HONDURAS THIS WEEK, SATURDAY, MARCH 10, 2007

YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW

SATURDAY, MARCH 10, 2007

VOL. 20, No. 08 (928) Tegucigalpa www.hondurasthisweek.com Lps 6.00

Association of airlines seeks reform of Tegucigalpa airport

PAge 3

Nicaraguan missiles here to stay

PAge 4

William Lewis: A particular gringo in Honduras

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Alex JonesHonduras This Week

A new bill has been sent for discussion in congress regarding protections to be given to consumers in Honduras. According to Fredis Cerrato, the vice minister for internal commerce, the proposed law “harvests experiences from more advanced countries and will establish consumer protection as a citizen’s right.”

Initially the law was to be passed in March, but, says Cerrato, a recent trip to Brazil, with eight members of congress from all parties, revealed that it was not, at that stage, ready for implementation. “Brazil has the best consumer protection in all of Latin America,” he says, “and we want to learn from them before we act.”

A previous law was passed in 1989, which also aimed to protect the consumer. However it is now being replaced to help reconcile tensions it has with a separate law, implemented in 2006, to protect competition. In addition, the new bill aims to “correct imbalances in society regarding economic capacity and education, as well as bringing in to practice legal measures safeguarding the rights of consumers,” said Cerrato at a press conference last Wednesday. Further more, unlike the 1989 law, it will be applicable to government owned retailers such as SANAA and ENEE.

Amongst a number basic rights, the bill will demand the consumer’s right to life, health and safety during the purchase of goods and services, a default and minimum guarantee of 30 days on any goods - with the option to receive repairs or replacements in the case that they are damaged, and to information regarding the quality, volume, characteristics and total price, including tax and expressed in lempiras, of anything bought.

“Here each time you go to

New law to protect consumers

MARCH continued on page 6 Alex Jones/Honduras This Week

Supermarket advertising, and other methods employed by providers will be regulated by the new protecting consumers.

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK2

O P I N I O NYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW

L E T T E R S

Letters to the editor PolicyAll letters should be no more than 300 words in length, and should include the writer’s name, address and phone number. We will not publish street address, e-mail address or phone number unless specifically requested. All letters become property of Honduras This Week and are subject to editing for length, content, grammar, punctuation, etc. You can send us letters to the editor via email: [email protected] or mail your letter to:

Honduras This WeekPO Box 1312 Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Dear Editor,

Abilene Christian University, located in Abilene, Texas, is very excited about a group of our students arriving in Honduras this week to work and serve in your communities. We are so proud of our students for using their own time and money to serve others during this next week.

The students will spend the week working with “Little Hands, Big Hearts.” They will also be participating in other projects in the area.

These extraordinary young people are part of approximately 400 ACU students who will spend their Spring Break in service to others across the United States and around the world. These groups spend weeks planning for their week of service before they leave our campus.

ACU students have been serving others as part of Spring Break Campaigns for 30 years. More than 10,000 students have

participated in these campaigns during that time.

Our mission at Abilene Christian University is to “educate students for Christian service and leadership throughout the world,” and we believe that Spring Break Campaigns, along with the many other outreach programs students participate in, are perfect examples of our students putting these words into action.

We hope our students will bless your community by their presence.

Sincerely,

Dr. Royce MoneyPresidentAbilene Christian UniversityVia Internet

Dear Editor,

I have been reading your news-paper and find the information in it very interesting. I am, however, sorry to inform you that the font used for the captions and certain

articles is lousy and almost impos-sible to read.

Since I am very interested in receiving and reading the paper, I feel obliged to send you these comments in the hope that you can improve the type, since they letters are very close together.

I hope that you take this comment without offence. Its only intention is to better the news-paper.

Sincerely,

Marisabel RuizVia Internet

Dear Reader,

Thank you for your comments. We apologize for last week’s tech-nical error affecting the layout. We have been assured by the printing company that the problem has been fixed.

Anette EmanuelssonManaging Editor

In the early 1980s, a Mexican spoke at a course in Technical Normalization arranged by the Ministry of Economy. He demon-strated the importance of normal-ization and quality control when protecting the consumer and striving to make a country more competitive.

Our current Consumer Protection Law will soon be reformed and the new legisla-tion will utilize experience from countries with greater expertise in the area. The authorities have emphasized that the new law won’t regulate prices, but it will ensure that the consumer is respected when acquiring any products or services. Misleading advertisement is prohibited as well as packages whose dimensions and capacities are different from what is stated on the label. Food prod-ucts require a correct description of its contents, such as coloring, artificial flavoring and preserva-tives. The authorities will be very

busy establishing controls and looking into complaints filed by the citizens - complaints that will be primarily managed as class actions.

Since education strengthens our values we should start creating a culture of respect for

the consumer, as well as educating the people in the respect for human life, human rights and the environ-ment.

It can be argued that laws generally protect man from his peers, capable of lying, cheating, deceiving, killing, torturing and destroying. In the words of Hermann Hesse: “Man is wolf to man.” The Honduran legal library is being

enriched by the introduction of laws that have been put in place to protect. The shelves are filled with volumes and volumes of legal texts. Yet in the past, all that was needed were ten rules written in stone, resumed in the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Protecting us

The authorities have emphasized that the new law won’t regulate prices, but it will ensure that the consumer is respected when acquiring any products or services

Founding Editor 1949-2006Mario Gutiérrez Minera

Publisher/General ManagerMario Gutiérrez Pacheco [email protected]

Administration Manager Andrea Gutiérrez Pacheco [email protected]

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Subscriptions & Maya Calendar EditorRosibel Pacheco de Gutié[email protected]

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Managing editor

Anette Emanuelsson

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Staff and Contributors

Jorge Agurcia, Patrick Ahern, Alex Jones,

Alvaro Morales Molina, Daniel O’Connor,

Bruce Starr, Louise Wallace

Bay Island Correspondant

Don Pearly

Copan Correspondant

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All original articles and photographs published in Honduras This Week are protected by interna-tional copyright law. Reproduction, in whole or in part, without prior written permission,

is strictly prohibited.Col Payaqui Frente al Instituto San Miguel #7 Casa 3644 P.O. Box 1323, Tegucigalpa, Honduras

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Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW 3

N A T I O N A L

Louise WallaceHonduras This Week

More often than not the landing into Toncontin airport, Tegucigalpa, ends in applause.

