US revokes visas to pressure Haiti on election

[rabs]

So, Hil decides to play hardball ... awaiting the reaction of Preval who has said that he rejected the OAS report and recommendations.

Btw, the OAS report was drafted by seven people, six from the United States/Canada/France. The seventh member was from Jamaica.

If Martelly gets on the runoff ballot, suspect he will win pretty easily -- unless the fix is in by Hil and company.


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A billboard of Haiti's presidential candidate Michel Martelly is seen at a local store in Port-au-Prince January 20, 2011.… Read more »
REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

?
"Sweet Mickey"

--------

By BEN FOX and JONATHAN M. KATZ, Associated Press Ben Fox And Jonathan M. Katz, Associated Press – Fri Jan 21, 4:52 pm ET

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – The U.S. State Department said Friday it revoked the visas of about a dozen Haitian officials, increasing pressure on the government to drop its favored candidate from the presidential runoff in favor of a popular contender who is warning of renewed protests if he is not on the ballot.

Revoking visas that let prominent Haitians enter the United States is the latest step in an escalating effort to persuade Haiti's government to accept international monitors' finding that Michel Martelly rightfully belongs on the second-round ballot

Martelly has adopted a combative stance and urged his supporters to take to the streets peacefully if the electoral council does not allow him to run against top vote-getter Mirlande Manigat in the runoff, in place of Jude Celestin. Demonstrations in December shut down all Haiti's major cities for days, hampering earthquake reconstruction and efforts to halt a cholera outbreak that has killed nearly 4,000 people.

"We are ready to fight for justice for everyone," Martelly said at a news conference while surrounded by bodyguards. "We won't accept an electoral coup."

More good stuff

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110121/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/cb_haiti_election

[Peace Patriot]

1. What do you make of this, rabs?

I'm wondering, first of all, about the Associated Pukes, whom I have come to despise as liars and propagandists. i think we might as well be reading the CIA "talking points" memo.

So my questions are these:

Is it not rather odd and suspicious that the OAS election team had only one country from the region--tiny Jamaica (ravaged by U.S. "free trade for the rich")--as a member? It was 7 to 1 weighted toward corpo-fascist entities--the U.S., Canada and France. The U.S. is notorious for interfering with Haiti. France is legendary for it. And Canada's actions/votes in Latin America have been despicable. (Where were DR, Dominica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Brazil, Costa Rica and everybody else? Were they avoiding it? Boycotting it? Stepping aside at U.S. behest? Have ceded Haiti to the U.S. cuz they can't do anything about it? Why was this committee so weirdly constituted?)

Given the utterly despicable U.S.-run election farce in Honduras--and plenty of other evidence that the U.S. doesn't give one crap about honest elections--what would be their motive in arranging for a "first world"-dominated committee to cry foul on this?

--sub-questions:

Why would the U.S. abandon Preval and his chosen successor? Have Preval/Celestin and the U.S. had a falling out? Could Preval have been considering fulfilling his campaign promise to the Haitian people to bring Aristide back (whom the U.S. AVIDLY opposes for the very reason that he would be the best leader of Haiti and not a U.S. puppet)? On the surface, Preval is anti-Aristide (though he was originally an Aristide ally). He didn't permit Aristide's party to even be on this ballot. But could he have changed his mind? Was he strong-armed by the U.S. to keep Aristide's party off the ballot, but then got pissed at this and changed his mind? The reason I think this could be true is "Baby Doc"'s return--which seemed to be a U.S.-engineered event to prevent or derail Aristide's rumored return. They bring "Baby Doc" back as a warning to Preval not to let Aristide return? (And guess who helped them bring "Baby Doc" back? France, legendary exploiter and slave-master of Haiti--on the OAS committee!--whom Aristide has said owes Haiti billions of dollars in restitution!)

Does the U.S. want Martelly to win and does that mean that Martelly is, a) either already a CIA "made man," or, b) maybe not totally in U.S. control but much more controllable than the U.S.-ousted Aristide? I have no sense of Martelly--aside from the fact that he's pretty popular--but if the U.S. wants him, that's a very bad sign. Has he promised the U.S., for instance, NOT to let Aristide back in the country? Is that how he got their support (if all this is a U.S. move to get him elected)? And, if so, what else has he promised?

