The “military coup” that occurred in Honduras last Sunday was a legitimate act to protect the Honduran Republic’s constitutional government from a power hungry president.

The roots of the crisis began months ago when now-former President Manuel Zelaya began a series of reforms and programs that earned him the contempt of not just the opposition, but of his own political party as well. Internationally, he began cozying up to Venezuela and Cuba. Domestically, he engaged in fiery rhetoric and populist reforms which earned him a few friends, but alienated business leaders and political allies.

Having traded his political capital for public support, and with no more steam to get things done in the legislature, Zelaya began to push for constitutional changes. Among the changes he sought was one that was unconstitutional: an amendment that would allow him to seek reelection as President. The Honduran constitution, you see, specifically says certain parts of it cannot be amended (changing or removing term limits is one of them). Taking a page from Hugo Chavez’s book, he began to campaign for a public referendum to change the constitution. There was just one problem: the Honduran constitution has a process by which to amend it, and public referendum wasn’t that process.

Noticing that President Zelaya was trying to accomplish an unconstitutional goal through unconstitutional means, the attorney general pointed this out to everyone and the Honduran congress did what it could to ensure that such a vote would not be held. Agreeing with the congress and the attorney general, the supreme court declared any such vote unconstitutional and ordered that the referendum be stopped. The military, who is responsible for distributing ballots and overseeing elections, complied with the supreme court ruling.

Zelaya, not to be deterred, fired the senior commander and the defense minister for refusing to carry out his orders. The Honduran constitution, coincidently, also states that the military has an obligation to be apolitical, and may not follow political orders. The supreme court ruled that Zelaya had no right to fire the military officials for obeying the supreme court ruling. Around the same time, the attorney general seized the ballots and moved them to a military base.

Zelaya then went to the military base where the ballots were being kept, along with a mob of his supporters, took the ballots to a presidential palace, and declared that they would proceed with the vote anyway. After this display, Zelaya published a decree stating that the constitutional reform was to begin “right away.” At this point, the supreme court ordered the (now reinstated) defense minister to arrest Zelaya, resulting in the predawn raid of the palace and the exile of Mr. Zelaya.

And in case you were wondering, the military never seized control of the country. The powers of the president were passed on according to the constitution. The vice president had resigned to run for the presidency before this had happened, and without a vice president to step up, the head of their legislature was made president. The Honduran government continues to be the legitimate government as defined by the constitution.

After reading the Honduran constitution and studying the events that lead up to the “coup,” I can honestly say I whole heartedly support the Honduran government in it’s decision to remove President Zelaya from power. Zelaya was blatantly ignoring the constitution of Honduras for personal gain. His exile was, frankly, a much kinder and gentler treatment than Honduran law spells out. The Honduran constitution specifically says those who try to do the things he has done are “traitors” (exact word).

From a Honduran perspective, his removal has preserved the constitution, the republic, and the rule of law in Honduras – in a way that has preserved human life and restored confidence in its institutions. From an American perspective, the removal of a pro-Castro, pro-Chavez socialist is a welcome development.

There are precious few examples of people standing up for what they believe in, opposing the abuse of power, and coming away both victorious and unbloodied. There are even fewer examples of such things working out in America’s best interests. The removal of Zelaya shouldn’t be criticized – it should be praised and memorialized as an example of what should happen to power hungry people who overstep their bounds in pursuit of personal gain. June 28th was a great day for freedom and the rule of law.

Viva Honduras.