Natives and tourists are united in their relief to reach safety, following a series of sharp swerves against the mountain side and a touch down in close proximity to make shift housing on one of the shortest runways in the world. The pilots who make the landing are skilled. Still, the problems that the airlines face in Honduras are such that Honduran Association of Airlines is seeking reform.

As of yet, Tocontin has not witnessed a commercial crash. Yet its position between the sierra, and runway of a mere 2025 meters has opened it to a plenitude of criti-cism. Not only are Boeing 747s the largest aircraft allowed to land in the city, the airport has been desig-nated one of the most dangerous international airports in the world. Toncontin experiences most problems in the winter, when the turbulent humid weather means many flights have to be directed to San Pedro Sula. The surrounding mountains limit the effectiveness of precision equipment, which means that when visibility is bad the plane

can not land. These limitations have had a

profound effect on Tegucigalpa’s economy. “Not only does the confu-sion damage local businesses, who attempt to export produce from Tegucigalpa, the additional costs to airlines caused by the need to redirect aircraft are unsustain-able,” Armando Funes, President of the Honduran Association of Airlines explained. “Furthermore, many passengers don’t understand how restricted the airport is due to its physical location, and are

angered when flights are cancelled or delayed.” In effect, the airport’s reputation and difficulties have not benefited the country’s budding tourism industry, nor have urban legends painting pictures of planes using braking techniques designed especially for Tegucigalpa.

The challenges faced by airlines in are not restricted to the capital. “The problem is that Honduras has a policy of open air space,” continued Funes. “This means that any airline that meets the minimum legal requirements can begin opera-tions in the country.” This lack of regulation puts all users of the air space at risk.

It is for these reasons that the Honduran Association of Airlines seeks reform. “We hope to improve radio assistance and to extend the runway at Toncontin, utilizing the appropriate technology that this task needs.” Funes is optimistic in face of opposition that claims that Toncontin’s geographic location will mean it never meets interna-tional regulations. “We have initi-ated a study into the airports at Tegucigalpa, La Ceiba and Roatan, in order to give us a truthful evalu-ation of the state of our airports in Honduras. We hope to achieve safe control and regulation of our airports and airspace.”

Indeed, despite its prob-lems, Toncontin airport remains extremely important to Honduras. “Toncontin not only serves a demanding market, is also a strategic point of connection on case of major emergencies. After Hurricane Mitch, Toncontin served as the only connecting point from air in the country. This special condition is a safeguard for this kind of catastrophe, because the airport never floods due to the

topographic conditions,” Carlos Ramos, Manager of Interairports, the company that manages the airport, reminded. And clearly the airport still is dear to many. “Toncontin is no less safe than any other in the world” Ramos continued, in defense of airport. “In fact, the round of applause when the plane lands is only in response to the happiness of Honduran natives returning to their home country!”

Association of airlines seeks reform of Tegucigalpa airport

Courtesy of InterairportsA control tower at the Toncontin airport.

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW

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James BoddenSpecial to Honduras This Week

The Surface to Air Missile SA-7 carries an explosive warhead that can speed up to Mach 1.4, with a kill-zone range calculated between 15 and 1500 meters in altitude. This same weapon has become entangled in an international arma-ment dispute involving Nicaragua, Honduras, and the United States, when President Daniel Ortega reneged on a unilateral plan to disarm Nicaragua’s missile stock-piles.

The disarmament project was initiated by the former Nicaraguan President Enrique Bolanos Geyer, whose plans were favored by Washington. Ortega argues that his refusal to eliminate over 1000 Surface to Air Missiles is an attempt at maintaining the Central American military balance. He has accused the United States of strengthening the Honduran Air Force, an organization he considers to be a threat to his nation’s secu-rity.

The Director of Public Relations for the Honduran Armed Forces, Coronel Jose Lobo Romero, contends that the eight ‘Storm Rally’ aircraft the U.S. has pledged to donate have no offensive capa-bilities, “They are very small, hold one or two people, and cannot be fitted with weapons of destruction. The Honduran Air Force does not constitute a threat. The planes will be used for reconnaissance missions to fight the narcotics traffic and for use during natural disaster in search and rescue missions.”

Honduran government sources privately question Ortega’s asser-tions that Nicaragua’s SA-7 missiles are essential to its defense, arguing that these types of rockets are unable to shoot down the stron-gest aircraft of the Honduran fleet, F5 fighters. Though his rhetoric

is labeled as fuel for his political activists back home, there is fear, especially by the U.S., that rogue military or governmental elements could sell the rockets in the black market, or smuggle the weapons to the Colombian paramilitary group FARC, under the sphere of influ-ence of the Venezuelan administra-tion of Hugo Chavez. Government officials claim that the ‘Sandinista’ leadership is known for their close ties with President Chavez. Inside the State Department there is concern that these shoulder-fired missiles could be used by terrorists against commercial airliners.

The American Embassy in Nicaragua issued a clarifica-tion statement in reference to the Nicaraguan media reports of President Ortega’s contention that it would be “absurd” to destroy the missiles because, “recently the North American government approved renovation of the air fleet of war of Honduras.” The embassy

affirms “The U.S. Government is not providing Honduras with any offensive military aircraft.”

Dr. Oscar Martinez, a Honduran regional analyst, believes that there is always concern that arma-ments can disappear from weapon caches and end up into the wrong hands. “The only American country with an ongoing insurgency is Colombia. We don’t know what can happen with discarded or stolen arms. They could fall into the wrong sort of people, criminals and terrorists.” He adds that the concern over these weapons comes from allegations that the Chavez government quietly aids the FARC rebels, but, he says, “There is no proof, no evidence has come forth substantiating any of these claims. I believe the issue has been blown up in the media.”

Independent regional analysts are far from convinced that the missile row will have any serious consequences. Dr. Martinez believes the intentions of the collec-tive Nicaraguan body politic are supportive of a responsible disar-mament policy and so he sees no need for concern, “I don’t think it is a priority for the Honduran or Nicaraguan Governments, or any government in the region to cause conflict. I believe strongly that the Nicaraguan Congress is committed to the reduction of their missile stashes.”

The issue is compounded by

Nicaraguan missiles here to stay

Courtesy of the Honduran Air ForceThe strongest aircraft of the Honduran fleet is the F5 fighter.

