FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 1, 2004 Contact: Ron Dungee
(323) 757-8900
Congresswoman Maxine Waters' Statement on Kidnapping of Haitian President Aristide
"I spoke to President Jean-Bertrand Aristide by telephone this morning and he told me that did not resign. He said he was kidnapped by American military and U.S. diplomats and military officials and was being held in the Central African Republic.
"Mr. Aristide said that Luis G. Moreno, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, came to his home in the wee hours of the morning with other diplomats and with U.S. Marines. He said he was told to leave and leave now or he and many Haitians would be killed.
"He told me, 'The world must know it was a coup. I was kidnapped. I was forced out. That's what happened. I did not resign. I did not go willingly. I was forced to go.'
"Mr. Aristide told me he was being held under guard in Central Africa's Palace of the Renaissance and felt like he was in jail.
"I also spoke with President Aristide's wife, Mildred. The first thing Mildred said was, 'The coup d'état is complete. It has been completed.'
"I talked to the president and his wife for about 15 minutes. He was anxious to get the word out that he did not leave voluntarily, that he was kidnapped, that he was forced out.
"President Aristide told me he had not been abused, but he sounded angry, stressed, determined; really anxious that people know he was kidnapped, that he did not go willingly, that he was forced out.
"I am deeply saddened that the United States government appears to be complicit in the overthrow of President Jean Bertrand Aristide. The Bush Administration refused to lead an international peacekeeping force to end the violence in Haiti and allow President Aristide to finish his term in office; then the Administration forced him out of the country in the dark of night.
"Last Thursday, the Congressional Black Caucus had an emergency meeting with President Bush, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of State Colin Powell. We laid out a very clear case for intervention and asked the president to lead an international effort to keep the peace, stabilize the volatile situation and preserve the government of Haiti's first democratically elected president.
"I have visited Haiti three times since the first of the year and was able to provide first hand information about what was going on in that country. I explained that the so-called opposition was a conglomeration of former supporters of the dictatorial Duvalier regime. Andre Apaid, an American citizen in charge of the Group of 184 started this coup three weeks ago. Guy Philippe, who was exiled to the Dominican Republic after he tried to stage a coup in 2002 was leading a band of exiled military criminals, thugs and murderers-some convicted in absentia for killings they committed in ousting Aristide from office when he was first elected. These were the people pursuing a coup d'état to return Haiti to the corrupt dictatorial rule of the past.
"The CBC asked the president to intervene immediately to stop the bloodshed in Haiti. Scores of Haitian people had been killed and thousands of others held hostage as Philippe and his army of thugs seized town after town as they advanced toward Port-au-Prince. We pointed out that the obstacle to a peaceful solution was not Aristide. I was in Haiti when Aristide signed off on a peace proposal worked out by CARICOM (the Caribbean Community) and others in the international community. It was the opposition that rejected the proposal and refused to negotiate a peaceful resolution of the crisis.
"However, we did not go to the White House to ask for help in Haiti solely for humanitarian reasons. We went there because the United States government was actively involved in the creation of this crisis and had an obligation to do something about it. For several years, the United States blocked $145.9 million in development loans to Haiti by the Inter-American Development Bank. These loans were supposed to fund health, basic education, rural road development, potable water and sanitation programs. Blocking those loans further impoverished the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Our government prevented the money from going to Haiti until the Congressional Black Caucus intervened last year.
"We tried to impress upon the president that the situation of Haiti was extremely critical and immediate action was needed. We did not need a massive military presence in Haiti and it did not need to be a lengthy occupation. All we asked was that the United States and other countries provide immediate assistance to Haiti to strengthen the Haitian police so that they could restore law and order. We could have been in and out in a short period of time, but the president asked for more time to think about it. He was holding out for a political solution to the crisis.
"Now we know the political solution for which he was holding out.
"The thugs and military criminals have accomplished their mission of deposing Aristide with the overt approval and support of the Bush Administration. Now, other members of the Aristide Administration are seeking asylum in other countries.
