vote by party--PLH 50%, PNH 42%, PINU-SD
4%, PDCH 2%, other 2%; seats by party--PLH 70, PNH 55, PINU-SD 3

Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de
Justica), judges are elected for four-year terms by the National
Assembly

Political parties and leaders: Liberal Party or PLH [Raphael
MELGAR, president]; National Innovation and Unity Party-Social

Political pressure groups and leaders: National Association of
Honduran Campesinos or ANACH; Honduran Council of Private Enterprise
or COHEP; Confederation of Honduran Workers or CTH; National Union
of Campesinos or UNC; General Workers Confederation or CGT; United
Federation of Honduran Workers or FUTH; Committee for the Defense of
Human Rights in Honduras or CODEH; Coordinating Committee of Popular
Organizations or CCOP

International organization participation: BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO,
G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO,
IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer),
MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
chancery: 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New
Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, and Jacksonville

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador James Francis CREAGAN
embassy: Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa
mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of blue (top),
white, and blue with five blue five-pointed stars arranged in an X
pattern centered in the white band; the stars represent the members
of the former Federal Republic of Central America--Costa Rica, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; similar to the flag of
El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the words
REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white
band; also similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which features a
triangle encircled by the word REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and
AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band

Economy

Economy--overview: Prior to Hurricane Mitch in the fall of 1998,
Honduras had been pursuing a moderate