TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Honduras' interim government is cracking down on civil rights in response to ousted President Manuel Zelaya's calls for rebellion.
The order announced by government officials late Sunday suspends key individual liberties and guarantees contained in the Honduran Constitution - allowing authorities to ban any "unauthorized" public meetings, arrest people without warrants and temporarily close news media outlets that "attack peace and order."
The government said the measure is in response to Zelaya's "calls for insurrection."
Earlier in the day, Zelaya called on his supporters to stage a mass march today to mark the three-month anniversary of the June 28 coup that ousted him.
Zelaya said the government "has to fall."
Honduras' interim government on Sunday also expelled personnel from the Organization of American States looking to set up a mediation effort and gave Brazil a 10-day ultimatum to decide what to do with Zelaya, who is holed up in the Brazilian Embassy.
Organization Special Adviser John Biehl said he and four other members of an advance team - including two Americans, a Canadian and a Colombian - were stopped by authorities after landing at Tegucigalpa's airport Sunday. Biehl, who is Chilean, said he was later told he could stay, but the others were put aboard flights out of the country.
"A high-ranking official told us we were expelled, that we had not notified [the interim government] that we were coming," he said.
Biehl said he was in Honduras to set up a visit by the organization's Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza, who he said would arrive "at the appropriate time."
Interim government Foreign Minister Carlos Lopez said the four were turned back because they had been "clearly warned" that they had to give advance notice of their visit, and didn't. He said Biehl had been allowed to stay because he had played a role in the San Jose talks mediated by CostaRican President Oscar Arias.
Interim President Roberto Micheletti has previously said the organization was welcome to come, but suggested that representatives begin arriving today. Lopez said the team's arrival didn't come "at the right time ... because we are in the middle of internal conversations."
Talks between Zelaya and Micheletti's representatives have produced no results. Zelaya, who surprised the world by sneaking back into Honduras last week, called on his followers nationwide to mark today's three-month anniversary of the coup with a mass march in the capital to demand his reinstatement, what he called "the final offensive" against the interim government.
A spokesman for Micheletti also warned Brazilian authorities to "immediately take measures to ensure that Mr. Zelaya stops using the protection offered by the diplomatic mission to instigate violence in Honduras."
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva immediately rejected the missive, saying his government "doesn't accept ultimatums from coup-plotters."
Micheletti has said previously that he plans to arrest Zelaya, who was deposed in a June coup. Zelaya faces treason and abuse of authority charges for ignoring court orders to drop plans for a referendum on rewriting the constitution.
Lopez said Brazil has 10 days to "turn Zelaya over to the judicial authorities of Honduras" or decide some otherarrangement for him. The government has said it has no plans to raid the Embassy and that Zelaya could leave if Brazil offers him political asylum. Lopez also said that, because Brazil has broken off diplomatic relations with the interim government, it would have to remove the Brazilian flag and shield from the Embassy "and it [the building] becomes a private office."
Brazil - like the rest of the international community - recognizes Zelaya as Honduras' legitimate president, and says it wants to protect him.
Information for this article was contributed by Fabiola Sanchez and Freddy Cuevas of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 4 on 09/28/2009