Honduras' Coup and Iran's Electoral Irregularities: What's the Difference?

A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS
by Meg White

When two upsets of democratic order happen in succession on different sides of the world, they invite comparison. The coup over the weekend in Honduras occurred in a different manner and under different circumstances than the unrest following the clearly flawed Iranian election a few weeks ago, but the protests and subsequent crackdown from authorities (as well as the repression of media and communications) certainly have a familiar ring.

Why then, is the media coverage of the two events so disparate?

Certainly there are some poignant cultural reasons for different treatments of the two situations. The fact that the leader of the coup in Honduras was educated at the School of the Americas (now known as the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation), a notorious U.S. military training center that teaches torture and paramilitary techniques to Latin American soldiers, likely makes some uncomfortable. The institution has turned out tens of thousands of death squad soldiers all over Latin America and has a long history in Honduras.

Our history with Iran (and our influence on the unrest there) is no less complicated, however. So instead of a massive cultural unpacking and self-examination today, I thought we could look to statistics for an answer.

I referenced the CIA's World Factbook entries on the two countries and found that, when you look at the numbers on Honduras and Iran, they share many statistical similarities. For example, life expectancy for inhabitants of both countries hovers around 70 years. Education and literacy rates for the two countries are also similar.

Though very different in size (Iran is slightly larger than Alaska, where Honduras is just larger than Tennessee) and clearly inhabiting very different places on the planet, the two countries' landscapes share some characteristics. Both countries have areas classified as sub-tropical as well as mountainous regions. Also, the countries' utilization of their land is worth a look for the striking similarity:

However, the most telling comparison comes from the geographic note on each country. The CIA's note on Honduras' geography seems to do little but point out the uselessness of the country:

Whereas the United States' interest in Iran is evident by this CIA note:

Economically, Honduras is not much of a market. It's the second poorest nation in Central America. By contrast, Iran's per-capital gross domestic product is roughly three times that of Honduras.

Another interesting "note" on Honduras points to the health of coming generations. Both countries have relatively young populations overall. In Iran, the age structure shift is generally credited to a recent baby boom, but a big part of the reason for Honduras' large proportion of young people has to do with the high incidence of HIV/AIDS. The CIA entry points out that they must "explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS" when figuring population estimates.

The sad fact is that Americans see Honduras as a crazy little banana republic with little to offer. Iran has oil to offer, as well as a strategic positioning on physical, cultural and political landscapes.

That might just make the difference.

A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS

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