MISSILES continued on page 13

Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW

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152 motions passed in the National Congress in 2006

The NGO Democracy Without Frontiers has released a report, which details the motions approved by and presented before the Honduran National Congress in 2006. The report explains that of the 152 decrees approved by Congress, 85 bore reference either to budget or to works of infrastructure. The report also indicates that the Liberal Party presented 46% of initiatives before congress, while the National Party pre-sented 38%. El Heraldo

Roberto Micheletti declares article 240 unconstitutional

President of Congress Roberto Micheletti has openly declared his desire to run for the presidency, despite laws that state that due to his position in Congress he must wait till 2010. Micheletti and his lawyers are preparing a case to bring before the Supreme Court of Justice in order to declare article 240, which prevents him from running for the position, as unconsti-tutional. The matter has divided congressmen, some of which offer Micheletti their support, others who state that the current constitution should be respected. El Heraldo

Severe weather causes damage to homes and crops

Heavy rain and severe weather has caused damage to Honduras throughout this week, including 2 deaths, destroyed homes and 12 damaged roads. The areas of Atlántida y Colón have been worse affected. The rain, which was brought by a cold front, has caused damage to a large variety of crops including bananas, African palm and basic grains. Approximately 81 communities have been isolated due to the weather. Hondudiario

Crime escalation brings vio-lence into the spotlight

A recent escalation in violent crime, includ-ing the assassination of police chiefs and prison executions have returned the attention of Congress to the problem of violent delinquency in Honduras. Yet in a meeting with Minister of Security Alvaro Romero, President Mel Zelaya has reassured that the military will not be dispatched on the streets to enforce order. Congressmen, including Enrique Flores Lanza, have demanded the immediate approval of the Police Law, aimed to dissuade the violence in the country. Hondudiario

WEEK IN REVIEW

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW6

N A T I O N A L

a restaurant,” Cerreto gives as an example, “the prices appear on the menu, but then later they add taxes, tips and costs for using credit card. With the new law, when you go to buy something the retailer will be forced to tell you the complete price, including absolutely everything. Then the consumer can make sure that they have enough to pay.”

A black list of all mal prac-tice carried out by commercial providers will also be initiated. All providers will have to put, at the disposition of their customers, some means by which complaints can be made. The public will then have unrestricted access to this black list in what Cerrato calls a “moral enforcement of the law.”

“In Brazil, a town the size of Tegucigalpa may have seven points where the public can go to present their reports, and in each place there are ten lawyers…I am making a plea that the state doesn’t create a law here without estab-lishing the mechanism for it to be adequately implemented,” said Cerrato. “Here, in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, we are currently insufficient to attend to the many incidents that will occur against the new law. We operate with 11 people across the whole country, with a budget of L.270, 000. It is an absolutely absurd situ-ation.”

Providers that do break the law will also face heavier punish-ment than they have in the past. Currently authorities can respond to criminal activity in this field with fines ranging from L10 to L500, 000. After the new bill is passed they will be able to respond with fines ranging from L500 to L25 million. Cerrato feels that the current sanctions are too restricted, and are not working properly. “The only time the maximum penalty has ever been administered was recently against the gas company Tropigas. They claimed to be selling gas in 25 pound batches. However, when

tested, 99% of containers held much less than this. In response, they claimed that to have filled the containers with 25 pounds of gas would have been unsafe.” 30% of all revenue from these new fines will go into a fund for the education of the consumer.

“One thing that needs to be cleared up, however, is that the people think the new law will enable the government to fix prices, but it does not facilitate this”, says Cerrato. “Journalists always say ‘the prices have gone up, and what are you going to do about it’…but according to the 2006 competition law monopolies, oligopolies and agreed prices are all illegal. This can guarantee competi-tion. The law for the protection of consumers will not function if it cannot sit comfortably alongside the law for the protection of compe-tition. So government cannot fix prices.”

“Yes,” admits Cerrato, “currently there is not free competition in Honduras; there are oligopolies…look at the seven sugar producers that agree the prices between them.” But here “it is the commission for competition that should be regulating the busi-nesses such that oligopolies cannot exist. And in the sectors where there is only one producer, it should create the conditions for other companies to enter and invest.”

CONSUMeR: Sanctions of up to 25 million lempirascon’t from page 1

Alex Jones/Honduras This WeekFredis Cerrato holds a press conference to discuss the new consumer protection bill.

Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW 7

N A T I O N A L

Louise Wallace

Honduras This Week

On Wednesday the 7th of March 2007, the 20th anniversary of US NGO Friends United was celebrated at the Inter Continental Hotel with a demonstration of traditional Honduran dancing and a dramatic presentation by local school children from La Escuela José Ipuilio de Falle in Tegucigalpa. The fiesta on the patio, which drew crowds of passing hotel guests, was a chance for both Honduran and US volunteers to reflect on the chari-ty’s achievements thus far, whose objective is summarized by its slick motto: ‘to teach teachers to teach.’

Founded in 1987, Friends United was formed with the specific purpose to train and support teachers in Honduras. In February each year, during Honduran school holidays, a select group of teachers are brought to Texas where they undergo two weeks of training in creative and stimulating teaching methods. ‘The idea is to equip teachers to work in schools where they have very few resources’ Norman Ruoff, volunteer and husband of Charlotte Ruoff, President of Friends United, explained.

Teachers that have been trained in Texas are then asked to share their training with teachers in

Honduras, running seminars in their municipalities. Educational training is passed from teacher to teacher, in what can be described as a chain of practical learning. ‘That’s the beauty of this project.’ A repre-sentative from Rotary commented. ‘This is something that feeds itself.’ Already some 2,000 teachers have been through the program.

Educational problems in Honduras are severe. Despite reforms enacted in 2007 to modernize the teaching system, many school children still lack access to the teachers, schools and resources that can provide an education that will serve them in life. This is the problem that Friends United aims to reduce.

“There are many very intel-ligent children who could achieve great things in this country, but who lack the opportunity to realize this potential,” summarized Bessy Pacheco, Honduran Director of Friends United. “It gives me great pleasure to see this project help Honduras. With better schools, better teachers, a better system of education, we can then achieve a better country.”

In Honduras it is estimated that 96% of the educational budget goes on teacher’s salaries, leaving a mere 4% for resources and training. It is evident that private funding is therefore extremely important to the US charity. “To complete

our objects, to make the kind of profound difference that we want to make, we need more money.” Yet so too are volunteers grateful for the money they have received, including a $20,000 matching grant made by Rotary International.

