Police battle Aristide gangs in Haitian capital

[Emillereid]

PORT-AU-PRINCE : Gun battles between Haitian police and gangs loyal to ex-president Jean Bertrand Aristide left at least three dead, witnesses said, as US Marines staged a show of force to counter rebel attempts to take control of the capital.

<snip>
Heavy fighting erupted as police sought to assert authority on the barricaded, garbage-strewn streets of the slum. Witnesses said at least three people had been killed.

<snip>
Philippe's pronouncements, coupled with threats to arrest Prime Minister Yvon Neptune, a close Aristide ally who remained in office after the president's resignation, have drawn scorn from Washington where officials predicted the rebels would fade in the face of overwhelming might.

<snip>

Those statements were met with derision in Washington. The top US diplomat for Latin America, Roger Noriega, denigrated Philippe's force as a "ragtag band" and suggested that soon the rebel leader would "probably want to make himself scarce."....

- AFP
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/73772/1/.html

Just what are we up to in Haiti? Has anyone got a bead on what's really going on and what the US hopes to achieve there?

[Sagan]

1. I confess, I'm mystified....

So we don't do anything to stop the Rebels, then we basically overthrow Aristide and get him out of the country, ensuring the success of the rebellion, then we send a couple of thousand marines, then we say that the leader of the successful rebellion is a "non-entity" who should make himself scarce?

WTF?

[RC]

2. Maybe we need Haiti

for a staging area to irackize Venezuela.

[montanacowboy]

4. Venezuela and Cuba

also CIA drug trade

[eablair3]

8. they above all wanted Aristide out

they wanted Aristide removed. He was sticking up for the Haitian people, builidng many schools and reforming the health care system. He also was raising the minimum wage there by double. He wouldn't play ball completely with demands for privatization, including the IMF, WB and others.

The right-wing has not liked Aristide for a LONG time. They have referred to him as another Castro. They've wanted him out for a long time. They succeeded in getting him out once by a coup staged during the time of Bush I in 1991.

Clinton restored the democratically elected leader back into power in 1994.

Aristide was again democratically elected in 2000 to a 6-year term.

The Repugs instituted an embargo a few years ago to undermine the economy there.

I believe they had to arm the criminal thug opposition members with the M-16s M-60s etc and the new uniforms and helmets, train them in the DR, and then send them across the border. They have no prob making a deal with the devil. The US has done that many many times in the past.

And, now they have finally removed Artistide, which was their plan all along. Another democratically elected leader removed by the US.

[windansea]

9. Pro-Aristide Mobs Attack University Students

Haiti: Right to Peaceful Assembly Denied

Pro-Aristide Mobs Attack University Students to Prevent Rally in Nation’s Capital

Dozens Hospitalized

Haitian Rights Group Expresses Deep Concern

New York, December 5, 2003 – University students were denied the right today to peacefully express disagreement with President Jean-Bertrand Aristide’s stewardship of Haiti’s affairs when pro-government mobs attacked them. Reports from eyewitnesses and the media indicate that CIMO, Haiti’s anti-riot police unit, stood by while the mobs rioted in the street before forcing their way into the building where the students were gathering, striking them with makeshift weapons and injuring dozens.

"It is very unfortunate that Haiti’s government leaders have increasingly resorted to naked violence to suppress dissent," said Mr. Jocelyn McCalla, interim Executive Director of the NY-based National Coalition for Haitian Rights (NCHR). According to Pierre Esperance, Director of NCHR-Haiti, today’s violence stands as one of the worst perpetrated against students since 1993 when Haitian military leaders forcibly shut down the State University, preventing students then to express support for Aristide’ return to power.

During the past year, Haiti has witnessed a growing movement in favor of leadership change with much of the focus on President Aristide. In the country, the rule of law has little or no meaning. The police and the judiciary are deeply politicized and rely on a network of loosely organized but heavily armed gangs to suppress dissent and intimidate the population. Despite repeated promises, political killings remain unsolved. Such is the case for Jean Dominique, killed almost four years ago in April 2000.

