Archives of Editorials #4

Having just returned from fairy tale Las Vegas, Nevada where I stayed for 5 days, I found

myself reflecting in this city that never sleeps, where tourism rules and blooms, as to what Haiti's tourist industry used to be in its golden years, and what it has become today.

"Eat, drink, and feel famous" is the Viva Las Vegas motto for the ordinary tourist, which was also the same idea on a smaller scale in the heydays of the travel industry in Haiti. Las Vegas has all the tourist traps and a limitation of choices that still makes it a fabulous success. 35 million visitors a year.

Haiti could learn from it in a town with plenty of drawbacks: A brutal temperature of 106 to 113 Fahrenheit in a desert environment, a mafia reputation, dubious morality, no native population per se and a "plastic" culture which can be described in one word: gambling. Excluding its everyday workers who reside in the outskirts, the Strip which is similar to New York's Times Square, has a 100 per cent tourist population.

Anyone with a dollar regardless of race, gender, religion, cultural identity or otherwise, is welcome. It's an open town but the legalities in the book are strictly applied. One should not even think of breaking them; zero tolerance is enforced.Haiti's Golden Era of Tourism began in 1949 with the World's fair and reached its peak in 1956. What one government (Estime) created in 1949 with the International Exposition, was continued under the next administration (Magloire) from 1950 to 1956.

In Haiti, most governmental administrations have traditionally been against each other's projects when taking over power, but in this case reason prevailed and the country as a whole benefited.With the recent passing of General Paul E. Magloire at age 94, President of Haiti from 1950 to 1956, it is appropriate to remember the good things of his presidency. There were strong efforts at modernization and these were peaceful times. Due to good coffee prices Haiti's economy moved forward under Magloire. Many infrastructures were put in place. As per " The Guardian " of the United Kingdom, an article written by Greg Chamberlain : " Under Magloire, Haiti became a mecca for American tourists and world ranking glitterati, among them Truman Capote, Irving Berlin and Noel Coward."In the early 50s Dominican Republic also known as Santo Domingo took a back seat to Haiti in the tourist industry. After Cuba, Haiti was top notch in the Caribbean when it came to tourism.

In the international community it was favored by the likes of celebrities like James Jones author of "From here to Eternity" who even got married in Haiti, and to name a few more: Claudette Colbert, Mike Wallace, Harry Belafonte, Ben Gage, Esther Williams, Adam Clayton Powell, Katherine Dunham, Ava Gardner, Erroll Flynn. Many better-known personalities of that time, the world over, came to Haiti.In those days I was privileged to have a front seat as Public Relations Attaché to the Government Tourist Office in Port-au-Prince, which was an independent entity from the Commerce Department, working with a Director, an Assistant-Director, and a full staff for the promotion of tourism.My position of " Attaché a la Direction" " was subsequently occupied by Aubelin Jolicoeur who became well known due in part to his bubbly personality, many talents in the public relations field, and his being mentioned profusely as "Petit Pierre" in Graham Greene's novel "The Comedians." Eventually he would become the Head of Tourism under General Namphy's government in the late eighties.In the early fifties I knew Aubelin as a reporter for "Le Nouvelliste" and we developed a cordial relationship. Often we would go to one of his relatives to shoot the breeze, a Mr. Beauboeuf I believe, who had a bar-restaurant close to the Oloffson Hotel.

Those were the heydays. An interesting aside -- Through Aubelin, I had become friendly with Captain Max Bazelais, a man who truly had a joy for life and a great sense of humor, I suppose he had to have it, due to his position then as Chief of the National Penitentiary.

For Carnival one year, I asked Max if he could make me an authentic prisoner's uniform of the white and red stripes sort, for the festivities. White and red stripes were for prisoners having committed violent crimes specifically murder, and the blue and white were for common crimes, as for instance disorderly conduct.

No problem he told me, Come to the jail tomorrow. I arrived the next day and as soon as I was introduced to him he gave a direct order to the sergeant in his office to arrest me immediately.

I was put in an authentic jail cell and a tailor was ordered to fit me with a red and white stripes prisoner's uniform, under the supevision of the menacing sergeant. This ordeal of my being incarcerated lasted for about an hour to the great amusement of my "friend" the captain.

I did put that uniform to good use in many other carnivals due to the price I had to pay to receive it. I can have a good belly laugh at it now but then, at the jail, it was not funny. Rest in peace Max, I never held a grudge against you and I appreciate your sense of humor even more today. Those were the days of youth, hope, and daring moments, which gave life a special flavor.Haitian entertainers were often invited to the adjacent islands to promote their artistry. In '54, the well known choregrapher of Haitian folklore dances, Jean-Leon Destine and Ti-Roro , the famous national drummer in those days, and I, were officially invited to visit St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands by the governor at that time.

For a week there were festivities at the Virgin Isle Hotel where Haitian folkore was admirably promoted by those two great artists. Ti-Roro, Destine and I shared a suite at the Virgin Isle but one problem was that female tourists would knock at all hours, desiring to talk to him or to take him on. I leave it to the reader's fertile imagination. In those days giving one's room number to a perfect stranger was perfectly normal. And Ti-Roro loved the idea. Ti-Roro's English was improving remarkably by the minute.A few other trivial and amusing stories come to mind to describe these exciting times when Port-au-au-Prince was the celebrities' destination.

