United Nations Radio

A senior UN official is in Honduras as part of the diplomatic efforts to resolve the political crisis in the country.

Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, arrived in the capital, Tegucigalpa, on Wednesday as part of a high-level mission led by the Organization of American States (OAS).

The aim of the mission is to promote dialogue and the restoration of democracy in Honduras, where ousted President Jose Manuel Zelaya remains sheltered in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa.

Oscar Fernández-Taranco

Meanwhile, the head of UNESCO, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, welcomes a declaration that the de facto government in Honduras is lifting an emergency decree which restricted freedom of expression.

Koïchiro Matsuura says he trusts "the wise decision to lift the emergency decree will bear fruit for the benefit of all Hondurans."

Dianne Penn, United Nations Radio
Duration: 56"