Indeed, the generosity evident both in Honduras and the US has been the backbone of this organi-zation - money which has enabled Friends United to establish four resource centers in Copan Ruinas, San Pedro Sula, Santa Barbara and Tegucigalpa. Each resource center contains a copier, computer, paper and laminator. Though the laminators are expensive, there is common consensus among the volunteers at Friends United that it is worth conserving the work that children and staff have done.

With the NGO Friends United there is a sense that the title is appropriate - the welcome given to US representatives by the Honduran director Bessie at the Inter Continental Hotel is report-edly equally warm in Southern Texas, where the select teachers complete their two weeks training. ‘We chose Southern Texas because there are a great deal of Spanish speakers’ John, a representative of Rotary said. ‘These teachers are accepted into the community.’

There is a family atmosphere. ‘We take only as many as I can fit into my van,’ Norman Ruoff jokes.

Honduran and US volunteers embrace warmly at the reunion. They are united in their vision for education in Honduras. None of them receive a wage.

Yet most importantly, Friends United is an organization in which both volunteers and teachers have faith. “To see the difference between the classrooms; between

the interest among the children due to the work of Friends United is as astounding as it is moving,” an independent observer said. And the future for Honduran education? “We hope that Friends United can be an exchange in which the Honduran system of education too has something valuable to contribute.”

Anniversary celebrations for Friends United

Louise Wallace/Honduras This WeekSchool children who performed at the celebration demonstrate creative teaching techniques.

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW8

Reading the national daily papers in Honduras on a regular basis is one great way to get a feel for what’s going on in front of and behind the scenes. All too often, of course, the news tend to focus on gloom and doom with a healthy dose of crime stories and full color pictures of homicide victims splashed right on front. One must often dig deep into the heart of the paper to pick up the savory morsels of positive news. For example La Prensa reported this week on a new program financed by the World Bank to cut red tape and provide new start up businesses with a quick and agile response by municipal authori-ties when applying for a permit to operate a business. Now getting a new business permit will take a matter of hours in San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa instead of the 44 days that it reportedly used to take. Great news for small business owners who are looking to start up a new venture. Small measures like this one mean a lot in a country like Honduras where one step forward is often followed by two steps back. The fact that small businesses will be able to get permits to operate their business in a matter of hours

will do much to help to create a more pro-business and pro-invest-ment climate, which is especially important in San Pedro Sula, the motor which drives the Honduran economy.

With the recent increase in funds being sent back to Honduras by family members in the US, part of these billions pumped into the Honduran economy can be dedicated to start up businesses which in turn, create jobs and help to create wealth. Unfortunately the vast majority of “remesas” as these funds are known, go to pay for consumer goods, housing construction and remodeling and basic living expenses. However, a minority of those lucky enough to receive that monthly transfer of US dollars are smart enough to realize that it is better to forgo the new super-sized flat screen TV and instead use the money to invest in a small business. At the present time, the governments of Central America are scratching their collec-tive heads, trying to come up with some sort of workable strategy to promote the use of money transfers to promote investment and the creation of jobs and wealth.

On a different note, did you

know that the biggest private employer in Mexico is Wal-Mart? Wal-Mart is also the largest store chain in Latin America, with 895 stores. As Wal-Mart pulls out of the more developed countries such as Germany and South Korea where they found slippery footing and little sales traction, sales are zooming in Latin America, where low prices and few frills attract a loyal following. Latin Americans, long used to paying high prices for everything from food to clothing to consumer electronics in small, locally owned stores, have now embraced the entry of multina-tional retailers like Wal-Mart, Electra and Price Smart, the latter two which have entered the Honduran market. Wal-Mart has not opened its own stand alone stores as yet in Honduras, but it is tentatively testing the waters through its purchase of a number of supermarket chains. Will Wal-Mart and its low, everyday prices one day pull up to Honduran shores? Hard to say. But the day they do cut the ribbon, the entire retail panorama will change in San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa in one fell swoop - guaranteed.

And finally, Hedman Alas, the numero uno first class bus company in Honduras, has added additional buses serving Copan Ruinas. There is now a bus departing Copan Ruinas for San Pedro Sula at 5 p.m. and another bus departing San Pedro Sula for Copan at 5:30 p.m. For more info www.hedmanalas.com

Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW 9

C U L T U R E

“During these days a feeling of awe crept over me. My memory worked with startling power. The ominous, the insignificant, the great, the small, the wonderful, the commonplace all appeared before my mental vision in magical succession.”

--Joshua Slocum, Sailing Alone Around the World

Seven years before my birthday, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached the summit of the tallest mountain on the planet. In 1967, Francis Chichester sailed alone around the world. In 1969 Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin reached Earth’s moon.

My dad was fortunate enough to live through these events. I had to read about them as part of history. To me they were all as distant as Homer’s account of the siege of Troy. Nevertheless, as with anybody whose imagination runs unbridled—like a sinful parson seeking redemption-- the idea of man transcending his limitations in search of meaning is dear to me.

Along with these happenings, I was also too young to be able to live through the first around the world solo-sailing race: the 1968 Golden Globe, sponsored by the London Sunday Times. But I read all about it in a fantastic book my brother gave me, “A Voyage for Madmen,” masterfully written by Peter Nichols. Much of what follows has that book to thank as reference.

Of the nine men who set out to finish, this first of its kind-- the most audacious ocean race ever conceived until that time-- only two were in conditions to finish: Robin Knox-Johnston and Bernard Moitessier. One did, the other chose not to.

I repeat he chose not to… the other seven were unable to finish. But we will talk about Bernard Moitessier in another article.

Nowadays, globe-girdling solo races are much more—if you will—commonplace. They’re facilitated enormously by multimillion spon-sors, technological wizardry and gadgets. Solo sailors can now stay in touch with the world through satellite telephone, e-mail, fax and

obtain immediate electronic fixes through global positioning systems. Back in 1968, any man facing the ocean in a race like that was alone, truly alone, for weeks and even months. Not to detract from their likewise remarkable contempo-raries—it always takes a certain type of man or woman to venture out alone around the world in a sailboat—but these first fellows

were autonomous and, by rights, formidable.

Knox-Johnston-- now Sir Robin—finished the race and deservedly went on to fame and fortune. Such notoriety was merely incidental, and never his purpose. The money was also a by-product.