In the fifties, Perez Prado, King of the Mambo, visited Haiti. On the Saturday of his arrival he performed at the then famous " Cabane Choucoune " nightclub where the General-President Paul Eugene Magloire and his entourage were present to welcome him. He dedicated a musical arrangement with four saxophonists titled " Kanson Fe" i.e. "Iron Pants" to Magloire as he was popularly called then. The band never stopped playing until the dancers stopped dancing.

To conclude this glorious weekend, the next day, a public relations attaché to the National Tourist Office, I accompanied Perez Prado to the "Aux Calebasses" night club owned by a Mr. Jean Lumarque, in the populous Carrefour district, outside of Port-au-Prince.When we arrived, seeing a crowd, I was told Perez Prado was inside dancing a mambo. This was puzzling being that at that very moment the king of the mambo was seated next to me in my car. The puzzle was quickly solved. The "impostor" dancing the mambo was a well known friend and popular businessman, a " bon vivant " by the name of Milo Hakim. Those two really looked like twins and the crowd in its enthousiasm mistook Milo for Perez.Other memories are of other celebrities like Celia Cruz, Daniel Santos, Bienvenido Granda and countless others who received the same apotheosis when they came to Haiti in the fifties.

Another regular visitor to Bowen Field Airport in PAP was Porfirio Rubirosa, the famous international playboy first married to Dominican dictator Trujillo's eldest daughter and subsequently to heiresses Barbara Hutton and Doris Duke. He had on a regular basis waiting for him at the Port-au-Prince airport a supply of "bois cochon", an elixir withdrawn from a specific tree in Haiti, which claim to fame then was similar to the drug Viagra today.

Now, let's go forward in time almost 50 years later. Tourism is presently dead due mainly to political instability, mounting problems of poverty, environmental devastation, and crime. The government is putting its best foot forward mainly in the city of Jacmel. Haiti has presently 800 hotel rooms with President Aristide claiming that there will be 7,000 hotel rooms by the year 2004.

The Dominican Republic a.k.a. Santo Domingo that shares the same island has presently 20,000 international-quality rooms. Tourist guidebooks or advertisements in the Miami Herald don't even acknowledge that Haiti shares the same island with the Dominican Republic. Ironically In the fifties, Haiti was the focal point to encourage people to visit Santo Domingo.

It is not an easy task to revive tourism mostly when reading the latest statements by Frank McCourt, author of Pulitzer Price winning "Angela's Ashes," recently returning from Haiti.

There is what he had to say: " I have traveled to other places like Caracas and Bombay but nothing compares to the helplessness I saw in Haiti... We have a huge Caribbean community in New York, many of them Haitians, and we never heard a word from our two Democratic senators Schumer and Clinton or our congressional delegation.

"We never hear a promising word from this White House.... So it's up to us to pressure our elected leaders to initiate some kind of attention to this nation of 7 million that is in our doorstep. The country that gives Haiti most aid is Cuba and we have a goddamned blockade around it...

"President Aristide is doing his best, but his opponents just paralyze him. So nothing filters to the people. When it does, the gangs of thieves usually rob it. My trip to Haiti was simply unforgettable. The next time I hear someone complain about anything at all, I'll tell them to shut up, you could live in Haiti.""Gen zanmi ak zanmi" in cultural translation: A good friend is better than a brother.

La communauté internationale favorisait notre pays avec des personnalités comme Claudette Colbert, Mike Wallace, Harry Belafonte, Katherine Dunham, Ava Gardner, et tant d’autres. Les artistes Haitiens étaient invités dans les iles adjacentes pour démontrer leurs talents. En 1954 j’eus le plaisir d’accompagner officiellement dans les Antilles, pour promouvoir le folklore Haitien à travers les îles, le fameux tambourineur Ti-Roro et le danseur d’un grand renom Jean-Léon Destiné …En retour des étoiles fameuses comme Perez Prado, Celia Cruz, Daniel Santos, Esther Williams nous visitaient. Haiti était à l’honneur.

Haiti Democracy Project Plan is the Way Out for the OAS; Nancy Roc, 2003-04-29

Ce 30 avril doit se tenir à Washington, une réunion capitale pour tous les acteurs impliqués dans la crise haïtienne issue des élections de mai 2000. En effet, depuis la visite de la délégation de haut niveau OEA-Caricom en Haïti les 19 et 20 mars derniers et l’ultimatum lancé à M. Aristide pour l’application de la Résolution 822 le 30 mars au plus tard, rien n’a été réalisé par le gouvernement en place en vue de ladite application. Qui pis est, le Chef du pouvoir Exécutif a même durcit sa position en faisant réprimer des manifestations publiques, battre des journalistes devant l’Ambassade de France alors que la mission était dans le pays, et surtout, en s’arrogeant le droit de nommer un nouveau Chef de la Police, Gérard Jean-Baptiste, décrié par la clameur publique, les organisations des droits de l’homme, aussi bien que par les filles de feu Pasteur Sylvio Claude, comme un des principaux responsables dans l’assassinat de ce dernier en 1991. Sans oublier que le chef d’OP, Amiot Métayer , de façon certainement convenue, a tout simplement « disparu » …

