NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 73; HONDURAS; COUNTRY PROFILE

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• Collection: NIS
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP01-00707R000200070013-4
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CONFIDENTIAL
73 /GS /CP
Ho nduras
August 1973
NATIONAL INTELLIGINCL URVLY
CONFIDENTIAL
NO FOREIGN OI S SEM
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NATIONAL iNTELLIGENCE SURVEY PUBLICATIONS
The basic unit of the NIS is the General Survey, which is now
published in a bound -by- chapter format so that topics of greater per-
ishability can be updated on an individual basis. These chapters Country
Profile, The Society, Government and Politics, The Economy, Military Geog-
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particularly Science and Intelligr nce and Security, that are not pertinent to
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Although detailed sections on many topics were part of the NIS
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WARNING
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GENERAL SURVEY CHAPTERS
COUNTRY PROFILE Integrated perspective of
the subject country Chronology Area Brief
Summary map
THE SOCIETY Social structure Population
Labor Health Living conditions Social
problems Religion Education Public in-
formation Artistic expression
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS Political evo-
lution of the state Governmental strength and
stability Structure and function Political dv-
narnics National policies "Threats to stabilit%
The police Intelligence: and security Coun-
tersubversion and counterinsurgency capabilities
THE ECONOMY Appraisal of the economy Its
structure agriculture, fisheries, forestry, fuels and
power, metals and minerals, manufacturing and
construction Domestic trade Economic polio%
and development International economic re-
lations
TRANSPORTATION AND
TELECOMMUNICATIONS Appraisal of systems
Strategic mobility Railroads Highways
Inland waterways Pipelines Ports Merchant
marine Civil air Airfields The telecorn
system
MILITARY GEOGRAPHY 'Topography and climate
Military geographic regions Strategic areas
Internal routes Approaches: land, sea, air
ARMED FORCES The defense establishment
joint activities Ground forces Naval forces
Air forces Paramilitary
SCIENCE level of scientific advancement Or-
ganization, planning, and financing of rese a
Scientific education, manpower, and facilities a
Major research fields
INTELLIGENCE. AND SECURITY Structure of
organizations concerned with internal security and
foreign intelligence, their responsibilities, profes-
sional standards, and interrelationships Mission,
organization, functions, effectiveness and methods
of operation of each service Biogr of key
officials
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Honduras
A Land with Few Blessings 1
The Legacy and the land 2
The People and Their Needs 3
The Rulers and Their Institutions 5
Bananas and the Peasant 7
Breaking the Barrier of Inertia 8
Chronology .............................10
Area Brief .............................11
Summary Map follows 12
This Country Profile was prepared for the NIS by
the Central Intelligence Agency. Research was sub-
stantially completed b y f une 1973.
CONFIDENTIAL No Fo{ :EU:v DI5SEM
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A Lind with Few Blessings
Honduras has two main claims to fame. It was the
scene of a landing by Columbus in 1502 �one of the
few spots of the hemisphere to be so honored by the
great navigator. The name Honduras (Spanish for
"depths derives from Columbus, who reportedly
found the coastal water almost unfathomable. Subse-
quent commentators have pronounced it an apt title
for a country so long sunk in backwardness and misery.
In more recent decades, Honduras' renown has derived
from its reputation as a typical "banana republic." It
is the world's fourth largest producer and second only
to Ecuador as an exporter of the fragile fruit. Other
cash crops, forestry, mining, and manufacturing con-
tribute to the economy, but the banana is the vital ele-
ment. It is fair to say that without the investment and
know -how introduced by the two giant fruit com-
panies, United and Standard, Honduras would be an
even poorer place. (C)
The country is overwhelmingly mestizo,
Spanish speaking, and Roman Catholic. Group an-
tagonisms have been little more than local rivalries,
and the homogeneous populace has tended to be a
fellowship of the poor. The greater numLer lead close
to a subsistance existence in dusty rural towns and
growing urban slums, where even safe drinking water
and other basic services are almost totally lacking.
Having learned from experience to expect little, the
Honduran seldom strives to improve his condition. His
personal pride is undiminished by hardship, but he has
only a slight sense of community, let alone of
nationhood. This and the lack of a sizable population
lend the country an air of solitude. (U /OU)
Only rarely have Honduran governments promoted
social or economic progress on a national basis. Most
have indulged strictly in self preservation, certainly a
necessary and yet seemingly a vain choice in view of
the dozens of coups and revolutions that have wracked
the country in its 150 years of independence (though
only two have occurred since 1932, which places Hon-
duras among the more stable countries of Latin
America). Nevertheless, for Honduras, democracy is an
ideal that more often than not has failed in practice,
and time after time the country's experience has been
that of Latin America as a whole. A "great leader"
enchants the people, installs his regime through
questionable means, dominates the government, uses
or alters the constitution to stay in power, and finally
succumbs to a coup by an opposition force. This
awkward system appears to work, and most Hon-
durans apparently tolerate it. But still, there seems to
exist the realization that fl-ere is a better way, and so
the quest for a government operating on constitutional
principles has not been abandoned. (C)
Even geography has conspired to make Honduras a
poor place, handicapped in its ability to pursue a uni-
fied purpose. Bordering on Guatemala, Nicaragua,
and El Salvador, it night be termed the "keystone
state" of Central America Yet, this facet has made
Honduras important only as a base for regional
political intrigue. The land itself is largely a jumble of
mountains, valleys, and coastal plains� likened by
some to a crumpled ball of paper �that separates the
people into small localities and makes of them rivals
more than friends. Even the swift streams that race
from mountain to sea subdivide the land, and by being
primarily unnavigable, leave much of the country un-
tamed and isolated. (U /OU)
If the story of Honduras has not been filled with
great men and great events, the latent strengths of its
people may yet head the country toward better days.