One clue in this article that Martelly might have made a deal with the U.S., or has been their picked man all along, is that he proposes reconstitution of the Haitian military. The U.S. has two main goals in Haiti: Creation of a slave labor force for U.S. multinationals and enfoldment of Haiti into the Pentagon's "Southern Command." The Pentagon generally gets its boots on the ground by "training" the local military (including "School of the Americas" repression and torture training) and the U.S. often achieves its enslavement goals by larding the most fascist elements in the country with military aid. Martelly's proposal hints at a deal for Pentagon 'interoperability" control (control of Haitian air space, coordination of forces) with the Haitian government acquiring the means to enforce U.S. "free trade for the rich." (A third goal may be CIA/Bush Cartel interest in the cocaine trade and related money laundering, with the U.S. "war on drugs" as cover. But that matter is very hard to see and assess.)

Is there any way to assess Martelly in these respects? Even if he says the right things, he could be USAID trained to do so. Do you have any thoughts on this or know of anything that might be a clue? (For instance, has he ever been to the U.S.? What are his past connections?)

One of the reasons that I am so concerned is that we have a truly Scumbag Congress now in power in the U.S. with the Miami mafia crowd already calling for war on leftist Latin America countries. The Pentagon "circle the wagons" area is the Caribbean/Central America. This may mean war on Nicaragua and ultimately Venezuela. It seems to me that what the Democrats due is pave the way for U.S. wars. So is that what they're doing in Haiti--trying to acquire another U.S. military base and a command position, with a compliant government? (Also, could this be something that Preval has balked at--U.S. military control? See below, about Preval/Aristide.)

The Associated Pukes premise this article on the U.S. position being correct--that the election was fraudulent or sufficiently irregular to require a re-do of the run-off with Martelly on the ballot. Is this true? Was the election fraudulent or very irregular? I know there were Haitians protesting election fraud, but there are CIA-instigated protests all over the world. (There was also pro-"Baby Doc" graffiti scrawled on some walls, which smelled of CIA-paid operatives, as did the quotes of pro-"Baby Doc" people they sent to the AP reporter.) (LOL!)

It's a given that Preval & co. are corrupt. Anyone with U.S. support (as he has had in the past) always is. It appears to me that Preval could be defying the U.S. on some big matter (and Aristide would probably be it), but another interpretation is that Preval's motives are entirely venal--to keep him and his cronies in control of the pursestrings and the aid booty. Which interpretation do you favor? Do you think it's possible he could have reached a new accord with Aristide (which prompted the U.S. and France to bring "Baby Doc" back as a threat or alternative plan)? Could he be balking at something else (say U.S. military control)? Or is Preval merely protecting his turf?

CEFR recommends a complete re-do of the Haitian election. I would think that they also likely mean, with Aristide or his party on the ballot. (That's what I would recommend. Haitians love Aristide and the only reason he isn't there is gross U.S. interference, similar to Honduras.) This, of course, may be why the U.S. and its allies (which it stacked the OAS committee with) recommended only a re-do of the run-off. Their new guy (?) Martelly got bumped out, so they want that re-done. But they don't want there to be any chance that Aristide could be endorsed by Haitians, so they won't re-do the whole election (??).

I would sure be extremely suspicious of any U.S.-Canada-France run election, which the U.S. seems to be angling for. They've discredited Preval and his government and/or whoever has been running Haitian elections. In Honduras, Hillary had entities like John McCain's "International Republican Institute" 'monitoring' that absurd martial law election. U.S. Mad Tea Partyers were there, bullying Honduran voters! Probably she'll do heavier cosmetics on this one, but still--who is going to be telling Haitians what to do? I'd very much like to know what the Carter Center thinks about all this. Have they been elbowed away from Haiti? They are the most trustworthy.

One of the main reasons that Latin American countries have been able to elect leftist leaders (true majority leaders) is the work of the OAS on election monitoring, which doesn't just involve dropping in on election day, but sometimes years of preparation putting "best election practices" in place and involving all parties in that process, at the invitation of the government. The Carter Center works the same way and has been critically important in very volatile situations (like Venezuela), but the OAS has also been a steady influence and very active on clean elections. It would be in the U.S. interest to elbow the Carter Center out and to erode, corrupt and control OAS election monitoring. Is this the beginning of that U.S. goal? That is, an OAS-monitored election tainted by U.S. control and interference?