Face au non respect de l’application de la Résolution 822, l’OEA s’est déclarée insatisfaite le 3 avril dernier dans un rapport de 40 pages, remis « malheureusement » trop tard par Luigi Enaudi, Secrétaire Général Adjoint de l’OEA, aux pays membres qui n’ont donc pas pu se prononcer sur ledit dossier. La rencontre du 30 avril prochain sera donc axée sur les points clés de la Résolution 822 mais, entre temps, non seulement l’OEA est divisée sur les décisions à prendre par rapport aux autorités haïtiennes mais, de plus, l’OEA a presque- pour ne pas dire totalement- perdu toute sa crédibilité dans la gestion de la crise haïtienne. Dans une interview exclusive qu’il nous a accordée en Floride, l’expert en coopération internationale, Gérard Latortue, a enfoncé le clou sur l’émission Métropolis en dénonçant « le parti pris absolu de Luigi Enaudi en faveur de Lavalas » L’expert Haïtien qui avait été invité comme observateur à la Conférence du dialogue interaméricain du 13 mars dernier n’a pas hésité a aviser la nation haïtienne de l’irresponsabilité des différents acteurs lors de cette rencontre à Washington. Quatre points ont retenu son attention :

· Tout d’abord, il s’est déclaré « stupéfait » devant le silence des responsables de l’opposition et de la société civile haïtienne lorsque Luigi Enaudi a ouvertement déclaré que l’OEA « n’accepterait pas le renversement de M. Aristide par la violence ou par les manifestations de rue » alors que selon Gérard Latortue, toutes les dictatures sont tombées de par le monde justement par ce genre de manifestations. Pour M.Latortue, ce « parti pris absolu en faveur de Lavalas » devrait disqualifier automatiquement Luigi Enaudi car « il ne pas fait preuve de la neutralité requise pour jouer un rôle de négociateur dans la crise haïtienne » et, selon lui, les partis politiques et la société civile haïtienne devraient demander officiellement que l‘OEA récuse Luigi Enaudi. Dans le cas contraire, l’OEA se sera disqualifiée, à ses yeux, comme organisation internationale ou médiateur pouvant résoudre le dossier haïtien.

· Deuxièmement, selon lui, « la communauté internationale est fatiguée du cas haïtien mais la misère du peuple demande à tout homme ou femme de conscience de se poser la question suivante : peut-on laisser la population haïtienne crever par la faute d’un homme ? » Face à ce dilemme, M.Latortue a constaté la volonté des acteurs internationaux de faire passer l’aide internationale et humanitaire à travers des ONG « en réduisant le gouvernement à sa plus simple expression »

· Ensuite, il a déploré le fait que les hommes politiques de l’opposition haïtienne décrient uniquement ce qui ne va pas en Haïti sans proposer d’alternative. Pour M. Latortue, « on n’arrivera pas à mobiliser une population pendant des mois contre quelque chose mais au contraire pour une alternative »

· Enfin, il a constaté l’hésitation de la part des décideurs de la communauté internationale de vouloir mettre en application la Charte démocratique de l’OEA. « A dire vrai, si l’on n’applique pas aujourd’hui les articles 19 et 20 de ladite Charte dans le cas d’Haïti, quand donc va-t-on les appliquer ? » questionne Gérard Latortue « face à autant de violations des droits humains, de crimes, de non respect de résolutions votées pour rien » précise-t-il.

D’autre part, pour l’expert international, la mission de haut niveau OEA/CARICOM ayant donné le délai du 30 mars « n’est que la fille du 13 mars » car ce n’est pas pour rien que la venue de cette mission a été précédée de la rencontre interaméricaine du 13. A cette dernière, les acteurs internationaux se sont rendus compte que quelque chose devait changer en Haïti et c’est une des raisons pour laquelle, M.Otto Reich, représentant du président Georges W. Bush a délivré un message sans témoin à Aristide. Ceci dit, Gérard Latortue a profité de cette occasion pour souligner « la lecture erronée » qu’ont les pays membres de la CARICOM de la situation haïtienne. Selon lui, ces pays ont toujours « une lecture basée sur l’idéologie de l’Aristide de 1990 qui voulait défendre la race noire et les pauvres contre l’impérialisme(…)Or , cet Aristide n’existe plus » a-t-il ajouté. De plus, si ces pays hésitent encore à adopter une position hostile aux autorités haïtiennes c’est « parce que, en fait, les chefs d’Etat de ces pays, ces roitelets désirent être un chef comme Aristide l’est en Haïti » Tout en rappelant que la plupart de ces îles de la Caraïbes constituent un circuit privilégié pour le trafic de la drogue et constituent des lieux de tentation pour le népotisme, Gérard Latortue concède que les Anglais y ont laissé un vernis démocratique qui résiste encore mais pour combien de temps ? Par ailleurs, pour lui, il est clair qu’en adoptant une position contre le gouvernement haïtien, ces dirigeants de la CARICOM ont « peur de créer un précédent pour que cela ne leur arrive pas à leur tour » dans le futur. Concernant le non respect de la Résolution 822 par Aristide depuis le 4 novembre 2002, non respect réitéré le 30 mars dernier avec notamment des violations successives des droits humains et des nominations controversées au sein de la police, Gérard Latortue a cité des responsables Américains pour qui « ces événements ont miné toute crédibilité du gouvernement d’Aristide » auprès d’eux. Toutefois, il pense que la Résolution 822 demeure un cadre de référence dans la mesure où elle appelle à l’application de mesures concrètes. Selon Gérard Latortue, le cas haïtien ne sera sans doute pas porté devant l’ONU vue la situation en Irak mais, tenant compte aussi du parti pris évident de l’OEA dans la crise haïtienne, et de l’impossibilité d’organiser des élections actuellement en Haïti, il suggère que la crise soit résolue à travers un groupe de pays amis d’Haïti, qui accepterait la proposition suivante- qui épouse partiellement celle avancée par l’ONG Haïti Democracy Project basée à Washington, en l’occurrence :