Observers have found them tenacious under heavy
trials, civil with each other, gracious in the presence of
"superior" foreigners, and quick to learn, when
taught. Their country still possesses untapped natural
wealth- fertile valley soil, large forests, sizable oceanic
fisheries, a considerable hydroelectric potential, and
mineral deposits of undetermined proportions. A
tropical beauty produces moods of enchantment.
What has been lacking is simply development
cause that has been pursued only sporadically in recent
years, and then by a procession of leaders who have
largely failed their country. (C)
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The Legacy and the Land (u/ou)
Honduras rests on one of the early sites of civiliza-
tion in the Western Hemisphere. Centuries before
the Spaniards arri cd, Honduras was inhabited by
Indian tribes, the greatest of whom were the
Mavas� astronomers, mathematicians, engineers, and
sculptors extraordinary. Mysteriously this cultue died
out in the region in the 9th century A.D., allowing the
jungle to swallow up one of the greatest of Mayan
monumental cities, Copan. Partially resurrected from
ruins, it stands as something of a reproach to the Hon-
duras of today.
A little more than 20 years after the landing of
Columbus, Hernan Cortes, the "conqueror of Mex-
ico," visited Honduras to establish his authority there,
but found it uninviting. Nonetheless; handfuls of
settlers trickled in over the years, combating the
irregular terrain, the unhealthy climate, and hostile
natives, when they were not squabbling among
themselves and murdering each other. Withal,Non-
duras remained a minor province of the Spanish em-
pire, ruled from Guatemala and attracting chiefly
those adventurers who believed the exaggerated tales
of mineral riches or missionaries who anticipated
hordes of converts.
It shortly became apparent that Honduras lacked
the wealth of adjacent provinces, and so prospered lit-
tle. The talented and influential gravitated elsewhere,
leaving the area largely to small -scale farming. The
peasants readily intermarried with the Indians, mak-
ing Honduras the racially well- blended land it is to-
day. Otherwise, history drew a blank, and the cen-
turies passed uneventfully, as only the name of the
latest Spanish governor changed.
Taking advantage of the struggles of other Latin
American states against Spain, Honduras joined
Guatemala, El Salvador, Niea;ragua, and Costa Rica in
a bloodless and successful independence move in 1821.
After attempts by Mexico to rule the region collapsed,
representatives of the five met in 1823 to form the
United P.ovinces of Central America, the first of
several futile attempts to build a single Central
American nation. Even the enlightened leadership of
Francisco Morazan �later to be named the national
hero of Honduras �could not salvage the dream, and
the federation collapsed in 1838 under the burden of
nationalistic fevers and liberal- conservative feuds.
In 1859 a strange interlude was provided by the
celebrated American filibuster William Walker �a
self proclaimed liberator �when he led a brief military
campaign against Honduras on behalf of local dis-
sidents, and subsequently died by the fiAng squad.
Another significant year was 19'i, when Samuel
"Lemurray, a shrewd. Alabama merchant, acquired
banana- growing land; which was later merged with
the United Fruit Company.
The first three decades of the 20th century witnessed
a jumble of crises as new presidents, rewritten con-
stitutions, and recurring coups tumbled over each
oth ,-r in kaleidoscopic fashion. Finally, in 1932 Gen.
Tiburcio Carias Andino arrived as national leader and
established the stability of strongman rule for a
remarkable 16 years (Built on the scale of a pro -foot-
ball fullback, Carias survived by such precautions as
having machineguns posted inside the cathedral when
he worshipped.) A hand ,picked successor, Juan
Manuel Galvez led the nation for 6 years of
semiprogressive government before giving way to wily,
conservative dictator, Julio Lozano. In 195 7 Ramon
Villeda Morales, something of a novelty by reason of
his progressive outlook and legitimate claim to office,
instituted a program of social and economic reform,
the likes of which had not been seen before.
A coup at the tail end of Villeda's term resulted in
the installation of Oswaldo Lopez Arellano, who was
fated to be President during the bloody, -day border
war with El Salvador in July 1969 (during which
Salvadoran troops pushed as far as 45 miles inside
Honduras). In 1971 there momentarily arose the
promise of a new era when the two major parties, nor-
mally blood enemies, signed a coalition pact and
Ramon Ernesto uruz became President. After a short
period this weak experimental regime collapsed; a
coup followed in which Cruz was replaced by Lopez,
and the country reverted to its old politica'. ways as
Lopez dissolved Congress and proceeded to govern by
decree.
Political upheavals in Honduras, quite fortunately,
are not matched by comparable physical instabilities.
Spanning the Central American isthmus from the
Pacific to the Caribbean, Honduras is a muscular
land� four fifths mountainous �with peaks up to 9,-
400 feet, numerous plateaus, deep valleys, narrow in-
land plains, and a partially s\yampy coastal fringe. Its
volcanoes are dormant making it the only regional
state so favored -and earth tremors, though frequent,
are mild. Danger lurks, however, in hurricanes that
sweep across the Caribbean and lash the coast. Heavy
rains and thick forests blend to produce a panorama of
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natural beauty. Particularly impressive are the air
plants (epiphytes) that slowly engulf many of the giant
trees and the quetzal, a tropical bird of crimson and
blue -green hues that is generally regarded as the most
beautiful bird of its kind in the world.