I first learned of him as I watched TV one day. He was being interviewed about something having to do with sailing boats. I noticed that the caption beneath his name read “Mariner.” Wow! The title alone was better than any “Sir,” at least in my book. Not sailor, nor skipper or captain, not yachtsman, nor accomplished racer…. No. It was MARINER. And I said to myself, what does one have to do to be called a mariner?

Well, for one thing, you have to circumnavigate the world in a sailboat. That necessarily entails a little bit more than just rounding Cape Horn, which is in and of itself pretty tough, and I don’t think you’d deserve to be called a “mariner” if you did it in a motor-boat (we’ll go into this a little more some other time). No, to be entitled to such an appellation, a man must launch himself way beyond his comfort zone, relentlessly master his fears and allow the universe to conspire with him to work the miraculous purpose of a lifetime. A mariner knows how to unleash the fountainhead of energy sleeping

within. A floating vessel is the final and least requirement for circling the globe’s vast oceans alone.

To quote from the ancient Indian philosopher, “When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all of your thoughts break their bonds: your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction and you find your-self in a new, great and wonderful world.”

As I researched, read and saw more of Knox-Johnston, I came to realize he was not normal. That is to say, not ordinary. To stay fit during the long race, this man would tie a line around his waist, walk to the bow of his heeling sail-boat, jump into the ocean, swim alongside the vessel until it outdis-tanced him, and then—using the rope-- haul himself up the stern, only to repeat the exercise again. He was in the Southern Latitudes, as far away from land as can be, and alone.

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston was termed “distressingly normal” during routine psychiatric evalu-ations-- before and after the race. But then, such purposeful madness has never been an issue within easy grasp of the routine mindset, nor has normalcy ever been equipped to adequately gauge the extraordi-nary makeup of those more driven and inspired than itself.

The Leeward CourseThe Leeward CourseBy JORGE AGURCIA FASQUELLE

Courtesy of the University of Liverpool Website www.liv.ac.ukSir Robin Knox-Johnston was a mariner.

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW10

C U L T U R E

Patrick AhernHonduras This Week

This short and very read-able book written by Guillermo Yuscarán gives us the stories of seven persons from the U.S. and their impact, for better or for worse, on Honduras. The good news is that only two could be clas-sified ugly and four as very good. Only six you say? The famous short story writer, O. Henry, was in Trujillo less than a year in the late 19th century hiding from U.S. bank examiners and his actual impact on Honduras was indif-ferent. His novel “Cabbages and Kings” doesn’t even put Honduras on the map as he calls the country “Anchuria” and Trujillo “Coralito.” Check it out in my review of his novel in Honduras This Week back on November 13, 2006.

William Walker is the ugly one, although he did most of his damage to Nicaragua where he overthrew the government as a mercenary and named himself president in 1856. He was later captured by the British Navy and turned over to Honduran authorities in Trujillo who promptly executed him.

Lee Christmas, from Louisiana, arrived in Honduras in 1894 to work on the railroad. After acciden-tally driving his train into a battle between factions he grabbed a rifle and impressed the authorities with his valor. He was appointed chief of police in Tegucigalpa a few years later and befriended Manuel Bonilla. When Bonilla was

deposed by Nicaraguan troops in 1908 he was exiled to British Honduras (Belize). It was from there that Lee Christmas led two invasions of Honduras on behalf of Bonilla with the financial backing of Samuel Zemurray, the founder of United Fruit Company. In 1912 Bonilla rewarded Christmas by making him a general and head of the police on the North Coast based in Puerto Cortes. Christmas acted with impunity, ran several illicit businesses, womanized, and became cocky and self centered. He was a classic “ugly American.” By 1915 he was thrown out of the police and founded business ventures from selling shark oil, to exploring for petroleum, all of which failed.

Who hasn’t been to the ruins of Copan? Did you know that John Lloyd Stephens is the first to record the ruins way back in 1839? Stephens was an avid archeologist and adventurer and managed to be named Ambassador (“Minister”) to the new (and constantly at war with itself) Central American Federation. More interested in ancient civilizations than politics, Stephens landed in Belize and trav-eled by boat to the Rio Dulce and Lago Izabel in Guatemala and then by mule in search of Copan.

Yuscarán describes their moment of discovery, “They stood in silence, awestruck, looking out upon the entrance to the lost city of Copan-----an eight mile valley strewn with remnants of a highly advanced civilization: temples, stone altars, carved columns

depicting men and animals: the heads of jaguars, serpents, build-ings shaped like pyramids. ‘I knew,’ Stephens later wrote (in Incidents of Travel in Guatemala, Chiapas and the Yucatan) that a new chapter in history was unfolding before us, that we were entereing….upon new ground and that a great mystery was there to be solved and that it would take a long time.’”

No digital cameras back then. Stephens was assisted greatly by the Scotsman Frederick Catherwood who had recorded many of the Egyptian and Middle Eastern ruins with precise and detailed drawings. But first Stephens and Catherwood went to the home of “Jose Acebedo, the man who reportedly held official title to the property. Reaching an agreement was easy, primarily because Don José considered the terrain useless ----too rocky and overgrown for the planting of tobacco. He sold the land for fifty dollars. They then hired locals and partially cleared the site of jungle

growth to record and map the site.” Stephens is credited with

awakening an interest in a host of Mayan ruins during his travels on the Isthmus, including the gems of Palenque and Uxmal. He also managed to fit in some diplomacy and met Francisco Morazan whom he admired but feared would not be successful in unifying Central America.

Two of the gringos profiled were an essential part of the Pan American School of Agriculture at Zamarano and avid biologists. Wilson Popenoe worked for the United Fruit Company and created for them the prestigious botanical garden and research center called Lancetilla just outside of Tela. He introduced 800 species from all over the tropics to Lancetilla including the red “litchi” you see being sold on the side of the road. Among the many new plants Popenoe introduced was the African Oil Palm which now is a huge cash crop on the North Coast. Popenoe also introduced and cultivated chinchona trees which supplied the bark for quinine needed in the South Pacific by the allies during World War II.

Popenoe was later assigned by the United Fruit Company to start an agricultural school which he did at Zamarano in 1943. He believed in “learning by doing” and did not want to award a degree fearing his student would end up with desk jobs instead of getting their hands dirty in the field.

