Haiti mob violence overwhelms peace force

[bemildred]

Spiralling political violence and looting in Haiti has overwhelmed UN peacekeeping forces and threatens to escalate further this weekend as former soldiers of the disbanded national army gather in the capital ready to take on street gangs loyal to the exiled president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Businesses, schools and shops were shuttered in Port-au-Prince yesterday as residents braced for bloody clashes between supporters of the ex-leader demanding his return to power and the former soldiers who led a rebellion that led to Mr Aristide's departure in February.

With only 3,000 of the 8,000 troops promised, the Brazilian-led UN peacekeeping force has a fraction of the troops and police it says it needs to control the volatile situation.

"As long as we don't have the increase in forces, it's going to be very difficult," the Brazilian foreign minister, Celso Amorim, told reporters in Brasilia.

Guardian

[Bandit]

1. How long until this is what goes on in the USA?

If Bush* again steals his way into office I predict the US will become a similar situation.

[hughee99]

2. If the UN is having trouble in Haiti

I am skeptical that they will be able to make things any better in Iraq.

[sandnsea]

4. Because there are no UN troops

That's why. That's what made "UN in, US out" a joke, frankly. It isn't really more troops in Iraq that we need, it's just visible world support from the UN. It's a change in the world view of what we're doing there, and maybe some ME troops as well. Which would help calm Iraq and allow our troops to attend to things like keeping peace in Haiti. But we can't say much of anything about Haiti because we don't have the troops to do anything about it anyway. Not to mention, it's yet another Bush failure.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. * needs Haiti as entre to Cuba. Here's how:

Haiti has become unstable all over.
U.S. rushes in as a humanitarian gesture.
U.S. "discovers" Cuban "provacateurs" in Haiti.
DING! The elusive excuse to invade Cuba and overthrow its government and finally take care of Castro.

[aneerkoinos]

5. What Haiti needs

Haiti needs to get rid of US and IMF and the criminal gangs they employ.

Haiti needs weapons to throw the imperialists out.

Haiti needs to repeat the heroic history of revolution.

Haiti needs Aristide back and the return of legitimate order.

Haiti needs help from Caricom and rest of Latin America.

Haiti needs Cuban doctors.

Haiti needs no US hypocricy, US is the enemy of the world.

[bvar22]

6. Well Said.

I agree with your prescription for Haiti.

It is difficult to filter through all the propaganda from Haiti, but these two points seem to be true:

1)Aristide was the last Democratically Elected leader in Haiti.

2)He was overthrown by a coup friendly to US (cheap labor)Corporations.

[0007]

7. Amen!

[BayCityProgressive]

8. Haiti as an entre into Cuba?

Please, if imperial america cant handle haiti or Iraq Cuba would be their worst nightmare.

[IHateFundies]

9. Why not bring back Aristide, the elected President?

I bet that would calm things down a lot.

[tinanator]

10. what, and plan a 3rd coup?

The question is why did Bushcorp throw him out twice?
To pretend the US isnt behind his auster AGAIN is to authenticate either foolishness, duplicity or stupidity.