Shaped roughly like a squatty mushroom, Honduras
comprises 43,300 square miles, making it second in size
only to Nicaragua in Central America or slightly
smaller than the state of Pennsylvania. The population
is estimated at 2,813,000, only about 64 persons per
square mile but burgeoning at the rate of 3.5% per an-
num� assuming that Honduran statistics are accurate.
The great majority of Hondurans live in one of two
areas, the central plateau or the low -lying banana land
of the northwest. Each area is served by one of the two
major cities. Tegucigalpa, the political capital and the
larger, is slow- paced, semifeudal, and somewhat
isolated. Its charm lies in its temperate climate "an
eternal spring" say some) and its red tile roofed homes
that climb narrow cobblestone streets up steep
hillsides. By contrast, San Pedro Sula is a boomtown,
the commercial industrial hub of the nation, a
relatively modern city of torrid heat and bustling
businessmen. In its way, San Pedro Sula is unique,
however �a place apart from the many sleepy, dusty
towns that lack even a decent road. And "San Pedro"
is even further removed from the wild, swampy NMas-
quitia region of the northeast, Honduras' last frontier.
What helps to make Honduras so distinctive
regionally is the fact that it is the only country on the
isthmus without a workable land transportation
network. Despite recent roadbuilding efforts, the
highway system is sparse. The most important
route �and one of the few that is paved �is the North
Road, connecting Puerto Cortes (the major port), San
Pedro Sula, Tegucigalpa, and the Inter- American
Highway. Even on it, deterioration, washouts, and
meandering burros and peasants are potential
hazards. The railroads, run chiefly by the banana com-
panies, extend no more than 65 miles inland, and the
decades -old dream of an interocean railway seems to
have been abandoned. Still, the more remote districts
of the country are accessible, by and large. In a typical
blend of the Honduran primitive- modern lifestyle, the
intrepid traveler can reach them by way of a winding
footpath or in a small aircraft.
The People and Their Needs (c)
Statistics indicating that the dark- complexioned
mestizos outnumber all other racia! groups combined
by a 9:1 ratio tell only part of the story of Honduran
society. Other groups exist in numbers and are impor-
tant, but their absence from the mainstream of daily
life heightens the impression of a mestizo- dominated
]arid. Indians, for example, constitute i% of the pop-
ulation, but often they prefer to live apart, speaking
their own tongues, observing their own customs, and
going to town only when necessity beckons. Likewise,
Negros and, to a lesser extent, .whites frequently have
opted for a semi exclusive existence on the Caribbean
based Islas de la Bahia (Bay Islands) or the north coast,
where sorne of their forebears were old -time buc-
caneers and slaves under the British flag.
On the mainland, whites and mestizos generally
have held preferred positions, but discrimination
against Negroes and Indians has never been strong.
N9ore often than not, social status cuts across racial
lines and depends more on achievement than genetic
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Mothers receiving instruction at a public health center.
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makeup or ancestral ties. In poor Honduras, however,
social mobility has its severe limits. Only recently has a
viable middle class begun to develop, and the ranks of
the wealthy are thin indeed. Almost alone among
Latin American nations, Honduras lacks a long
established oligarchy.
Aside from ability and affluence, another mark of
standing is family stability. The higher class man is
generally married and stays married, even though he
may keep a mistress on the side. The lower class man,
generally regarding sex as a casual matter, often ig-
nores the marriage ritual, perhaps to drift from woman
to woman and leave a string of illegitimate children
behind. Though guaranteed equal rights under the
law, women for the greater part are expected to hold to
a submissive pattern of behavior.
For the ordinary Honduran the vital concern of life
is to obtain the basic necessities of food and shelter.
For many this is not easy. Life expectancy falls several
vears short of the Latin American average of 57. Hous-
ing may consist of clumps of r.iral mud wattle huts or
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urban packing -crate sluins. Food is a monotony of
corn- and bean -based dishes. Undernourished, the
Honduran is easy prey for intestinal and respiraton
diseases. With few doctors and hospitals avail. ble.
the masses apply folk medicine in the uncertain
hope of miracle cures.
For many, life is at a bare subsistence level. Much of
the average man's personal income estimated at over
40%�goes for food. Other essentials, clothing and
home furnishings, are frequently beyond reach, when
available. Only a tiny minority of town dwellers can
afford a car or telephone. The peasant has little need
to concern himself with a pocketbook since he fre-
quently exists on the limited fruits of the l7:nd, outside
the money economy.
Public entertainment in Honduras is also spare. Few
towns offer more than a moviehouse or billiard parlor
for post- siesta diversion. Radiobroadcasts� picked up
over the ubiquitous Japanese transistors blanket the
nation, but television is restricted to the large urban
areas. Daily newspapers amount to less than half a
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dozen and are of low quality. (ht a higher plane, few
artists or scholars of note have been produced. Attempt-
ing to build on a Spanish cultural heritage that was
exceedingly thin, 1- Ionduran intellectuals have had dif-
ficulty finding their own way.
The educational system, though improved in recent
years, offers little outlet for the bright and ambitious.