One of the first people Popenoe hired to teach at Zamarano was Archie Carr, an enthusiastic biolo-gist who made the conservation of sea turtles his life’s work. In addition Carr was a keen observer of his human and natural surround-ings and wrote many books including The Windward Road for

which he coincidently won the O. Henry Memorial Award in 1956. Carr went on to do research and teach outside of Honduras, but living in the valley of Zamarano with his family was a highlight of his life: “There was never anything like it…plenty of game…and a little known wilderness at your doorstep. The volcano set Pacific shore was sixty miles to the south and the hot, lush banana coast a hundred miles to the north; you could climb a mountain three miles away and find any sort of weather you hankered after.” In addition to numerous awards for his nature writing, Carr was given the Eminent Ecologist Award from the Ecological Society of America. Following in their father’s footsteps one of his sons headed the Caribbean Conservation Corporation in Costa Rica and another worked for Wildlife Conservation International.

Last, but not least we have Chet Thomas still living amongst us in Honduras. Chet arrived in Honduras in 1974 to help rebuild after Hurricane Fifi. Chet later founded Proyecto Aldeas Global (PAG) and built it into the well established development orga-nization it is today. Thomas took many of the ideas of Popenoe to the people who needed it most. In Belen Gualcho and other places in the cold western highlands of Copan and Ocotopeque, PAG intro-duced hundreds of thousands of apple and peach trees and a coop-erative with cold storage to market them. Thomas also took conserva-tion cues from Archie Carr and PAG now administers and protects the Meamber Blue Mountain National Park which is the water-shed of the Yuri River above Lago Yojoa. You may have stopped at the PAG run “La Naturaleza” Restaurant near the lake which has a museum showing the historical and natural richness of the region and of the National Park. The number of projects PAG is involved in is truly inspiring. They include building houses with people in poor colonias of Tegucigalpa to health and AIDS education projects in Siguatepeque to an orphanage in San Pedro Sula. Despite all the pressure of building his NGO from scratch, Chet and his wife are pillars of the community of Santa Lucia and Chet is an elder in the Union Church.

Despite his nom de plume, Yuscarán is a gringo himself, albeit a resident of Honduras since 1972. His real name is William Lewis and he splits his time between Tela and Santa Lucia and between his painting and writing. Some of his paintings can be found above the fine public library in Santa Lucia and his many books in book and artisan shops around the country.

Gringos in Honduras - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW 11

C U L T U R E

Alex JonesHonduras This Week

I arrive in a quaint and pretty little pueblo just outside Tegus, named Santa Lucia, to inter-view the author of ‘Gringos in Honduras’. However when I get there I realize I have no idea where the guy lives. Over the phone he had told me how he was quite well known in the area, so I should just ask for directions. Oh well, I think, let’s try it. “¿Sabe dónde vive un autor gringo?” I ask the first person I come across. “Ah, el pintor Yuscaran…si, arriba y a la izquierda.” It seems he was right. He is quite well known here, and consequently I can make it to the interview.

El pintor Yuscaran’s real name is William Lewis. Born and brought up in California, Lewis got a PhD in Hispanic Studies from the University of California, and was “all set out to be a professor.” He had a couple of job opportuni-ties at universities in the U.S, but didn’t really like the idea of a future in academia. Though his mates were shouting at him “dude, you’re throwing away your educa-tion,” he managed to “stick it out long enough, and eventually get away from it.” He then saw an ad in a local newspaper for a teaching job in Tegucigalpa. “That’s a cool sounding name,” he thought, “I’m going there.”

That was a long time ago. And since then he has traveled back and forth many times, started a family with a Garífuna woman who he now lives with in Tela, written many books, painted many paintings and met some amazing people.

One anecdote he told me explains how he came to adopt his pen name. He had started a short story about, well, many things. But the narrative developed around a prostitute who gives birth on a beach…anyway, he had no idea how to end the story. Then one day he was in the village of Yuscaran and something caught his eye, after which an ending came to him. He was contemplating what to do with the short piece now that it was finally finished, and thought: “hey, why don’t I send it to Mizz Magazine?” “This was during the 70’s,” he explains, “and Mizz was a real outpost of feminist stuff. I figured they might like it…I didn’t really ever dream that they would publish it, but maybe if I was a woman they would be more likely to; so I called myself Francisca Yuscaran.” Francisca as it is a woman’s name, and Yuscaran because of the place. “So,” the story continues, “a few months later I was at my house in California, when the phone rings and my son picks it up. ‘Hey Dad,’ he whispers, ‘who’s Francisca Yuscaran?’ …pause… ‘Oh s**t; that’s me!’ Turns out they wanted to give me eight

or so hundred bucks to publish the piece. So since then I’ve called my self Guillermo (William in Spanish) Yuscaran.”

Lewis started as a writer after he hurt his back, aged 29, and had to take life easy for a while. Then, in his early 30’s he took up painting. Now he is really into that too. “For me writing is a lot more cerebral,” he says, “I need a lot of quiet. But with painting I can really let it all go, you know, turn up the music and stuff.” “I think one of my main influences in art was my third grade girlfriend…she could shade those colors and it just blew me away.” I saw a few of Lewis’ paint-ings up around his house, and they definitely use a lot of color.

“Actually what I am into is dreams,” he goes on, “I’m into all that symbolism. What I do now is I record them. I can be kind of half asleep as I do this…then I listen back over them in the morning.” He pointed me in the direction of Carl Gustav Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist who used dreams as an integral pathway into the explora-tion of mind and spirit, and also an amigo of Sigmund Freud. “He was an inspiration for me in terms of dreams. He felt that they are intimately related not only to our own symbolism, but also perhaps go back through time…and I think he is kind of right here. Because I know I dream about stuff I have never experienced…I have come to realize that a lot of what I write and paint is really influenced by what I dream.”

For a long time before he moved here permanently Lewis was trav-eling back and forth between the States and Honduras. One time, about 20 odd years ago, he was in a bank in Tegus and he saw a bunch

of paintings that he liked along the wall. He asked the lady behind the counter who they were by, to which she replied that they were “the paintings of a man named Jose: Jose Antonio Velásquez – living just up the street.” So Lewis went up the street and knocked on the artist’s door. The two got talking, and ended up amigos. When Lewis was next in the States he wrote an article about this Honduran artist, and, upon returning again to Tegus he brought a copy to show his friend. To his complete surprise the article had already been trans-lated into Spanish and published

throughout the city, and Velásquez had already read it. Anyway, the conclusion was that the Honduran artist wanted to make a whole book. Lewis thought this was a great idea, and replied “just wait for me to find a little place down here…I’ll get my stuff and move and then we can get started.” And that is exactly what happened. He moved, and still has that little place. Indeed that is exactly where I spoke with him last Thursday.