"This should have been prevented and could have been prevented if the Bush Administration had acted to help stabilize the situation in Haiti.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 23, 2004 Contact: Ron Dungee
(323) 757-8900
Betty Edwards
(202) 225-2201
Congresswoman Maxine Waters Says Bloodbath Imminent in Haiti
HOUSTON, Texas - Congresswoman Maxine Waters, who returned from Haiti on Saturday, says a bloodbath in that country is imminent in spite of the fact that President Aristide has agreed to the peace plan worked out by the international community.
"The opposition has rejected the peace plan, they have refused to negotiate and they have sent that signal to the thugs and newly formed army of exiled criminals. They have murdered many people in Cap Haitien and now control several cities.
"These thugs, and the newly reformed army made up of exiled former military officers and criminals known as The Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haiti (Fraph), are now on their way to Port-au-Prince and there will be a bloodbath there in hours unless there is some form of intervention from the United States and the international community beyond merely securing their embassies," Waters said.
President Aristide has been on the telephone for the last eight hours, asking the United States for help. Congresswoman Waters has placed calls to Secretary of State, Colin Powell, asking for help.
Congresswoman Waters was told by Ambassador Roger Noriega, the Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, that the United States does not have any plans to assist in preventing Fraph from creating this confrontation, nor did he know whether this policy would change. Congresswoman Waters concluded her conversation with Mr. Noriega by warning him that a bloodbath on the streets of Haiti in Port au Prince was imminent and that the United States could avert this bloodbath if the United States, or the international community, with the aid of the United States, would send assistance to strengthen the Haitian police force to restore order.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 23, 2004 Contact: Ron Dungee
(323) 757-8900
Letter to Colin Powell
The Honorable Colin Powell
Secretary of State
Department of State
2201 C Street, NW, Room 7261
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Powell:
As you may know, I returned to Haiti this past weekend. While there, it became clear to me that a bloodbath in that country is imminent in spite of the fact that President Jean-Bertrand Aristide has agreed to the peace plan worked out by the international community.
The opposition has rejected the peace plan, and they have refused to negotiate. They also have sent a signal to groups of thugs and a newly formed army of exiled criminals that they will support the violent overthrow of the democratically-elected government of Haiti.
These thugs, and the newly reformed army made up of exiled former military officers and criminals known as The Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haiti (Fraph), have murdered many people in Cap Haitien and now control several cities. They are now on their way to Port-au-Prince, and there will be a bloodbath there in hours unless there is some form of intervention from the United States and the international community beyond merely securing their embassies.
I implore you to act immediately to send assistance to Haiti to strengthen the Haitian police force and to restore law and order and preserve democracy in Haiti.
Sincerely,
Maxine Waters
Member of Congress
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 18, 2004 Contact: Ron Dungee
(323) 757-8900
The Crisis in Haiti
By Rep. MAXINE WATERS
I recently visited Haiti where I observed the escalation of political violence that is occurring in that country. It was my second trip to Haiti so far this year. I am deeply concerned about the growing violence in Haiti, organized by the so-called opposition. I am also concerned that this "opposition" is apparently supporting what can only be described as gangs and their violent activities operating in the northern part of the country.
Unfortunately, the opposition, led by Andre Apaid under the banner of what is known as the "Group of 184," is not simply a peaceful group trying to correct the problems of the government. Andre Apaid is a Duvalier-supporter, who allegedly holds an American passport and obtained permanent resident status in Haiti through deceptive means. Andre Apaid is ferociously adamant about forcing Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the first democratically-elected President in the history of Haiti, out of office.
Andre Apaid, the owner of 15 factories in Haiti, has been accused of tax evasion, operating sweatshops and being a President Aristide-hater. The so-called peaceful protests led by Andre Apaid and his Group of 184 are responsible for defying the rule of law as it relates to parade routes, notification of protest actions, and other laws that are normally respected in any democratic society. The protests he organizes have become increasingly violent. Police officers are confronted, property is damaged, and roads are blocked. It is my belief that Andre Apaid is attempting to instigate a bloodbath in Haiti and then blame the government for the resulting disaster in the belief that the United States will aid the so-called protestors against President Aristide and his government.