Theoretically, education is available to all persons age
7 to 15, but all too often adequate schools and trained
teachers are simply not available. Lately, Honduras
was given a functional literacy rate of 3W the second
lowest (next to Haiti) in the Western Hemisphere.
higher education is largely limited to the National
University, where political activism often takes priority
over learning.
The Roman Catholic Church, legally separate from
the state, wields little influence in Honduras. Its
coffers are quite empty, and its priests are generally
few and of low caliber. It rarely engages in social ac-
tion. And, .while the man in the street calls himself it
Catholic. more often than not he knows litile of the
dolma of his church, or even of its inner physical
dimensions. A number of Protestant missionary sects
have encamped in Honduras, but have established lit-
tle hold.
The government is left to improve the well -being of
the people. Unfortunately, it lacks financial resources,
trained administrators, know -how, and, most impor-
tantly, will. Honduran regimes often project goals for
social- action programs but frequently fail to get theta
off the ground. And when they do, graft often siphons
off what money there is. A notable exception to this
pattern was forged by the Villeda government
(1957 -63). It made progress with a social security law,
a labor code, and an agrarian reform law, and took
prot,:essive steps in the areas of education, public
health, and housing. Thereafter, matters went
backward. As of 1973, there were definite indications
that the Lopez regime was trying to effect change, par-
ticularly in land redistribution, but it too face; an up-
hill battle.
The Rulers and Their Institutions (c)
Politics in Honduras aims at control of a con-
stitutionally defined structure that is elastic enough to
allow the ruling force to make of it what it will. The
present constitution, promulgated in 1965, is the 12th
under which Honduras has operated. Generally, little
change is effected by succeeding documents, but they
do serve to cover the latest coup with a veneer of legari-
to. Primary power to run the country is vested in a
President, elected by popuiar ballot to a single 6 -year
term. Normally a 6ominant figure, the President may
expect little opposition from his Council of Ministers,
or from the National Congress, which is made up of
the elected representatives of the IS regional
departments and which generally acts as a rubber
stamp.
The principal groups contesting power in Honduras
are the Nationalists and Like -.:1s. Essential] feuding
clans, they are made up of men who play a ruthless
game to seize power both within their own ranks and
against the opposition. The National Party, basically
more conservative, has been more expert in recent
years at manipulating the political processes. Three
splinter Communist parties, one professing allegiance
to Moscow and two to Peking, are capable of stirring
unrest, but they represent little internal threat.
Generally, the ballot on election day is restricted to the
two major parties, who regularly accuse each other of
theft, fraud, and intimidation. A low level of voter par-
ticipation reflects a high degree of voter apathy, es-
pecially among the rural poor who through experience
have come to doubt the promises of city -bound
politicians.
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Any bare -hones description of the Honduran
Go�,eroment hogs the question of who actually runs
thcr country. Without doubt, the military establish-
it ^nt is the final arbiter, for no government can stay in
pov, or against its active opposition a principle that in
essence is even sanctioned by the constitution. Other
power centers include i, small but growing dF�mocratic
labor movement and organized business. Radical
students, operating� sometirnes in violent out-
bursts �from the university, and the weak but relative
IN. independent voice of the press also have an impact.
But in the end there is only one arbiter. Sometimes the
military acts in the public interest, but always in its
own interest; and when the time comes for a change of
gove rnment, it feels little constraint against acting.
For Honduras external affairs normally focus only
on its immediate neighbors and the United States.
Honduras participates in regional and world bodies.
including the Organization of American States and the
United Nations, but exerts little influence. The foreign
outlook of the Hondurans is still colored by the grim
little war with Ell Salvador of July 1969. Fueled by it
longstanding border dispute and the issue of illegal
aliens from overcrowded El Salvador, hostilities ul-
timately were sparked by a hotly contested soccer
match (soccer in this region being more than simple it
national pastinle). By the tinge hostilities were called
off Hondurans clearly were the losers and even
more clearly were embittered against the
peacekeepers� Ilrincipall toward the regional
organizations and to some degree the United States.:ks
;.a result, Honduras began to hack away from regional
cooperation, including that with the Central American
Common Nlarket (CACN1), an organization with
which it was already disillusioned. Also it began to
look for a time to European nations rather
than tile: United States for military supplies.
Momentary Honduran pique with Washington,
however, belies the fact that ties with the United States
over the years have been close. While sonle elements
have berated the United States for its alleged
domineering stance and econonlic imperialism, the
more prevalent attitude has been to see the "colossus
of the North" as a beneficial big brother that call
funnel economic and military aid into the needy
homeland. In return, Honduras has sided with the
United States in both World Wars, in the Cuban mis-
sile crisis, and in the 1965 Dominican crisis.
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Bananas and the Peasant (c)
Honduras is one of the least developed countries of
Latin America. In 1971, its per capita GDI' Nvas about
half the Latin American average: $260 compared to
$530. For years, Honduras has run a balance of
payments deficit. It is burdened %with a sizable external
debt, chiefly as a result of loans from the World Bank
and the Central American Batik for Economic Integra-
tion. Defense and public improvement expenditures
have outpaced increased tax revenues in recent years
and resulted in growing budgetary deficits.
All is not completely sour, however. In particular, a
conservative monetary policy has lent the country at
least an air of economic stability. The monetary unit,
the lempira �named after the Indian chief who
resisted Spanish conquest in the 16th century �has
been maintainer) at a rate of 2 lempiras to the U.S.
dollar since 1926, the year of its creation. Moreover,
inflation has been kept largely in check, at least by
Latin American standards.