Is it William Lewis, or maybe Guillermo Yuscaran, or, sorry, was it Francisca Yuscaran? Definitely a mad gringo in Honduras.

William Lewis: A particular gringo in Honduras

Alex Jones/Honduras This WeekGuillermo Yuscaran, author of ‘Gringos in Honduras’, outside his house in Santa Lucia.

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW12

JUST HEARSAY, BUT RELIABLE HEARSAYWhen we asked the ship’s crew as to why their giant cruise ship

docked here unexpectedly on a Sunday, we were told they re-routed their people to Roatan because on their last visit to Puerto Rico a small tour bus full of ship passengers was stopped on an isolated road by a lone bandito. Then it seems, as the people were being herded of the bus, an ex United States Marine overpowered the would-be crook and “broke his little neck.” Everyone finished their day tour and left the country. Now there are concerns by that government so the cruise line sent the next voyage to Roatan where there are no problems of that nature. Hurray.

A CARNIVAL ATHMOSPHEREIt seems the Carnival Cruise Ship Lines held another ribbon cutting

ceremony inaugurating the beginning of their improvement plans for a substantial installation near Coral Caye. Things are jumping on Roatan.

STILL ANOTHER PLACE TO EATBack we go to Jackson Plaza in Mt. Pleasant across from the Texaco

station. Charlie’s Café. A super special of the day at a mere one hundred Lemps. Today was Beef strips, rice with a great sauce and a green salad. There is a menu as well and they seem to specialize in sub sandwiches but whatever you want they will make. French fries made with, believe it or not potatoes, and cold, cold drinks. This could be the new lunch spot.

A PUBLIC SERVICE OF HTWThe police are looking for clues as to the whereabouts of the below

pictured suspect. The computer-generated image was put together from descriptions of eyewitnesses to the slaying of a local business-person Friday evening about 9:30 p.m. This lone gunman shot and killed Mr. Nicoloi Fredenc, the owner of the Roatan Yacht Club Hotel in French Harbor. Robbery was not a motive and the victim did not know the shooter, why it is theorized it could have possibly been a contract killing. The victim was involved in a compli-cated real estate transaction recently, and had mentioned to several people he might be targeted in the near future.

The police roped off the street, covered the yacht depot and the airport looking for departures but have not yet found the suspect. Any and all information should be relayed to any agent of investigations from the D.G.I.C. squad. Their phone number is 445 3771.

T O U R I S M

Courtesy of the National PoliceA computer-generated image of the man who shot and killed the owner of the Roatan Yacht Club Hotel.

I was asked by the former Governor of the Bay Islands, Jack Clinton Everett, to announce the arrival of a Lions Club Medical Eye Brigade to the island on my radio show. It sounded like a good idea and I was glad to let people know they were here. Doctors came to give eye tests and eye glasses to anyone who needed it. The next day, I went to the downtown Roatan Hospital where it was all taking place and found an exceptional group of 24 people from Muskegon, Michigan hard at work on a program that will help islanders have better vision. They were there from March 5th until the 8th, from 8 am to 5 pm. I spoke to some of the volunteers.

Bob Shallo: This is our 25th mission that has included stops in past years to El Salvador, Nicaragua, Mexico and other Central America countries.

Roatan Bruce: I had no idea the scope of what you were doing before I came to see it for myself. I am glad I did. I see boxes and

boxes of glasses. Bob Shallo: We brought over

8,000 pairs of prescription glasses and another 2,000 reading glasses and sun glasses. My group up in Michigan spends three hours every Saturday working to get the glasses ready. Someone drives 90 minutes each way to be a part of it. The Lions clubs sponsors collection points around the United States where people who outgrow their glasses can donate them. First we sort, fix and clean them. Then a lens reader tells us what the prescription is and we label them. We put them in plastic bags, number them and then enter them into computers. When we come to a place like this, the doctors exam the people and when a prescription is needed, the computer comes up with the appropriate glasses for that person from the thousands we brought down.

Roatan Bruce: There are glasses for people of any age?

Bob Shallo: Yes! When Clinton was working to put this together with us, he told me there were a great amount of school age kids that needed glasses. Kids’ glasses are hard to find because kids tend to break glasses rather than outgrow them. We still came up with a lot of them.

Roatan Bruce: Most kids prob-

ably don’t even realize that they have a sight problem. They are so used to the way they see, they don’t know it can be any better. That is why getting the word out that there are eye exams is so important and necessary.

Bob Shallo: We can bring the doctors and we can bring the glasses, but we never could have done it without Clinton organizing it from this end. He brought all the people and school children to us. It is truly a team effort that is making our trip here so successful.

Jack Clinton Everett: It is something so needed. I had all the media spread the word that these doctors would be here doing such good work.

Bob Shallo: These six doctors will each see over 100 people during the day. We will attend to more than 700 people each day or almost 3000 islanders this week. We as Lions Club members are here to serve. This gave us the opportunity to serve others.

These dedicated Lions Club people will be helping islanders for generations to come with just this one visit. They are leaving thousands of glasses behind to help people long after they have left. Many thanks to Jack Clinton Everett and all of the generous and kind people for bringing their Eye Brigade to Roatan!

Bruce Starr is the host of The Roatan Bruce Show now heard on 106.5 FM weekdays from 10 am to 1 pm across the Bay Islands and Northern Honduras. Please visit his website at roatanbruce.com or contact him at [email protected] with your comments and suggestions.

Islanders Seeing Clearly Now!

Bruce StarrRoatan children were provided with eye glasses.

Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW

the maritime delimitation trail at the International Court of Justice in The Hague; the case will be argued throughout March. Honduras claims that a boundary already exists along the parallel 15, while Nicaragua favors a line extending to the parallel 17 as its Caribbean Sea border.

Managua has stated that these rockets are an important line of defense in the case of a Honduran invasion. Officials in Tegucigalpa counter the accusation observing that the Nicaraguan infantry is twice the size of their Honduran counterpart. Military analysts agree that the Honduran Armed forces is a much smaller ground force, but has a much more powerful aerial capacity. Nicaragua on the other hand has a larger infantry base, but no real air force; its defense spending is the lowest in Central America. When approached for a statement, the Nicaraguan ambassador to Honduras, a hold over from the previous administration, was unable to comment on the ongoing missile situation.