The government stands as one of the most corrupt in the world, according to Transparency International. And most development specialists agree that poor governance remains the greatest impediment to effective international assistance. President Aristide is no longer as popular as ten years ago when Haitians fought for his return from exile. "Today they’re dying because of him," said McCalla, adding: "We will not stand by while the young women and men of Haiti suffer the debilitating wounds of failed policies and despotic behavior. We urge our colleagues in the international community to join us in condemning the government-sponsored violence, and insist on the strict respect of civil and political rights as sine qua non conditions for progress in Haiti."

http://www.nchr.org/hrp/12-25-03PR.htm

[eablair3]

11. you have to be careful -- Haiti propaganda

The media in Haiti is controlled by the weatlhy opposition groups. So, the info you often see in media reports has to be carefully scrutinized. THere is much disinfo that goes to serve the interests of the wealthy class in Haiti who want Aristide out. I'm not sure of NCHR, but I do know that the millions spent by the right-wing National Endowment For Democracy and the International Republican Institute go into many different things including websites to spread info, and wrong, slanted and distorted info.

___________



New Pamphlet Explodes Haiti Myths

The U.S. government is engaged in a systematic campaign to vilify and overthrow Haiti’s elected government. Millions of North Americans are either unaware of this assault or have swallowed a host of lies and distortions about Haiti being repeated regularly by the mainstream media.

This is the point of departure of Hidden from the Headlines: The U.S. War Against Haiti, a booklet recently published by the California-based Haiti Action Committee (HAC).

“Since the election of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2000, the United States has moved to sabotage Haiti’s fledgling democracy through an economic aid embargo, massive funding of elite opposition groups, support for paramilitary coup attempts, and a propaganda offensive against the Aristide government,” the authors write, noting that U.S. offensives against Iraq, Venezuela and Cuba are more well known. “Hidden from the headlines for years, this campaign has now become an open effort to destroy a progressive, popularly elected government.”

snip

Authors Laura Flynn, Pierre Labossière and Robert Roth outline how Washington has targeted the Haitian people through an economic aid embargo, which has contributed to less clean water, paved roads, and stocked clinics, more disease outbreaks, road accidents, and illiteracy. “Since December 2001, the Haitian gourde has lost 69% of its value and Haiti’s foreign reserves have shrunk by 50%, largely due to the embargo,” they write.

They also lay out why and how “the U.S. has spent millions to fund the ‘Democratic Convergence,’ an opposition group conceived and orchestrated by the International Republican Institute,” which is an arm of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). The “Contra war against Haiti” by the opposition’s “armed wing,” a guerilla force made up largely of former Haitian soldiers based in the neighboring Dominican Republic, is also detailed.

Hidden from the Headlines sums up many of the Haitian government’s worthy accomplishments, which the U.S. corporate press effectively whites-out. “More schools were built in Haiti from 1994-2000 than between 1804 and 1994,” the authors point out, “many in rural areas where no schools existed previously.” They also cite progress made in agriculture, public transportation, infrastructure, health care, AIDS prevention and treatment, and defending children’s rights. “Clearly, these programs represent a progressive agenda, initiated under the most trying conditions,” the booklet says.

http://www.haiti-progres.com/eng11-12.html

[Judi Lynn]

13. Similar advice was given in another article a DU'er posted recently

concerning Reuters and A.P., saying that they had had no one on the ground there and had to rely on the local press offerings, which came from organs owned by the Haitian elite, the Convergence people.

Great post!

[windansea]

16. Human Rights Watch reports

wondering when any of my sources will be accepted...so far I've posted reports by the Carter Center, Amnesty International, Reporters without Borders, HRW, NCHR, which detail corruption, intimidation, rigged elections, and many failures by Aristide to promote true democratic reforms and freedom of the press....plus and a quote by Senator Harkin disputing Aristides claim he was kidnapped and forced to resign.