Even so, Honduran needs are multitudinous: more
jobs and more job skills; land redistribution and it
greater use of good growing land; larger social benefits
for the productive members of society; vastly improved
transportation facilities; an influx of foreign capital;
tax reform; and a redistribution of local revenues,
recently devoted to the 1969 Nvar and its aftermath, to
care for domestic needs. Badly handicapped by its
several shortcomings, the economy has tended to move
forward only by inches. The blame perhaps rests chief-
ly with the government, which until recently had
largely refused to play the role of the spurs of the
economy.
Honduras must export to live, selling abroad its
agricultural products chiefly bananas, as well as
some coffee, cotton, meat, and timber �and importing
a broad range of raw materials and manufactured
goods not available locally. The United States is easily
Honduras' chief commercial partner, accounting for
about half of its trade. West Germany and Japan are
distant runners -up. Trade with the CACM has fallen
drastically since ties were broken with El Salvador in
1969 and Honduras reintroduced duties on CACM im-
ports in January 1971, thereby becoming in effect a
nonparticipating member of the organization.
The backbrn: of the economy is agriculture, which
regularly accounts foi more than one -third of the
country's national and 70o of its export earnings. Two
of every three employed Hondurans work the land.
Unhappily, only 14% of the land is arable and
only about half of that is cultivated. Moreover,
productivity per acre ranks among the lowest in Latin
America. Typically, the small farmer clings to his tiny
hillside plot, while the good valley land is trampled by
the grazing herds of the large landholder. The odds are
heavy that the peasant has heard little or nothing of
chemical fertilizers, crop rotation, irrigation, and ero-
sion prevention.
In sharp contrast to the small farmers stand the
mighty fruit companies. United Fruit is rivaled only by
Standard Fruit in banana production, an enterprise
that has proved to be a r:.ther risky and time -con-
suming undertaking, what with crop diseasr, bad
weather, and a fluctuating sales market taking a toll
of profits. Undeniably, United Fruit wields con-
siderable influence in Honduras, as its critics are quick
to point out. But it is also true that the firm has made a
significant social as well as economic contribution in
providing for its workers markedly better homes, stores,
schools, and clinics than are normally available.
The chief bane of the Honduran economy has been
the failure to exploit .what natura' resources this small
nation has. Huge stands of pine and hardwood
trees including perhaps the greatest number of
mahoghany trees in the world �have until recently
either been ignored or harvested so poorly as to bring
little profit. Some small -scale miring of precious and
base: metals occurs sporadically, but in toga the
nation's mineral supply has yet to be accurately es-
timated. Only within the past few years has the fishing
indus}ry, centered on the shrimp catch, attained com-
mercial importance. Nor until recently has much been
clone to promote tourism despite such attractions as
Copan, the Islas de la Bahia beaches, and reasonably
accessible hunting, hiking, and fishing. (Lago de Yo-
joa, the country's largest, is reported to be so bursting
with bass that these fish have turned cannibalistic.)
Some effort has been put into manufacturing, but
such enterprise remains something of a novelty in this
least industrialized Central American state. Most of
what exists, including a small steel mill, is located in
San Pedro Sula or its environs. Food processing for ex-
port and the manufacture of consumer items for the
domestic market are undertaken there, though not ex-
tensively. Such factors as inefficient labor and an-
tiquated equipment result frequently in poor- quality,
over- priced goods. Exceptions are found in
American- sponsored efforts, such as shirt making, and
in such native crafts as woodcarving.
7
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Breaking the Barrier of Inertia (c)
In recent times some progress has been ac-
complished in making Honduras into a stable and
viable national state. Yet forward movement has not
been so great as to assure the country's future direc-
tion. And if there is to be better future, what will
bring it about? Various remedies have been offered.
None is the panacea that some Hondurans have been
prone to seek; there appear to be no easy remedies
for national retardation. In the first instance, Hon-
duras still requires certain basics that more ad-
vanced societies take for grantea� better transportation,
more electric powerplants, a decent telephone system,
and a good Pacific port. In sum, Honduras simply
lacks a solid takeoff poiit.
Honduras seemingly must seek to improve on its
nature in order to move forward economically. The na-
tion apparently needs hope to spark a dormant work
ethic �a profound belief that effort will create a better
society. A greater sense of individual dedication to
national efforts would be helpful, too. As it is, the real-
ly talented Hondurans frequently opt out of con-
tributing to their country's progress. Politicians may sit
on their hands or leave the country during a rival
regime, and frequently the wealthy may export their
capital rather than risk investing in their own nation.
The rather talented cabinet of the new Lopez regime
may, however, prove a refreshing exception and begin
a new trend.
0
It may be, too, that Honduras simply cannot copy,
by itself, given its condition, but needs ouside help.
Many Honduran politicians have bemoaned the lack
of foreign im although at iimes doing little
themselves to encourage it. Nlany Latin American ex-
onomists have reasoned that all %would be well if the
U.S. housewife would pay a few cents more a pound
for bananas and coffee. Some have seen free trade
within the CACM as a promising solution, but in prac-
tice this concept has yet to materialize.