dans le cadre de l’application des articles 19 et 20 de la Charte démocratique de l’OEA où les Etats membres de l’OEA convoqueraient une réunion pour priver Haïti de son droit de participation aux activités de l’Organisation , le Conseil Permanent de l’OEA reconnaîtrait clairement l’altération de l’ordre démocratique en Haïti et l’échec des initiatives diplomatiques visant à restaurer la démocratie en Haïti. Ensuite, ce Conseil Permanent pourrait soutenir la mise en place d’un gouvernement de transition formé de technocrates issue de la Société Civile et conduire le pays aux élections dans un délai de deux ans. Pendant ce temps, Gérard Latortue suggère que les partis politiques puissent se réorganiser et puissent également bénéficier d’un support budgétisé par l’Etat au cours des dix années qui suivront les élections. Si Monsieur Latortue préconise cette solution plutôt sans Aristide, ce dernier pourrait également rester au pouvoir pendant cette transition de cohabitation s’il accepte d’observer uniquement les limites constitutionnelles de Président.

Qu’à cela ne tienne, à quelques jours de la réunion du 30 avril, beaucoup d’observateurs demeurent sceptiques. En effet, depuis l’adoption de la Charte démocratique de l’OEA, aucun état membre n’a été l’objet de cette mesure. Toutefois, rappelons que l’embargo décrété contre Haïti sous le Coup d’Etat, avait constituer une première suite au vote de la Résolution 1080 de Santiago par l’assemblée générale de l’OEA en juin 1991. Dans ce sens, la prochaine réunion de l’OEA autour de la crise haïtienne sera très importante pour tous les acteurs impliqués dans cette dernière. D’autre part, alors que le compte à rebours à commencer, le pouvoir Lavalas est de plus en plus mis sur la sellette : en effet, après les déclarations du Premier Ministre Canadien Jean Chrétien qui, lors de son passage à Saint Domingue la semaine dernière, avait accusé le président Aristide de ne pas appliquer la Résolution 822 de l’OEA, c’était au tour du Ministre bahaméen des Affaires Etrangères, Fred Mitchell de monter au créneau le 15 avril dernier. Dans une interview au journal « The Guardian », il a qualifié de « frustration » le résultat négatif de la dernière réunion autour d’Haïti qui s’est tenue à Miami les 12 et 13 avril dernier. Il a déclaré qu’il « était probable que la date-limite soit prolongée », avant de préciser que les Etats-Unis souhaitent rester rigides car « ils ont d’autres dossiers à gérer pour le moment (…) et voudraient voir la situation en Haïti aller de l’avant » De son côté, le Président Dominicain Hipolito Meija a déclaré récemment qu’il n’y avait pas de démocratie en Haïti, se désolidarisant donc et ceci pour la première fois, ouvertement, du gouvernement d’Aristide. Selon lui, c’est cette absence de démocratie qui est une des raisons du blocage de l’aide internationale.

Après Gérard Latortue, c’est au tour de l’économiste Haïtien Jean Erich René de faire tomber d’autres masques des acteurs internationaux. En effet, dans un article intitulé « Pas de prolongation » publié sur le net ce 22 avril, il dénonce les « aveux compromettants de certains membres de la CARICOM dans le dossier de la crise haïtienne » Ainsi, écrit-il, « Fred Mitchell, Ministre des affaires Etrangères des Bahamas est pointé du doigt comme l’un des membres influents de la CARICOM qui tirent le fil du yo-yo pour maintenir le statu quo. Pour se dédouaner vis à vis de Washington et se repositionner par rapport à Otto Reich, cette semaine il a largué les amarres. Il reconnaît publiquement qu’il n’est pas possible de vouer toute une nation aux gémonies pour satisfaire les ambitions politiques d’un seul homme. La Communauté Internationale doit choisir entre le destin d’un peuple et l’avenir politique d’un tyran qui refuse de se plier aux principes démocratiques » Pour Jean Erich René, « le grand danger qui menace actuellement le peuple haïtien c’est que comme alternative à Jean Bertrand Aristide, selon les lunettes de Luigi Enaudi, grimace le spectre de la tutelle étrangère avec ou sans Aristide(…)Il n’est pas question de réduire Haïti au rang d’un Etat paria pour assurer la continuité d’un Gouvernement délinquant(…)Jean-Bertrand Aristide ne pêche pas par manque de temps, il pêche par manque de bonne volonté. La voyoucratie est son système de Gouvernement privilégié(…) Pour juguler la crise politique en cours, Jean-Bertrand Aristide est actuellement à la recherche de raccourci. Sur le plan international, ses lobbyistes s’activent pour obtenir une prolongation pour l’exécution des résolutions 806 et 822. Entre temps, sur le plan national, il envisage de rééditer l’Accord du 6 mars. En faisant miroiter le poste de Premier Ministre aux yeux du même acteur ou de l’un de ses lieutenants, il compte clore le chapitre de la crise politique haïtienne. Ainsi, il fermera la porte aux nez des organisations internationales. Ni l’OEA, ni la CARICOM n’auront plus rien à dire. Otto Reich, Denis Paradis, Fred Mitchell, Luigi Enaudi ne seront plus que des personnages fictifs. Les résolutions 806 et 822 deviendront caduques et tomberont comme des feuilles mortes d’automne. L’article 20 de la Charte démocratique de l’OEA ne sera plus qu’une utopie » Face à ces manœuvres locales et internationales, Jean Erich René pense qu’il ne faut pas accorder de sursis aux dirigeants politiques haïtiens le 30 avril prochain car « de prolongation en prolongation, de date butoir en date butoir, plus de deux ans se sont écoulés. Cette technique du dilatoire vise à porter Aristide à boucler le terme de son mandat sans faire aucune concession » affirme-t-il.