I know there may be a language reason for France and Canada to be involved, but is this just an excuse? Why are Latin American countries not participating? Or will they be, as to actually running the election? Why isn't the NORMAL OAS election monitoring group involved? Why do we have what appears to be U.S. handpicked rightwing governments running this?

I find it difficult--scratch that--I find it impossible to believe in any good motives or any good outcome as to U.S. involvement in Haiti. That is why I am questioning the facts and premises of this article, by a proven U.S. propagandist, the Associated Pukes. They sometimes mix in something true, or sort of true--for instance, that there was an earthquake in Haiti, or that Preval is the president--making it a hit and miss guessing game to sort out fact from propaganda--sometimes obvious, sometimes not. I would appreciate any help you can give in making this judgement. How much of this article is fact, and how much of it is Langley script?

[rabs]

2. Michel Martelly, Stealth Duvalierist

Your questions made me go looking for more on Martelly. Your doubts and suspicions are founded.

According to article below, he does not appear to be the "Sweet Micky" the AP and others are foisting. I too was under the impression that he was merely a pop singer very popular in Haiti, especially with the younger voters who do not remember the Papa Doc and Baby Doc regimes. And that he would win the runoff.

It may be that the AP et all are simply ignorant of his background, but one can bet that the CIA/State are not. If what the author below writes is true, then it would appear that the U.S./France/Canada may be attempting to put a "stealth duvalierist" back in power.

That seven-member "international report" by the U.S./France/Canada plus Jamaica on the Nov. 28 elections was handed over to the OAS and Insulza went to Port-au-Prince last week to present it to Preval. Have not seen any report of what transpired, but before Insulza arrived, Preval already had rejected it. Preval was reported pissed because the report was leaked to the media before Insulza went to P-a-P but that appears to me to be a phony excuse. Something deeper is afoot and maybe even Preval is against it (such as the imposition by the U.S./France/Canada of a new, pro-duvalier government?

Also I wondered why Brazil was not on the international commission, given that it has led the U.N. forces in Haiti. As for the other Latam nations, Hil and company would have nixed that.

Will have to sort all this out to see if indeed the "fix" is in to rig the runoff in favor of Martelly. The arrival of Baby Doc muddied the waters even more, and maybe it was to help Martelly get elected. :shrug:


Article below goes into much deeper detail on Sweet Micky, and it is not flattering. (check out the pro and anti comments on the story)




By Jeb Sprague
Photo by Wadner Pierre
...In the media coverage of Haiti's ongoing electoral crisis, presidential candidate Michel "Sweet Micky" Martelly, whom ruling Unity party candidate Jude Célestin edged out of Haiti's Jan. 16 run-off by less than 1%, has been portrayed as the victim of voting fraud and the leader of a populist upsurge against Haiti’s crooked Provisional Electoral Council (CEP).

Some have questioned his presidential suitability by pointing to his vulgar antics as a konpa musician over the last two decades, where he often made demeaning comments about women and periodically dropped his trousers to bare his backside. The real problem with Martelly, however, is not his perceived immorality, but his heinous political history and close affiliation with the reactionary “forces of darkness," as they are called in Haiti, which have snuffed out each genuine attempt Haitians have made over the past 20 years to elect a democratic government. Far from a champion of democracy, Martelly has been a cheerleader for, and perhaps even a participant in, bloody coups d'état and military rule.

Duvalierist Affinities

Under the Duvalier dictatorship, Martelly ran the Garage, a nightclub patronized by army offi cers and members of Haiti’s tiny ruling class. At a recent press conference, Martelly spoke nostalgically of the Duvalierist era, when François "Papa Doc" Duvalier and later his son Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" enforced their iron rule with gun and machete wielding Tonton Macoutes, a sort of Haitian Gestapo. “Today the dog is eating its vomit," lamented Marcus Garcia of Radio Mélodie FM in a Dec. 8 editorial. While "Michel Martelly openly defends the Duvalier regime in a press conference,” the youth who have been duped into supporting him are “without memory of Fort Dimanche-Fort La mort, without memory of the Nov. 29, 1987 electoral massacre,” when neo-Duvalierist thugs killed hundreds of would-be voters.

