U.S. Congresswoman Wants Haiti’s Political Prisoners Released

[seemslikeadream]

U.S. Congresswoman Maxine Waters

...

In a letter also sent to President George Bush and Secretary of State nominee, Condoleeza Rice, Waters stated, "I urge you, as your last official acts of mercy and compassion for the Haitian people, to call for the immediate release of all remaining political prisoners and other Haitians who are being illegally detained in Haitian prisons, and to do whatever is required to expedite desperately needed humanitarian assistance.”

These she said include former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune, former Interior Minister Jocelerme Privert, Senator Yvon Feuillé, former Deputy Rudy Hérivaux, and the well-known Haitian singer and community activist Anne Auguste (So Anne).

Waters, who was in St. Lucia yesterday for their ruling party’s convention, also said much work remains to stabilize Haiti and secure a better future for the Haitian people and slammed the interim government for not being able to solve the “urgent tasks.”

The congresswoman again called for the return of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide while also expressing her deep disappointment with the lack of leadership from the international community, including the United States, France, Canada and the United Nations peacekeeping forces.

“While international officials claim to be committed to democracy in Haiti, they have made no serious effort to disarm the thugs and killers who were involved in the coup d’etat or to demand that the interim government respect the human rights of the Haitian people. It is imperative that the United States demand that the interim government disarm the thugs and respect human rights.,” added Waters.

http://www.hardbeatnews.com/details2708.htm

[G_j]

1. U.S. Congresswoman ..

of course it would be Maxine Waters! How many others would bother to care about the situation in Haiti?
We went through a long election campaign where the US backed coup in Haiti was never mentioned (that I know of)
Shame!

[OneBlueSky]

2. let's see . . . so far Bush has trashed . . .

the Geneva Conventions, the US Constitution, and the Ten Commandments . . . anything left? . . .

[rodeodance]

3. Keoyto agreement

[rodeodance]

4. 30 years of progress made on envirmental protection going down

[seemslikeadream]

5. Chaos keeps most foreign aid out of Haiti

Chaos keeps most foreign aid out of Haiti
Violence erupts as Powell meets with president in capital
Reed Lindsay, Chronicle Foreign Service

Thursday, December 2, 2004
Port-au-Prince, Haiti -- After President Jean-Bertrand Aristide was ousted in February, Haitians hoped life would get easier. They looked for millions of dollars in foreign aid to start flowing in.

But nine months later, only a fraction of the $1.4 billion promised by the international community has arrived. Unrelenting violence continues to rack the country, as Secretary of State Colin Powell found out when he arrived here Wednesday.

Gunfire erupted near the National Palace, an area that is an Aristide stronghold, while Powell was meeting inside with President Boniface Alexandre, Prime Minister Gerard Latortue and other Aristide opponents. There were no injuries, and it was not clear whether anyone was arrested.

"For six months, things were quiet because people expected things to get better after so many promises of aid and assistance from the United States, France and Canada," said Marcus Garcia, a Haitian journalist who directs Radio Melodie, a Port-au-Prince station. "But things are worse, especially for the poorest. ... Nothing has been done, not only by the international community but by the government itself."
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/12/02/MNGPQA4SMO1.DTL


Dec 2, 2004 — By Andrew Hay

BRASILIA, Brazil, (Reuters) - U.N. peacekeepers in Haiti will not respond to international pressure to "use violence" against armed gangs and will rebuild the country as a "peacekeeping force, not an occupying force," the mission's Brazilian commander said on Thursday.

His comments and those of Brazil's foreign minister came a day after Secretary of State Colin Powell demanded U.N troops crack down on street gangs after gunfights broke out near him when he visited Haiti's interim leader at the presidential palace.

"We are under extreme pressure from the international community to use violence," General Augusto Heleno Ribeiro told a congressional commission in Brazil. "I command a peacekeeping force, not an occupation force … we are not there to carry out violence, this will not happen for as long as I'm in charge of the force."

"To do this would require a force of 100,000 men prepared to seek and kill in large numbers and this is not our role, nor do we want it," Foreign Minister Celso Amorim told Brazilian legislators.

more
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=298561