A entendre les différents experts internationaux autour des acteurs impliqués dans le dossier de la crise haïtienne, le peuple haïtien a de quoi s’inquiéter et se demande sans doute à quel Saint se vouer dans cet enfer qu’on lui a imposé. Un enfer qui pourrait se transformer en catastrophe humanitaire selon les Nations Unies qui ont, à travers le PNUD ce 22 avril, présenté un projet dénommé « Programme Intégré de Réponse aux Besoins Urgents des Populations Vulnérables » ( le PIR) devant atteindre 3 millions d’Haïtiens vivant dans des conditions de pauvreté extrême et totalisant la somme de 84 millions de dollars américains. Selon le PNUD, tous les indices de développement accusent une faiblesse chronique et le système des Nations Unies a donc tiré la sonnette d’alarme. Une sonnette qui accule le pouvoir Lavalas dans un échec cuisant de sa politique envers Haïti, à quelques mois du Bicentenaire de l’ Indépendance. Mais, comme à l’accoutumée et avec le mépris qui le caractérise, le pouvoir a préféré accuser les colons d’être responsables de la situation du pays et après « embargo », le nouveau mot à la mode lavalassienne est « restitution ». Restitution de la dette de la France à Haïti, demandée par le Président Aristide à l’occasion du Bicentenaire de la mort de Toussaint Louverture le 7 avril dernier sans aucune stratégie diplomatique. Alors que la France a balayé d’un revers de main cette demande légitime certes mais effectuée par un gouvernement décrié par toutes les couches de la population pour son cynisme et ses incuries administratives, les Lavalassiens reprennent en cœur la demande de leur chef tout puissant. Une aberration sur laquelle nous reviendrons dans un autre grand dossier. Décidément, l’ouverture de l’esprit lavalassien n’est pas pour demain… En attendant le PIR…et le 30 avril prochain, le pays retient une fois de plus son souffle tout en s’inquiétant de la venue le 1er mai de 800 marins et étudiants en provenance de Taiwan alors que le STRAS, syndrome respiratoire aigu sévère en provenance de l’Asie et de la Chine dont Taiwan, est en passe de devenir une pandémie mortelle mondiale. D’une aberration à l’autre, espérons que le pire n’est pas à venir…
Nancy Roc, le 24 Avril 2003.

Because it detected an increase in third country nationals, including Pakistanis and Palestinians, attempting to sneak into the United States from Haiti, and because it feared that lax immigration enforcement would lead to a new boatlift from that country, the State Department recently urged the White House to adopt a policy of detaining illegal aliens arriving by boat from Haiti until they could be deported or granted asylum.

When Attorney General John Ashcroft released a legal opinion last week accepting State's advice, he was castigated by a lead editorial in The Washington Post.

Meanwhile, a big story fell through the cracks : Secretary of State Colin Powell's department -- frequently depicted as the most dovish in the administration -- is confirming that Middle Eastern nationals have been trying to penetrate the U.S. from Haiti. In State's view this was one of the factors justifying detention of persons arriving illegally from that island.

The issue came to a head after Oct. 29, 2002, when a boat carrying 216 aliens later determined to be Haitians and Dominicans, ran aground at Key Biscayne, Fla.

Then-State Department Executive Secretary Maura Harty sent a "Sensitive But Unclassified" memo to the National Security Council. "The migrants should be detained unless and until they demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution," said the memo. "Those who cannot do so should continue to be held, absent a compelling humanitarian reason for release, until they can be expeditiously repatriated."

State made two arguments :

1.-Haitian boatlifts spike when the U.S. waffles on enforcing immigration law against Haitians, and

2.- National security could be threatened by Middle Eastern nationals reaching the U.S. through Haiti.

The memo blamed Clinton administration indecisiveness for the last spike in Haitian boat people. Between 1993 and 1994, said State, Haitian migrants intercepted by the Coast Guard jumped from 2,404 to 25,069. "Anticipation of changes in immigration policy with the new Clinton Administration in 1993 caused tens of thousands of Haitians to take to boats after the new president was sworn in, and policy remained undefined for months," said State.

But State's more ominous point came in the memo's last two paragraphs.

