Where teachers rule; Honduras and the IMF.

Economist (US), The, October, 2003

The alphabet of protest

Between the IMF and another Bolivia

IN LATIN American countries, visiting economists from the International Monetary Fund are accustomed to being greeted about as warmly as paedophiles. Even so, the Fund mission that arrived in Honduras last week might be perturbed by its welcome. Across the country, thousands of protestors blocked city streets and besieged government buildings. If the IMF extracts too high a price for an agreement, a Bolivian-style uprising against the government "could absolutely happen here", says Mauricio Diaz, who heads a grouping of non-governmental organisations.

Honduran officials insist that violent civil unrest is unlikely. But they face a difficult negotiation. Honduras shares something with...