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2004-03-03
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Haiti rebels âto lay down armsâ
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1000 US marines make a persuasive case
The leader of Haitiâs rebel movement, Guy Philippe, says he has told his fighters to lay down their arms. His move came as US marines sent to restore order after President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled at the weekend stepped up their presence. The Bush administration on Tuesday told the rebels to disarm and go home.
Meanwhile, aid agencies are beginning to bring in urgent supplies to Haiti. Thousands of people are in need of food and water in parts of the country. "Now there are foreign troops promising to protect the Haitian people... we will lay down our arms," Mr Philippe told a news conference in Port-au-Prince. His comments are an abrupt change from Tuesday when he said he would take charge of Haitiâs military and threatened to arrest the prime minister, saying he had a "moral duty" to ensure peace. Those comments brought a swift rebuke from Washington which said the rebels had no place in the political process.
More than 1,000 US troops are in Haiti as part of an international force authorised by the United Nations, which is expected to grow to about 5,000. US marines are securing key sites including the airport, port and presidential palace, but their mission has now expanded "to protect Haitians from reprisal attacks", according to Staff Sergeant Timothy Edwards. But in a sign of continuing insecurity, a gun battle broke out on Wednesday in a Port-au-Prince slum between rebels and gangs loyal to Mr Aristide, the Associated Press reported.
Aid workers are also warning that security must be restored to allow the distribution of urgently needed supplies. A plane chartered by the UN childrenâs agency (Unicef) arrived on Wednesday, bringing 30 tons of medical supplies. "There are areas we havenât been able to access for months," said Unicef spokeswoman Marixie Mercado, initially because of floods and then because of the political turmoil. The situation is said to be particularly bad in the north, where the rebels have held sway for several weeks. Oxfam calculates at least 80,000 people in Port-de-Paix and 60,000 in Cap Haitien have no access to clean water.
The reverberations of Mr Aristideâs departure are continuing with the Caribbean Community (Caricom) calling for an independent international inquiry into how he left Haiti. Mr Aristide, now in exile in the Central African Republic (CAR), has accused the US of forcing him to leave Haiti - a charge denied by the Bush administration. CAR officials say Mr Aristide was only told his destination some 45 minutes before his plane landed in the capital, Bangui, and that he was accompanied by 60 US marines.
| That can't be true, I've seen Aristide on TV and no way would it take more than one Marine on each elbow to escort him on the plane. |
They have said they will meet Mr Aristide in the coming days to discuss whether he wants to remain there or go into exile elsewhere. Correspondents say the CAR authorities are worried that Mr Aristide could cause diplomatic and political problems.
heâs already at it!
I fear that wretchedly poor Haiti will be a mess for a long time to come 
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Posted by rkb 2004-03-03 5:14:41 PM||
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