As the Hondurans come increasingly to believe that
they are their own best friends, as they now seem to be
doing, they have the opportunity to reassess their
capacities for growth. Again, it should be noted that
Honduras has untapped natural resources capable of
being exploited. Only about 15Si of the country's
waterpower potential� estimated to be more than
one -third of the total for Central America �has been
used, for example. Agricultural production could be
boosted by fairly simple methods �wider use of the
steel plow, greater supplies of four wheeled carts, and
the increased bulldozing of basic farm -to- market
roads. The expenditure of greater sums on education
could produce the sort of literate, skilled personnel that
constitute one of the primary strengths of a modern
society.
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Chronology (u/ou)
1502
Coluutbus macho: coast of llonduras during; fourth .�o.%�ag;e
1539
IlonduruS and four other provinces of Central America are
ineorporatcd into captuincp general of Guatemala, adtninis-
trative division of the X'icero}alty of New Spain, in the
Spanish Indies.
1521
September
Independence from Spain is gained and Honduras oveonles
part of Mexican Empire.
1823
Honduras, Guatemala, 1 ?1 Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa
Rica form United Provinces of Central America. Francisco
Moraza n of Honduras serves as President froru 1530 to
collapse of federation ill late I83S.
1838
November
Honduras declares independence from federation.
1932 -4S
Dictatorship of Gen. 'I'iburcio arias Andino provides first
per ;od of prolonged domestic peace.
19.15
October
Juan M:1nUPl (;.tl.�ez (handpicked successor of Gen. ('arias)
is elected President on National Party ticket.
1919
January
President Gal.ez and Vice President Julio Lozano a e
inaugurated for 6 -year term.
1951
May
General strike paralyzes entire north coast area
November
Pmsident Galvez leaves country for "medical treatment"
following indecisive elections; Vice President Lozano becomes
Acting; President.
December
Newly elected Congress with mandate for settling; presidential
election fails to convene: Lozano deelares himself dr f'orha
Chief of State.
1956
August
Revolt lguil)St Lozano's authoritarian tactics is quickly
Suppressed: Liberal Party leaders are exiled.
10
October
fraudulent election of Lozano's hatrlpic'ked Constituent
Assembly results in bloodless military ct.ap; interiw utilirary
junta assumes poker.
1951
July
Defense Mini4er Col. Osvaldo Lopez Arellano enu�rg;es as
strong; militari leader with ouster of Gen. Roque .l. Rodriguez
froth interim junta.
September
Constituent Assembly is elected; Liberals will control b.
.tide margin.
November
Dr. Ramon Cilleda Morales, liberal leader, is named con-
stitutional President -eleet bY Constituent Assembly: ('ol.
Os.caldo Lopez Arellauo becomes member of junta.
December
Cilleda Morales is inaug;ur :tcd President for 6 -Year term.
Constituent Assembly becomes National Congress: ne.c con-
stitution is promulgated: Lopez is appointed ('bief of the
Armed forces.
1960
November
Longstanding border dispute -vith Nicaragua is settled bY the
International Court of .Illstic( disputed territory :nrarded to
Honduras.
1963
October
.\IiIitary coup by Lopez overthrows Cilleda, thus preventing:
elections scheduled for 1:3 October.
1965
February
Constituent Assembly elections are held: Nationalists ".vin"
35 seats to Liberals' 21)
March.
Constituent Assembly elects Lopez President of Honduras.
Constituent Assembly changes states to National Congress.
June
Lopez is inattgur:ted for 6 -year term.
1967
May
Honduran and Salvadoran troops clash in unclenr.,rcated
border area.
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1968 1971
March January
Gox �ernment part% rein�" 2.11 of the- 271; municipalities Major interest groups Ag;u units� pact governing; March
through extensive fraud and coercion. election anti government that %eill follote.
July June
Honduras and EI Salvador exchange prisoners captured Manton Ernt.sto Cruz, elected on 26 March. is inaugurated
during: the border clash in 1967. for 6 -year term.
1969
June 1972
December
Itonduras and t�:1 *Saleador break relations over mistreatment
of one another's nationals. Lopez ousts Cruz in bloodless milit:jrY coup; dissolves
July
congress and governs h d: tree.
Hostilities erupt between EI Salvador and Honduras. The
Organization of American States obtains cease -fire with great
difficulty.
s
Area Brief
LAND (UIOU):
Size: 13,:300 sq. nti. (27.i million acres)
Use: 7'%, cropland, 27 "o forested, 30'i� pasture, :36";, ceastc-
land and built -up areas
Land boundaries: 950 mi.
WATER (UIOU):
Limits of territorial waters (claimed): 12 n. vJ.
Coastline: 510 tni.
PEOPLE (UIOU):
Population: 2,81:3,000, average annual growth rate :3.5'
(1970)
Ethnic divisions: m% mestizo. 7 Indian, 2 'i, Negro, and
I' %o white
Religer Ab!xtt 97%. nominally Roman Catholic
Language: Spanish
Literacy: 57.4%, of persons 10 tears of age and over (est. 1970)
Labor force: 900,000 (est. mi(I- 1972); approximately I5%.