Andre Apaid refuses to negotiate despite the fact that the State Department, the Organization of American States and many other organizations are now supporting a proposal put forth by CARICOM. Andre Apaid continues to use inflammatory language to denounce President Aristide and demand that President Aristide leave his democratically-elected presidency. His so-called opposition group has accused President Aristide of everything from corruption and drug trafficking to support for paramilitary activity. When asked for documentation, they have not been able to produce anything more than rumors, innuendos and allegations.
President Aristide disbanded the military when he returned to office and has a police force of only 5,000 for a country of 8 million people. The United States aborted its efforts to support and train the new police force and currently has a ban on selling guns and equipment to Haiti. This policy effectively denies Haitian law enforcement officers the essential equipment that they so desperately need to maintain order and enforce the rule of law.
President Aristide has given the United States special authority to assist with drug interdiction efforts by allowing the United States to interdict drugs in Haitian waters. The government of Haiti does not have the resources needed to wage a tough and consistent war against drugs, and the President of Haiti is begging the United States for assistance to eliminate drug trafficking.
President Aristide is pursuing a progressive economic agenda in Haiti. Under his leadership, the Haitian government has made major investments in agriculture, public transportation and infrastructure. On February 7, 2003, the government doubled the minimum wage from 36 to 70 gourdes per day, despite strong opposition from the business community. There have also been a number of reforms to prohibit trafficking in persons and to protect the estimated 400,000 children from rural villages who work as domestic servants in households in the cities.
President Aristide has also made health care and education national priorities. More schools were built in Haiti between 1994 and 2000 than between 1804 and 1994. The government expanded school lunch and school bus programs and provides a 70 percent subsidy for schoolbooks and uniforms. The maternity wards of eight public hospitals have been renovated and hundreds of Haitians are being trained as physicians. Twenty new HIV testing centers will open around the country during the next two years. All of this is being accomplished despite a continuing embargo by the IMF and the World Bank.
The so-called opposition is supported by many of the same people who were content with the brutal dictators of Haiti's past. These are the same people who enriched themselves on the backs of the poor in Haiti for so many years with the support of the United States government. These people do not want a strong president like Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who will force them to pay their taxes and provide decent wages to their workers.
Two weeks ago, armed gangs took control of the Gonaives police station during a five-hour gunfight and set the mayor's house on fire. Since then, these gangs have set fire to the police stations of Gonaives, St. Marc and Trou du Nord. In St. Marc, they sealed off the city by dragging tires, debris and logs across the main roads and setting them on fire. The armed gangs have seized nearly a dozen towns in recent weeks and at least 40 people have been killed.
Unfortunately, these gangs appear to be obtaining support from the so-called opposition in the hope that their attacks will help to fuel other attacks in other parts of the country and eventually a coup d'état in Port-au Prince. This is clearly an attempt at a power-grab.
The same forces that fashion themselves as the opposition also have control over the broadcast media in Haiti. They have used the power of the press to discredit President Aristide and disseminate false information to the international press about the situation in Haiti.
The nations of CARICOM are trying to assist the people of Haiti to end the violence and resolve this crisis peacefully. The CARICOM proposal includes an outright rejection of a coup d'etat in any form and requires that any change in Haiti must be done in accordance with the Constitution of Haiti. CARICOM calls upon the opposition in Haiti to ensure representation on the Provisional Electoral Council so that the Council can begin to prepare for the holding of elections. CARICOM also calls upon the international community to provide economic support to Haiti. Economic assistance, including assistance from the United States, is essential to alleviate the suffering of the people of Haiti and build a foundation for political stability and economic growth.
The U.S. State Department must denounce Andre Apaid and the Group of 184 and must answer this question: How can the State Department remain silent while Andre Apaid, who allegedly holds an American passport, creates so much dissension, disruption and violence in this small, impoverished country?
The State Department must use its influence to help stabilize Haiti, provide assistance for health, education and infrastructure development, and discourage Haitians from building boats and rafts to get to American shores.
Finally, the international press must discontinue the practice of repeating rumors and innuendos and begin to spend quality time learning the truth and writing the truth about what is really going on in Haiti.
http://www.house.gov/waters/pr.htm
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