These are respected international organizations...I have no idea of the ownership or agenda of haiti-progres but I am pretty confident in the integrity of the above named organizations.


Joint Statement by International Human Rights Organizations on Haiti
February 5, 2001

Haiti held elections on November 26, 2000, that ushered in a second Jean-Bertrand Aristide presidency. Unlike the 1990 vote, however, Mr. Aristide's election came amidst widespread doubts about his own and the Préval government's commitment to democracy, political disputes over earlier parliamentary elections, low voter turnout, virtually no competing candidacy, and an international community disinclined to support the new Haitian leaders. During the period preceding the presidential vote, a spate of pipe bomb explosions, government attempts to suppress dissent or otherwise intimidate its oppo-nents, the assassination of Jean L. Dominique, Haiti's most prominent journalist, and manipulation of the May 2000 vote for parliament, dealt a severe blow to the observance of civil and political rights in Haiti.

http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/haiti/joint_statement.html

Rights Groups Call on Aristide to Act On Reform Agenda

(Washington, D.C., February 5, 2001) -- Six international human rights organizations called upon incoming Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to adopt a series of important reforms, outlined in a joint statement released today.

"President-elect Aristide's stated commitment to remedy Haiti's current problems will only be meaningful if it is borne out by genuine reform efforts."

The series of measures, framed as an "agenda for democratic and human rights reform," include investigating and prosecuting acts of political violence, finding a fair solution to the contested elections of 2000, establishing a credible electoral commission, and developing a judicial system that protects fundamental human rights and stays independent of political influence.
"President-elect Aristide's stated commitment to remedy Haiti's current problems will only be meaningful if it is borne out by genuine reform efforts," says the joint statement.

In 2000, the statement points out, civil and political rights in Haiti were dealt serious blows. Notable among them were government attempts to suppress dissent or otherwise intimidate its opponents, the assassination of Jean L. Dominique, Haiti's most prominent journalist, and the manipulation of the May 2000 parliamentary vote.

The joint statement includes recommendations to the international community, urging countries to press the government of Haiti to demonstrate a clear commitment to upholding and strengthening democracy and the rule of law.

The groups signing the joint statement are: the Center for International Policy, Human Rights Watch, the International Human Rights Law Group, the National Coalition for Haitian Rights, Rights and Democracy, and the Washington Office on Latin America.

http://www.hrw.org/press/2001/02/haiti0205.htm

[eablair3]

12. take a look at that report

New York, December 5, 2003 – University students were denied the right today to peacefully express disagreement with President Jean-Bertrand Aristide’s stewardship of Haiti’s affairs when pro-government mobs attacked them. Reports from eyewitnesses and the media indicate that CIMO, Haiti’s anti-riot police unit, stood by while the mobs rioted in the street before forcing their way into the building where the students were gathering, striking them with makeshift weapons and injuring dozens.

that kind of stuff happens in the US all the time when demonstrations occur. Bush and the Secret Service won't let protesters be within miles of him. Police come in the U.S. and shoot and use chemical weapons on protestors.

So, I always read reports like this skeptically. It's out there for a purpose. Aristide did not get 67% the first time and 90% of the vote the second time without a lot of popular support. There are many with money that don't like Aristide. I wouldn't put it past thme to stage things like this. I don't mean to dismiss reports like this, as I think these things are serious. But, I'd want to see more and hear more facts than just a report on a website.

But, that report could be easily applied to what goes on in the U.S. -- Easily.

and it makes one wonder about the site itself if you look at the front page and there is nothing there about anything that has happened in Haiti in the last week, esp for site that focuses on Haitian rights.