agriculture, 12 financial and housing services, 8 manu-
facturing;, 5 commerce, 9'%, other; S unemplo }�ed
Organized labor: 7 1 U to 10%, of labor force (mid -1972)
GOVERNMENT (UIOU):
Legal name: Republic of Ilonduras
Type: Republic
Capi,al: Teguciga'^ I
Political subdivision* 18 departments, 275 municipalities, I
central district ('I'egtcigulpa`Comuaguela area)
Legal system: 13used on Roman and Spanish civil law; some
influence of English conenurtt Iaa�; constitution adopted 1965;
judicial review' of acts in Supreme Court; legal
education at t'niversitY of Honduras in Tegucigalpa: accepts
compulsory IC-1 jurisdiction, with reservations
Branches: Constitution provides for elected President, uni-
cameral Icg;ishtture, and national judicial brunch
Government leader: Gen. Osa�aldo Lopez Arellano, chief of
state
Suffrage: Universal and eotupulsory over age IN
Elections: NI;LV 1971, Nationalist Part candidate won elec-
tion; removed by coup in December 1972; next election
February 1977; municipal elections March 197.1
Political parties and leaders: Liberal I'artY (Pg,il), Carlos
Roberto Reina Idiaquez, Andres Alvarado Puerto, Jorge
Russo Arias, Modesto Rodas Alvarado, and Max Velasquez
11
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Diaz; National Party (PNII), Alejandro Lopoz Cantart-ro,
Ricardo'' /.uniga Augustinus, General Oswaldo Lopez Arellano,
Armando VvIasquez Cerrato; Popular Progressive Party
(1 uninscribed), Gonzalo (':trial Castillo: Orthodox Re-
publican Party (I'RO- uninseribed), Roque Jacinto Rivera:
National Innovation and Unity Part\ (PIN('- uninscribod
Miguel Andonie Fernandez; Conkinunist P:u�t.\� of Ilonclur:tS
Soviet (PC'II /S- outla\vcd), Dionisio Ramos Bejarano; Com-
munist Party of Ilonduras!C'hina (P('IU('- outhtued Tomas
Erazo Pena; Workers' Party of Honduras (P�I'II- illegah,
Roque Ochoa
Communists: 1011 -SOO: 3,1)(111 sYntpathizers
Member of: IADB, 1('A0, ILO, OAS, CAUM. t'.N.
ECONOMY (UIOU):
GDP: t'SS741 million ('1971 current prices): 5260 1wr capita
Food: Self- sufficient in corn, beans, sugar, and (neat; de-
pendent upon imports for wheat and dairy products
Main industries: Agricultural processing, textiles, clothing'.
(rood products
Electric power: 1972 installed capacity, 170,0011 ku.: produc-
tion, :380 million kw. -hr.
Exports: Bananas, coffee, tobacco, frozru nwat, corn. brans.
cotton, gold, and Silver
Imports: Machinery, equipmew. vehicles, consunwr durables,
fuels
Monetary conversion rate: 2 lonlpimS t"SS1
Fiscal year: C'alvndar Year
12
COMMUNICATIONS (UIOU):
!railroads: 3.5; route miles: 202 rout: miles :0;` gage, 155
route wiles 3 gar "e ::tll siuglr track
Highways: 3,500 wiles, 750 bituminous surfaced, I,850 miles
gracrl surfaved or iurproved earth, 1100 miles unimproved
vart
Inland walerways: 750 wiles n:tvigablo bY small craft
Porls::3 major (Puerto Cortes, Tela, La Ceiba) and :1 minor
Merchant marine: 12 refrigerator ships of 1.000 g.r.t. and
over, totaling :515.792 g.r.l, or 53,5111 d.w.1.
Civil air: 2.1 major transports
Airfields: 120 usable; 4 have runwa'�s �1,000 7,1144 feet long;
I have prrm:uuvtt- Surface runW:tys: 1115 airfield sit::,
seaplam. stations
Telecommunications: Improvod but in:ulrquatf.; cow', retions
to international ('eatral American ndvrowace notwork: 15,20
telephones; 300,000 radio and 3:5,(1111) �I'1' recrivrts; 102 A \I,
10 F.M. and i TV stations
DEFENSE FORCES (C):
Military: 111,1411
Major ground units: I infantr brigade, 9 ,vp:uat� baltali,ms
7 infanta�. I trti. ery, :utd 1 engineer
Aircraft: I5, the utajoril.v propeller- driven
Supply: For militar\� materiel dependent on foreign sources,
rhieC
tilt. ('sited States. Domestic production includes feud,
clothing, shoes, and a few other quartrrtnaSter itemS
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ib:
Places and features referred to this General Survey (U /OU)
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COORDINATES
(1)(M III N.%TEK
o
o 1 11
o
l l'.
Agalt ca
11 21
87 16
1A IIIU it
15 52
45 33
Agua Sala (la
I 1 02
S7 12
Los Plane
1.i :37
S6 21
A littlls
15 �Ill
8.1 28
MaOagua, Nicaragua...................
12 09
,Sli 17
III tpalit
1:3 17
57 -11)
Mare ala
1.1 07
SS 00
Bahia tie Tela (bay
15 dS
S7 all
Monulfta Cerro Amil (ridyc)............
lei 0S
AS 53
Baracoa
15 -13
81 52
N1 011tallaR lit' C0l1la Gag Ua (ImatU11Y1r,IR)....
1.1 23
S7 :.Ili
Belize City, British flonduras...........
17 30
SS 12
Nacaome
1:3 :31
S? :3C
I36falo
15 2:3
SS 00
Nueva Ocotepeyue....................
1.1 2.1
%it 13
Ce( leno
1:3 08
87 25
Ocotepeque ldepurtntrrltl...............
1.1 :30
Olt
Canaveral
I.1 57
SS 0:3
Olanchito......................