"Haitian migration is changing," said State. "It has become more sophisticated and now takes advantage of routes via the Bahamas and uses professional smugglers. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of un-seaworthy vessels ready to take off at a moment's notice.

"We have also noticed," said State, "an increase in third country nationals (Pakistanis, Palestinians, etc.) using Haiti as a staging point for attempted migration to the United States. This increases the national security interest in curbing use of this migration route."

A week after the Haitian boat landed at Key Biscayne, an immigration judge ordered one of the migrants released on bond pending the outcome of his asylum claim. The release was stayed as the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).

To make its case, INS provided BIA with State's memo. It also submitted memos from the Defense Department and the Coast Guard. Defense said that mass migrations from Haiti "would create a drain on scarce assets that are being used in or supporting operations elsewhere."

The Coast Guard said "because maritime migrants are typically undocumented and carry little or no identification, it is often difficult to ascertain the identity and background of interdicted persons, particularly in large groups, which presents potential threats to officer safety, as well as national security."

On Feb. 12, an immigration judge ruled the Haitian migrant was not entitled to asylum. Nonetheless, on March 13, BIA ruled that pending the migrant's appeal of this ruling he should be released into the U.S. population. The release was stayed as the Department of Homeland Security, which has absorbed INS, appealed to Ashcroft. Under law, the attorney general is final judge of whether aliens should be released or detained pending immigration proceedings.

Ashcroft accepted the arguments of State, Defense, the Coast Guard and Homeland Security.

Calling his reasoning "far-fetched," The Washington Post editorialized : "As for the third-country nations, the difference between a Haitian and a Pakistani entering from Haiti could surely be discovered in a perfunctory border check."

Here is the quintessential liberal vision for securing our border : a "perfunctory border check" of illegals as they arrive surreptitiously by boat and scatter across a beach in Florida.

Excuse me, sir, are you a Pakistani ?

I asked Charles Barclay, spokesman for the assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs, if State stood by its assertion that Pakistanis and Palestinians have been among an increasing number of third country nationals trying to penetrate the U.S. from Haiti. "We stand by the memo," said Barclay.

Terence Jeffrey

ADDRESS BY Chair of the Permanent Council of the OAS
OFFICIAL STATEMENT OF THE CHAIRMAN OF THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE OAS EMANATING FROM THE SPECIAL SESSION OF THE COUNCIL ON THE SITUATION IN HAITI, APRIL 30, 2003
The Permanent Council takes note, with appreciation, of the written report of the OAS Special Mission for Strengthening Democracy in Haiti on results following the OAS/CARICOM High-level Delegation visit to Haiti, March 19-20, 2003.

The Council welcomes the fact that key members of the Delegation were able to be present for today’s Special Session, and has considered their statements as well as the recommendations of the Delegation. The Council notes the consensus view of the Delegation that, although a number of actions have been taken by the Government of Haiti, unfortunately, the Government has not taken some key measures sought by the Delegation, or has taken them in a fashion that does not contribute to the creation of a climate of confidence.

This Council is of the view that the March 20th points drawn from the provisions of Resolutions 806 and 822 and put to the Government of Haiti (Annex C of the Special Mission Report) remain fully valid and require, urgently, government action on them. Critical measures include renewing and professionalizing the police leadership in full consultation with the OAS Special Mission, ending the notorious impunity of Amiot Métayer by means of his arrest, and implementing agreed disarmament measures. Inadequate Government responses in these substantive areas are the principal obstacles to public confidence and restored democratic progress.

At the same time, the Permanent Council is concerned that civil society and the Convergence Démocratique have not given the requested assurances that they would participate in the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) should President Aristide take the concrete measures put to him. Likewise, the Council is of the view that the points left with civil society and the Convergence Démocratique by the Delegation, (reproduced in Annex D of the Special Mission Report) remain fully valid. In particular, on behalf of the Council, I wish to emphasize that the international community will not support efforts to remove the President of Haiti through violent confrontation in the streets, or other actions or arrangements contrary to democratic processes. The right to govern must be won through democratic competition and elections.

Accordingly, the Permanent Council believes it very important that a sequence of steps be taken by the Government of Haiti, civil society, and the Convergence Démocratique to facilitate formation of an independent, neutral and credible CEP, which will allow Haiti to get its legislative and local electoral processes underway. The CEP would then make decisions required to lead the electoral process, with appropriate support from the relevant Haitian actors, and with the assistance of the international community coordinated through the Special Mission.

The Council strongly supports reinforcement of the OAS Special Mission for Strengthening Democracy in Haiti, with its mandate laid out in CP/RES 806 and 822, notably including its four pillars of security (including disarmament), justice, human rights and governance. In this regard, the Council endorses the joint Terms of Reference (attached to the Second and Third Reports of the Secretary General pursuant to Resolution 822), including those for the deployment of international police officers in accordance with OAS rules and procedures. The Council believes that the necessary and effective implementation by the Government, with the help of the Special Mission, of the measures and activities laid out in the Terms of Reference will enable the Government of Haiti to demonstrate credibly to the Haitian people, as well as to the international community, its concrete progress in improving the climate of security in Haiti and in strengthening its democratic institutions. The Council notes that the European
Union has confirmed that, if appropriate, it will take part in a program of
technical support for the Haitian police and judiciary, provided that
guarantees are obtained from the authorities with a view to the
establishment of order, security and the rule of law.