[windansea]

17. joint report by NCHR & Human Rights Watch

if you read the whole thing (quite long) you will see that they detail abuses by Aristade, rebel groups, the US etc etc

http://www.nchr.org/reports/terror_prevails_1994.pdf

I find it curious that you question this source but not the haiti-progres source cited above...perhaps they have an agenda????

Perhaps they are not reporting much right now as their main office is in Port-au-Prince....

also some background on NCHR

Background
The achievements of the National Coalition for Haitian Rights (NCHR) are without parallel in the field of advocacy for the rights of Haitians in Haiti and elsewhere.

Established as the National Coalition for Haitian Refugees in 1982 by a coalition of 42 U.S. and Haitian religious, labor and human rights organizations, NCHR aimed to assure that Haitian asylum applicants receive fair hearings in the United States and educate the U.S. public about the political and economic causes of the Haitians' flight from their homeland.

In 1995, armed with a new agenda and a new name, NCHR initiated a new programmatic division for helping increase the political effectiveness of the Haitian-American community, so that this community at the margins of power and recognition might soon begin to enjoy more fully the benefits of participating in U.S. democracy.

In the United States, NCHR has pioneered in national litigation, education and advocacy efforts designed to halt the deportation and secure the legal status of Haitian boat people. The Coalition's efforts over several years were instrumental in gaining passage of reforms in U.S. immigration law in 1986 enabling more than 40,000 Haitians to attain legal residency. As a plaintiff in a landmark case against the Department of Justice, NCHR helped secure parole into the U.S. for nearly three hundred Haitian asylum-seekers who had been quarantined for as long as twenty months at the U.S. naval station at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. This legal effort led ultimately to the closing of what was probably the world's first prison camp for HIV-positive refugees.

NCHR has also assumed international leadership in organizing support for human rights in Haiti. Over the last ten years, NCHR staff members have conducted numerous investigative missions to Haiti and published more than thirty reports on the status of human rights there. Together with Americas Watch, NCHR set up a three-month long Election Watch in 1987 to monitor what were meant to be Haiti's first free elections, and which instead ended in an army bloodbath. We followed with a parallel month-long monitoring of the successful democratic elections in December 1990. We established in 1992 a permanent NCHR office in Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital, for promoting human rights and democratic reforms.

[Bandit]

3. Crack Cocaine

Into Watts.

[Just Me]

5. If I knew, I sure as hell wouldn't post it here.

Nothing personal, of course :D

[bemildred]

6. "What are we up to in Haiti?"

Showing who is the boss, just like in Iraq, and apparently with
as little competence. There is no recent evidence to show
that Noriega could find his own ass with both hands and a map,
so I see little reason to pay attention to what he says, although
one can argue that it's dumb to piss off the "rebels" after
using them. I can just see Philippe saying "OH!, I feel so used!"
and deciding to start a free-lance operation with all those nice
guns we gave him.

The interesting question in Haiti now, it seems to me, is whether
they will manage to do any better job of establishing order than
in Iraq. Right now I'm betting they fuck it up like everything
else they have attempted.

[tom_paine]

7. That's a pretty safe bet, bemildred

[lumpy]

10. Very confusing

Who is battling who? Haitian police are not Aristide's police? Gangs loyal to Aristide, rebels loyal to Phillipe? Who's who and what's what.

[NYC]

14. That's my question.

Who are now considered the "police"?

[htuttle]

15. The 'rebels' are off their 'leash' is what's going on

No doubt, Philippe, Chamblain and the rest of those monsters had every intention of doing exactly what they are doing right from the start. Perhaps Bushco wanted something a little more tidy, but those guys were going to go out and just take power -- after all, they are the ones with guns, they know that BushCo is overextended on this, that BushCo is vulnerable to revelations that they could make, so they are making the move now that the US got rid of Aristide for them.

I'd say that BushCo has been 'Chalabied' once again...

This time, it will be the people of Haiti paying the price for BushCo's incompetence and poll-driven impatience, as the people of Iraq and Afghanistan still are.