in the world. It took power on June 28th in a military coup, in which the elected President, Manuel Zelaya, was taken from his home at gunpoint and flown out of the country. The Organization of American States suspended Honduras until democracy is restored, and the United Nations also called for the “immediate and unconditional return†of the elected president.
No country in the world recognizes the coup government of Honduras. From the Western Hemisphere and the European Union, only the United States retains an ambassador there. The World Bank paused lending to Honduras two days after the coup, and the Inter-American Development Bank did the same the next day. More recently the Central American Bank of Economic Integration suspended credit to Honduras. The European Union has suspended over $90 million in aid as well, and is considering further sanctions.
But the IMF has gone ahead and dumped a large amount of money on Honduras – the equivalent would be more than $160 billion in the United States – as though everything is ok there.
This is classic IMF behaviour. As you know Bob, despite its supposed international focus, the IMF is pretty much ruled from Washington and has a long history of involvement with coups, especially in Latin America. An abrupt cancellation of a planned loan is usually the first sign of Washingtonian displeasure with a certain country, while the quick re-continuation of the same the first sign of approval. To have the IMF blithly carry out a loan while the rest of the world has cancelled all aid to Honduras is evidence enough that, despite Obama’s protests against the coup, the US doesn’t want the coupists to go away.