The Council takes note, with much concern, of the humanitarian crisis in Haiti and welcomes the launching on April 22, 2003 by the UN System of an Integrated Program of Response to the Urgent Needs of the Vulnerable Populations and the continued implementation of PAHO grant programs to combat AIDS. The Council notes, with appreciation, the provision of humanitarian assistance by the U.S. and Canada and other members of the Friends of Haiti. The Council remains convinced, however, that additional humanitarian assistance is still needed. It welcomes recent announcements by the United States to make available further humanitarian resources.

But Haiti needs more than humanitarian aid. The Council welcomes work actively underway pursuant to paragraph 11 of Resolution 822. In addition, the Council notes the confirmation by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) that it will resume its lending operations in Haiti immediately, once arrears have been cleared. To this end, the Council further noted that to assist with the clearance of outstanding arrears, a principal requirement of the IFIs, some CARICOM countries have made pledges to facilitate Haiti clearing its arrears with the IDB. These pledges are, of course, contingent upon conclusion by the Government of Haiti of arrangements now being negotiated with the International Monetary Fund. The Council is aware that additional financing assistance will be required for full clearance of these arrears. The Council also took note of the commitment of the Government of Haiti to comprehensive clearance of arrears to all IFIs, using a sequential approach in which settlement to the IDB would be the first step. The Council expresses its conviction that transparency in economic governance will facilitate other needed agreements between the Government of Haiti, the IFIs and other donors.

Finally, I know that I reflect fully the sense of this body when I invite the Government of Haiti and the other relevant Haitian actors to play their parts actively, cooperatively and responsibly. Positive, concrete actions, or the lack thereof, will help the member states to select carefully and correctly among the various instruments of the Inter-American system designed to uphold democracy in the hemisphere, which should be applied so as to assist all Haitians to resolve the political crisis. Positive concrete actions will also enable the international community to accompany the democratic political, economic, and social development of Haiti, a founding member of the OAS.

Haitian actions, and the response of the international community, will underlie decisions on these matters at the OAS General Assembly June 8-10 in Santiago, Chile

Recommendations to the OAS Permanent Council for its review of the recent mission to Haiti

By Haiti Democracy Project www.haitpolicy.org

April 2, 2003

1. Recommendations

2. Rationale

1. Recommendations

1. Clearly, the time has come for the OAS’s Permanent Council, in its scheduled meeting on Thursday, April 3, to invoke Article 20 of the Inter-American Democratic Charter and convene a special session of the General Assembly to consider the suspension of Haiti from the exercise of its right to participate in the OAS (under the Charter’s Article 21).

By invoking Article 20, the Permanent Council would explicitly acknowledge that an unconstitutional alteration of Haiti’s constitutional regime has seriously impaired democratic order in that country, and that its diplomatic initiatives have thus far proved unsuccessful in fostering the restoration of democracy. After more than two years of fruitless effort and in response to the regime’s continued recalcitrance, such an acknowledgement is not only appropriate, but both necessary and timely. Its effect will be to increase the urgency of diplomatic efforts to resolve the Haitian crisis and to focus those efforts squarely on changing the behavior of the principal actors responsible for the continuing interruption of democratic order in that country, the Haitian state and government apparatus. To do otherwise is to undermine the spirit of the recently adopted Charter itself, and to invite either more vigorous bilateral initiatives or eventual U.N. involvement in a situation that properly falls within the purview of the hemispheric organization.

2. Simultaneously, the Permanent Council should resolve to advocate the formation and support the efforts of a transitional administration in Haiti, charged with addressing the country’s immediate humanitarian, economic and security crises and leading the nation to free-and-fair elections within a more reasonable time frame than that currently ensconced in Resolution 822; perhaps as much as two years may be required. Such an administration would be technocratic in nature and—in keeping with the Haitian constitution—functionally autonomous of the presidency.

Modeled on the OAS-brokered formula that provided the consensual basis for constituting a new Provisional Electoral Council, any new formula for creating such a transitional government would properly be anchored by a preponderance of civil society participation, input and oversight. (Under similar circumstances in 1990, an internationally-backed government and CEP based on an essentially extra-constitutional political compromise succeeded in leading the country to its first—and arguably most credible—post-Duvalierist national elections, those that brought Aristide to his first presidency on February 7, 1991.)

Such a transitional administration, overseen by a civil society-based council and supported technically by foreign donors, would immediately open the door to the normalization of Haiti’s relationship with the international financial institutions, based on an agreement with the IMF (probably a staff-monitored program or SMP to establish a track record) and pursuant to a clearance of Haiti’s arrears to the World Bank and the IDB. This resumption of multilateral assistance, in turn, is the sine qua non for tackling the humanitarian emergency now threatening the country, and for underwriting the substantial costs of the extensive disarmament program that will be required if public security and confidence are to be restored definitively. The mere creation and presence of a credible and internationally sanctioned transitional administration would itself have sufficient impact in this connection to jump-start the long-delayed electoral process.