15 30
Sti 35
Chamelecon
15 26
SS Of
Olancho (department)
1.1 .1.5
Sti it()
Choluteca
1 :3 IS
87 12
Pot rerillos.......................
15 11
S7 51%
Colnayaqua
1.1 25
87 37
Puerto Barrio. Guatemala.............
15 13
S :311
Comay aqua
15 :38
SS 17
Puerto Castilla.......................
1(i (11
1 0i 01
Comayagiiela
1-1 05
87 13
Puerto Cortf-s....................
I.i IS
x7 ;,ti
Copan
11 50
Sl) 00
Puerto Lenlpir:l
15 13
1%:3 .17
Cort6s n ^pt :rtmertt
15 :30
SS 00
Rio Agu:in (streupw....................
15 57
1.5 .1.1
Danli
1.1 00
tiff 35
It iu Chaneleetin stream
15 51
ii -14
El Ant:tti11
1.1 30
SS .IS
Rio Choluteca (strram..................
1:3 07
S7 IN
El Jaral
1.1 5.1
SS 0:3
liio Coeo (slreom.....................
15 00
S3 In
EI I. lino
1.i 08
S7 51
Rio Goascor:in txtr um)
1:3 25
1, P
El Mochito
11 .11)
13 07
Rio Levin (stream).........
15 47
S7 20
LI Ojo (l(- Agua
1.1 0:3
tiff 5:3
13io Lindo
5 II_I
514
EI Paraiso
I' S1
Sti 3.1
Rio Motagua, Guatemala .strta in
15 11
SS 11
El Paraiso department)
1.1 10
Sfi 30
Riu Negro islrr.rnr!....................
13 02
S7 17
El Progreso
15 21
S7 I1)
Itio Pa[uea (.�trralni..
15 :ill
,1 1;
El Salitre
it :31
Sll 12
Rio Sulavo (stream.....................
1.1 5S
S7 15
E Socorro
1.1 12
S7 ,,0
Rio Chia (stream).....................
15 -5:3
S7 -it
El '1'riunf
1:3 06
S7 00
San Lorenzo........
15 26
ti 55
E anlomoo
1.1 00
87 02
S:ul Marcos d-- Collin..................
1:3 26
Sfi to
Esteli, Nicaragua
13 0.5
Sli 23
Sae, Miguel. F.L Salvmlor...............
13 29
SS 11
Goaseor :in
13 :36
S7 15
San Pedro Sul:i........................
15 27
SS 02
Golfo de Fonseca
1:3 10
S7 .10
San Pedro %aeapa.....................
1.1 t2
SS 07
Gracias
1.1 :35
SS 35
San Salvador. 1 ?1 Salvador..............
1:3 12
Sit 12
Grasias a Dios (department)
15 10
81 20
Sul ,IJ BArbara........................
11 53
SS 11
Greelaeo
15 (Ifi
Sfi 07
Santa Rita...........................
15 1111
S7 5:3
Guanaeastales
15 10
S7 .il
Santa Rita...........................
11 13
7 lit
Guanaja
Ifi 27
85 .i1
Sania Rosa de Cop:in..................
11 17
Ili
Gulf of Ilon(Iuras (yIfli)
Ifi 10
87 50
Siguatepe qu('.........................
11 :32
S7 -19
Ilenecan....................
13 10
S7 �10
Swan Island;, U. (island..)............
17 25
S:3 5,1
fntibuca (department)
l-{ 20
SS 10
I inulr: l..............................
11 09
S 20
Isla del Tigre (.sload)
13 16
87 :38
�I'egucigalp :l..........................
11 06
S7 1:3
Isla Meanguera, El Salvador ('island)....
1:3 12
37 �1:3
I'ela ..............I
15 1.1
S7 27
Islas de la Bahia (islands)
16 20
86 30
I' oco a
10 11
Sli 03
Jicaro Gal :in
1:3 31
S7 'IS
T rujillo
15 55
sti 00
linlilile
It 31
SS 52
Valle departmeno.....................
1:3 30
S7 3.i
Jut icalpa
11 42
till I:i
Valle del \gu;in (roller
15 2S
S :36
La C(
15 �17
86 50
Valle de LeAll I rmlley)
15 It;
ti7 1S
La Esperanza
1.1 20
SS 10
Valle de Sala (ru lit y)...................
i5 27
A7 52
L:I Fragua
15 38
87 �111
Voro of epartrm
15 1.i
S7 lei
Lag_o de Yojoa (lake)
H 50
SS 00
Villa de San Antonio....
It Iti
S7 36
La Junta
15 12
37 19
Selected airfields
La Libertad
14 1:3
87 :31i
La Lima
l5 24
87 56
CI toluteca
13 13
s7 11
1.11 Me
15 25
87 5:3
Golosoll Intel natlnll:tl..................
15 11
Ali 51
L:I Paz deparlrar�I)
H 1.i
87 50
La ('eilm
Las Casitas
1.1 02
87 16
La Mesa International.................
15 27
S7 .i.i
Lax I' apias
1.1 02
87 17
Puerto Lempirn.......................
15 16
S3 1S
La Gnilin, 1:1 Salt�ador
1:3 20
S7 51
13 Its fills
1.1 .10
SI 20
Lempira departlnc'rd)
1.1 20
SS 10
Tcla..
11 1(i
S7 211
Lepaterique
1.1 02
87 27
1 l'oneontin International................
1.1 01
S7 1:3
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