U.S. urges repeal of emergency decree

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, Sept. 29 (UPI) -- The U.S. State Department has called on Honduras to immediately rescind its emergency decree restricting Hondurans' constitutional rights, a spokesman said.

Honduran leader Roberto Micheletti Monday said he would repeal the law, but not before it underwent a legal review, CNN reported Tuesday.

"The freedoms inherent in the suspended rights are inalienable and cannot be limited or restricted without seriously damaging the democratic aspirations of the Honduran people," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said in a statement late Monday.

The 45-day decree was announced Sunday in response to increased unrest after ousted President Jose Manuel Zelaya sneaked into Honduras Sept. 20 and holed up in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital. The decree bars unauthorized public gatherings, allows for arrests without judicial orders and permits the government shutdown of media outlets deemed a threat to "peace and order."

"This decision was made because (Zelaya) was calling for insurrection ... but I'm going to listen to the other powers of the state and we're going to make the most wise decision in the interests of Honduras," Micheletti was quoted as saying in the newspaper La Prensa.

Monday was the three-month anniversary of Zelaya's ouster in a military coup. The United Nations, the Organization of American States and the European Union have condemned the coup and demanded that Zelaya be reinstated. Micheletti said Zelaya will never return to power and that the deposed president will be arrested if he leaves the Brazilian embassy.