Moreover, the Permanent Council’s charting of such a course at this juncture would have the additional virtue of recognizing that the international community’s most reliable and enduring ally in the current effort to restore democratic functionality to Haiti is Haitian civil society itself, which in recent months has demonstrated that it is both willing and able to transcend the internecine political wrangling that has paralyzed the political class, and ready to act in the higher interests of the nation. Not only the recently formed civic coalition known as the Group of 184, but other organized elements of Haitian civil society from across the ideological spectrum, together with the established churches, should be immediately called upon by the OAS to join together in order to become full partners in the continuing and increasingly urgent search for a lasting solution to this persistent crisis—a crisis whose origins are clearly political, but whose resolution must, finally, be civil.

Security requirements point to an initial 150 to 400 armed foreign police monitors to help reprofessionalize the police, which have been heavily politicized since 1999. Among the initial complement should be a substantial U.S. component. Until the international community commits in this way, it can look for little positive response from civil society which fears being exposed without foreign backing (against a regime which, lest we forget, itself was installed by foreign intervention).

2. Rationale and background

1. Invoking the Democratic Charter

Once again, the Lavalas regime has failed to meet the OAS’s most recent deadline to demonstrate its good faith by taking substantive action to establish minimum conditions of public security and confidence that would permit the immediate formation of a credible

Provisional Electoral Council and the initiation of a transparent electoral process leading to the conduct of technically feasible, free-and-fair national legislative and local elections by the end of this year, as called for in CP/RES. 822 (1331/02), dated September 4, 2002.

GOH maneuvering since the visit of the OAS’s high-level delegation earlier this month has been universally decried as a series of empty gestures, at best. At worst, some of the regime’s putative “responses” to the delegation’s long-overdue insistence on compliance with the terms and spirit of Resolution 822 by March 30^th—most notably the appointment of a number of the president’s unqualified personal cronies to high-echelon command positions within the Haitian National Police—seem expressly aimed at making a mockery of the growing outcry against impunity from within Haiti, and of the international community’s own mediation efforts to date. Meanwhile, the continuing repression of peaceful dissent, the persistence of threats against civic and opposition leaders, the ongoing suppression of a free press and a series of well-documented attempts to unduly influence the judicial process give the lie to the regime’s disingenuous protestations to the contrary.

The precedent was already taken in the exclusion of the Haitian government from the world congress of democratic nations in Seoul, South Korea, last November.

The international community should recognize that its natural ally in Haiti is not an undemocratic regime but the struggling forces of civil society and democratic opposition parties, with whom the international community aligned in the downfall of Jean-Claude Duvalier and the formation of the Conseil d’Etat in 1990 which oversaw the free election of December 16, 1990. It is time once again to make this alliance.

By so doing we use an asset that may not be available for too much longer in conditions of repression and economic devastation. The civil-society Group of 184 has made conscientious efforts to strike a moderate tone and surmount traditional class barriers. Neither the civil-society groups nor the opposition parties have used violence, which has remained a virtual monopoly of the regime. The civil-society opposition is capable of staffing a transitional administration and electoral commission that could conduct truly free and fair elections. Only such elections hold the potential to finally resolve Haiti’s prolonged post-Duvalier political crisis and implosion.

The most recent statement of the Group of 184, a civil-society coalition, makes clear its willingness to lead democratic opinion in Haiti toward participation in elections given a minimal security environment. Recent statements of the OAS high-level mission which imply that the civil society is insufficiently willing to go to elections or appeals to both sides to abjure violence are counter-factual. Civil society clearly wants free elections and violence is the virtual monopoly of one side.

The formation of a new administration to oversee elections is, likewise, a step driven by the regime’s repeated failures to respect the undertakings it has made to the OAS. The urgency of the step has grown with time. If the incumbent party was willing to impose a miscount in June 2000 when it was evidently leading, how much more incentive will it have to manipulate the vote now that its popularity has plummeted (according to a November 2002 poll commissioned by the U.S. embassy)?

The decisive collaboration of Haitian civil society and the international community on free and fair elections will give the incumbent president a choice:

1. He could observe the 1987 constitution’s severe limits on the powers of the presidency, in which case he could cohabit with a transitional administration, preside over Haiti’s bicentennial and free elections, and serve out his term.

2. He could flagrantly overstep the bounds of the constitution by continuing to sponsor armed gangs and other extra-constitutional forms of political violence, which will force the civil-society/international alliance to protect the electoral process by various means such as a reinforced foreign presence, a shortening of his term, or outright calls to step down.

The option for a transitional administration to oversee free elections does not prejudge the outcome of the Aristide presidency; that choice would remain Aristide’s to make. There are many precedents in Haitian history for a political agreement to repair an unconstitutional situation.

Another important argument for a transitional administration is that only it could create sufficient confidence to allow a full resumption of the aid Haiti so desperately needs. The administration must have sufficient international support to begin to counter the corruption which prevents A.I.D., the European Union, and international financial institutions from committing to Haiti.

It would be a serious blunder for U.S. policy to seek to push Haiti toward elections, as in 1987, without these common-sense preconditions. It makes no sense to urge Haitian politicians and leaders to join an unprotected electoral commission, which would then call candidates to campaign and voters to vote in conditions dominated by armed gangs, impunity, intimidation, and ballot tampering and miscounts. As in the 1987 Ruelle Vaillant massacre or the discarding of 1.1 million non-FL votes in 2000, this would be merely leading lambs to slaughter. Far from incrementally leading to a solution in Haiti, such a travesty of elections would only prolong the crisis.

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