Aristide: on the record about Canada and Haiti

[struggle4progress]

Exiled Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide: “People in the Canadian government have Haitian blood on their hands.” Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew denies reports of killings carried out by Canadian-trained Haitian police.

>by Haiti Action Montreal
June 23, 2005

<snip>
President Jean Bertrand Aristide: Some people in the Canadian government yes, they have Haitian blood on their hands… But not Canada as all the people of Canada or as one country… I try to make a clear distinction between the Canadian people who didn’t decide to have their government going to Haiti… seeing Pettigrew and the others with the Haitian blood on their hands. <snip>

The coup, or the kidnapping, was led by the United States, France and Canada. These three countries were on the front lines by sending their soldiers to Haiti before February 29 <2004, when Aristide was overthrown>, by having their soldiers either at the airport or at my residence or around the palace or in the capital to make sure that they succeeded in kidnapping me, leading the coup.



…Up to today, they continue to open fire on the Haitian people demonstrating asking for my return — like last May 18, more than 500,000 people were in the streets of Port-au-Prince asking for my return. They didn't open fire on them at that time and they saw what the Haitian people could do — that's why they keep opening fire on them, to prevent them from having millions of people demonstrating all over the country to ask for my return. So they still kill the Haitian people through those thugs. When members of the United Nations don't open fire on the people, they have their thugs doing the job for them — through the police, former military, convicted drug dealers. That's why, unfortunately, we have to say yes, some people in the Canadian government and the Canadian army have Haitian blood on their hands. <snip>

http://www.rabble.ca/rabble_interview.shtml?x=40078

[Beaver Tail]

1. This is not the 1st time Canada Screwed up Royally

There is

The supporting of Indonesia (in arms) for the 1975 invasion of East Timor

Testing chemical weapons against its OWN troops in WW2

The Landing of Dieppe France to get in the war before America even though they knew it WOULD be a slaughter

Of course I can easily mention more if you like

And I am a Canadian

[Spazito]

2. I still have not heard from our government why we didn't

oppose the removal of Aristide. Instead, the government was strangely, imo, silent on it all. On Canada being there under the UN, I am conflicted as I am, lately, about Afghanistan primarily because anything the bush cabal has a major part in I distrust the rationale, when one is offered.

[CHIMO]

3. Seems More Like

Complicit. Just go through Democracy Now transcripts for the period after the takeover of Haiti in Feb 2004 into March 2004.

As an example here is a piece from Maxine Waters. It is not an isolated item.

One can conjure up possible reasons and so on but it still remains that Canada assisted in the takeover.

AMY GOODMAN: It's good to have you with us. Can you describe what is happening right now?

REP. MAXINE WATERS: Well, I was very surprised to come to my office today, having been away on a hearing to find out that I had received an invitation to come to a meeting with Gerard Latortue at 10:30 this morning organized for the Black Caucus. I began to inquire about what was going on, to discover that two of our members had traveled to Haiti and had met with Gerard Latortue and had participated with Republicans in an invitation to come to the United States and meet with members of Congress. I immediately got on the phone and started to call the members of the Congressional Black Caucus. As of this morning, I have 22 members who join with me in no recognition of this illegitimate Prime Minister. There have been no elections.

He was supported essentially by the United States, with the support of France and Canada, to take over the post of Prime Minister after the coup d'etat, and I believe, as other members apparently believe, that he is illegitimate.

He's but a puppet, and we should not recognize him. And so today, in addition to the non-recognition by some of the members of the Black Caucus, ones that I have contacted, we have some Haitian organization leaders who are coming to the capitol where we will hold a press conference and we will denounce not only his presence in the capitol, but the fact that he is presiding over mayhem and murder in Haiti. Every night, members of the Lavalas party, political party, are being killed. This is the party of President Aristide. They're finding young men with their hands tied behind them, with bullet holes in their heads. There was even one case where 20 Lavalas members were placed in a big container and dropped into the sea. They're searching them out. They still have the criminals and the thugs up in charge in Gonaive and Cape Haitien. This is Guy Philippe and Louis Jodel Chamblain and Jean Tatun. These are people who had already been convicted in absentia of murder in the Rabiteau massacres. These were people who were in exile, who were organized to come back in by the opposition, and I believe with a wink and a nod from the United States, Canada and France to create this mayhem. They've burned police stations, they've killed citizens. These were the ones who were threatening to come into Port au Prince and kill President Aristide. They're still occupying the northern part of Haiti. They still have their guns. They're recruiting more soldiers. They're trying to re-establish the military, and they're in charge. And this so-called Prime Minister has not denounced it. He has not said anything. As a matter of fact he was on a program with both Guy Phillipe and Louis Jodel Chamblain. He called them freedom fighters and embraced them. Colin Powell has not denounced them. Noriega has not denounced them. They're roaming around. Mr. Chamblain tried to put together a fake turning-in of himself. Nobody believes that's going on, and what we think is going to happen is this illegitimate government is going to try and pardon them. But it's going to be interesting to see what they do with these murderers who they have left alone for all of this time. For all of these reasons we think that no member of Congress should be meeting with these people -- with Mr. Latortue. We think it is a sham and it's unconscionable that we would embrace this illegitimate puppet knowing what's going on in Haiti.

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/05/05/1357220&mode=thread&tid=25