13

Decreased foreign invest-ment in 2006

The direct foreign investment (DFI) in Honduras in 2006 didn’t reach the 2005 levels according to preliminary numbers presented by the President of the Central Bank Gabriela Núñez. The total DFI for 2006 was 565 million dollars, compared to 567.8 million dollars the year before. According to Núñez, this decrease can be explained by the decline in investment in the maquila sector which dropped from 195 to 175 million dollars. However, foreign investment in commerce grew from 371 to 390 million dollars. Núñez anticipated increased investment in 2007 due to numerous invest-ments in the telephony sector. El Heraldo

Public bid to solve energy problem on Roatan

A public bid for 10 megawatts of electricity will be opened in order to avoid the periodic blackouts in Roatán, the country’s main tour-ist destination. Thus informed the National Company of Electricity (ENEE), where the sub-ject was discussed at a board meeting. ENEE, which took over the Roatan Energy Company (RECO) for a period of six months on February 1st, will prepare the framework for the bid and coordinate the process. The 10 megawatts are needed to compensate for the increased demand of electricity on the island and short-age due to the company’s malfunctioning diesel generators. Diesel is considered one of the most expensive fuels for power generation. El Heraldo

Investments in infrastruc-ture to improve business climate

The government is investing some 11 billion lempiras in improving the Honduran invest-ment climate, said the Minister of Finance Rebeca Santos, at a meeting with the National Association of Industry (ANDI). According to

Santos, investors are primarily asking for a well-maintained road network, as well as effi-cient telecommunications and power services at a competitive price. Hence, the government is investing in a series of energy and high-way projects, as well as in improved security. Two thousand new policemen will graduate annually and, with the help of the Spanish government, their logistic equipment will be improved. La Tribuna

Fuel bid process indefinite-ly suspended

Due to legal obstacles, the finalization of the fuel bid process has been indefinitely suspend-ed, the government concentrating its powers on overcoming the crisis in the National Electricity Company (ENEE). Though occupying the heights of the presidential agenda since Conoco Philips won the bid four months ago, the fuel bid has now been downgraded to the point that many doubt that there will be a solution. The owner of Honduran fuel company DIPPSA has refused to accept that the government take over its ter-minals and let Conoco Philips use them, which the government has the right to do in the case of a national emergency. DIPPSA has instead requested the annulment of the presidential decree emitted in January. Experts believe that a case such as this could last up to two years. La Tribuna

Delta Airlines to traffic Tegucigalpa

One year after starting its operations in Honduras, Delta Airlines is looking into the pos-sibility of introducing a direct flight between Tegucigalpa and Atlanta. Since direct flights between Atlanta and Roatan and Atlanta and San Pedro Sula began one year ago, more than 32,000 passengers have traveled with Delta. The airline is hoping to increase its market share by 15 percent and its sales by 20 percent in 2007. El Heraldo

BUSINESSWEEK IN REVIEW

B U S I N E S S / N A T I O N A LMISSILeS: Honduran ground force small but air force more powerfulcon’t from page 4

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW

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A SCHOOL WITH UNIQUE TEACHING TECHNIQUES!

OUR PROGRAMS:* Intensive Spanish Language program in:* La Ceiba * Utila Bay Island * Roatan Bay Island * Eco-Spanish, Biological and Scientific Program* In Cayos Cochinos marine protected area.* Ecological Intensive Spanish Language Program* In the National Park Pico Bonito.* Mayan and Beach Intensive Language Program* Available in La Ceiba, Utila and Copan Ruinas.

* Transfer Credits available from US Universities. Call: 440-1707E-mail: [email protected]

www.ca-spanish.com

O T H e R S

Help Wanted Experience license real estate agent, call dreams of paradise real estate and devel-opment. You can contact us at: (504) 445-4331

or (504) 445-4332or e-mail: [email protected], ask for

Jeff Kukene.

American man learning to speak Spanish is seeking Spanish*speaking Hondureñas to correspond with by mail. I’m 45; I’m an artist, musician and lover of mountains and trees. Please send me a letter and I will write back soon. Jeff Hacking W.S.R. No. 971742, P.O.Box 777, Monroe, WA 98272 USA________________________

Hombre Americano aprendiendo a hablar español, en busca de Hondureñas para intercambiar correspondencia. Tengo 45 años de edad, soy un artista, músico y me encantan as montañas y árboles. Por favor envíame una carta y les escribiré rápidamente. Mi direc-ción es: Jeff Hacking W.S.R. No. 971742, P.O.Box 777, Monroe WA, 98272 USA.

general Contractor AvailableFlorida Certified General Contractor recently relocated to Tegucigalpa. Over thirty years of experience in commer-cial, institutional, industrial (heavy), underground, marine and high end residential construction. Expertise in administrative and field management. Also available to oversee and inspect the construction of your new office or home.

Call Mike at 504-230-7207, or e-mail: [email protected]

F O R S A L e

For SaleSiguatepeque, Spring like all year, two places on 2+ acres each, both with a large house and small house for employee, fruit trees. water, electric, all weather road just off major hwy. short distances from town. $65,000 each If interested contact:

[email protected]

For Rent

Main Street, Colonia Palmira, #2036 ½ block from United Nations Building and La Salsa Restaurant • Perfect for Office with more than 10 Units • Meeting/Board Room • Air Conditioning • Electric Generator • Available Computer Network • 3 Phone Lines • Water Cistern • Lush Gardens • Social/Break room Areas • 4 Car Garage • 3 ½ Restrooms

Information: Tel. 232-6263,

Sr. Enrique Moncada

Apartment For RentGood Location in Col. La Reforma, close to the US Embassy. Apartment has two bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, living room, din-ing room, kitchen, storage room, service bedroom (bathroom included), interior patio, telephone line Price: $375.00 If you are interested please contact:

[email protected] call Tel: (504) 236-5526 at night.

Personal

A single father of two children, living at home, others in college/university all of various nationalities would like to commu-nicate with single mother with children, please address me to:

Ronald Stares740-21st E.

House No. 34Owen Sound, Ontario

Canada N4k6wI

executive escortIn San Pedro Sula, Cortes, with beautiful girls, seven days a week and every hour, only in Hotels. Contact: Cel: 9984-8492 or email: [email protected]

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Saturday, March 10, 2007HONDURAS THIS WEEKYOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW 15

Saturday, March 10, 2007 HONDURAS THIS WEEK YOUR CENTRAL AMERICAN WEEKLY REVIEW16