http://www.dominionpaper.ca/weblogs/wadner_pierre/3799


Wiki on Martelly:

The middle-class son of a petroleum plant supervisor, Martelly taught himself to play the piano by ear. After graduating from high school and unsuccessfully attempting to study medicine, Martelly was briefly enlisted in the Haitian Military Academy before dropping out. He emigrated to the United States with an American wife, where he enrolled at Red Rocks Community College in Lakewood, Colorado and worked in a local grocery store. In 1986, after just one semester, he divorced and returned to Haiti just as Jean-Claude Duvalier, then president-for-life, was heading into exile. He returned stateside with his then-girlfriend, Sophia, and married her in Miami, Florida and had his first child, Olivier. Martelly continued to work on a construction site for a year until moving back to Haiti in 1987. Upon their return to Haiti, Martelly began playing keyboard as a fill-in gigger in local venues in Petionville and Kenscoff, suburbs of Port-au-Prince.

----snip ----=

Martelly's friendship with members of Haiti's past governments and with U.S. diplomats has been met with mixed opinions and criticism by music fans and activists alike. Martelly is reportedly a friend of President Rene Preval, and has previously acknowledged such friendships as well as the one with Lt. Col. Michel François, the former Port-au-Prince police chief.

Prior to the coup that overthrew Duvalier, Martelly operated a nightclub called the Garage, often frequented by military and other members of the ruling class. Later, after a second coup had overthrown Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Martelly played a free concert to oppose the return of the ousted Haitian president and any American presence on the troubled island. The charismatic Martelly refused to back down from criticism of his affiliations with politicians and government officials. As he once stated to a news reporter, "I don't have to defend myself....It's my right. It's my country. I can fight for whatever I believe in.<1>"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_Micky

[EFerrari]

4. Wow. Thanks, rabs.

[Peace Patriot]

10. Wow! rabs! Awesome work! You kicked over the rock...and what a lot of wormy things you Found!

Not to dis worm life. Noble critters, working on my compost.

-----

So my suspicions were correct. It's amazing what you can learn if you just presume that the Associated Pukes are copy/pasting the CIA fax and calling it "news."

I've since bumped into CFR's analysis of the U.S.-France-Canada's work on the "recount." See paragraphs 4 and 5 at Rep Maxine Water's site....

http://sfbayview.com/2011/congresswoman-waters-opposes-plot-to-control-haiti/

CFR basically says that the U.S.-run "recount" itself was so incomplete as to be fraudulent. They recommend doing the whole election over. That might open it to Aristide and his Lavalas Party--the most representative group in Haiti and, of course, the one that the U.S. most opposes. This may be why the U.S. brought "Baby Doc" back or facilitated his return (which really could not have happened without their okay, given U.S. military control of the airport and other factors)--as a threat, and/or as a way to get their guy Martelly elected, and/or a way to get Aristide to stay in South Africa (for the one thing he wouldn't want to do is spark a civil war by returning--with "Baby Doc" there, that could more easily happen).

This is also likely why the U.S. is only challenging the first round vote and did not recommend re-doing the whole election. Aristide.

The Haitian protestors opposing the election may also have been fraudulent. (The violence may have been the tip-off.) And the pro-"Baby Doc" graffiti. It could all have been CIA operatives. Haitians have plenty of reason to be unhappy, so I can't say for sure that they weren't genuinely protesting the whole business, but it makes you wonder what was really on their minds. I would guess, if some were genuine protesters, that they wanted Aristide's return and Aristide's Lavalas Party on the ballot, and CIA operatives re-directed the protest or got the cameras aimed at their people.

Waters puts most of the blame for "Baby Doc's" return on Haiti's rich elite, and soft-pedals blame on the Obama administration, but does ask questions about the CIA. It's a very good piece, and she is very close to the situation. But she probably needs to be "politic" with regard to Obama/Clinton.

Now I need to find out about Mirlande Manigat, the one who will be running against U.S. pick(?) Martelly in this U.S. show (if they pull it off).

Jeez, fraudulent elections, corruption, confusion, dirty tricks, slimebag manipulation, lack of democracy, incompetence, failure of aid and stark poverty, mayhem and murder follow the U.S. "drone" everywhere it goes. It's our "signature"--bombs from above, "bombs" from below. A fraudulent election followed by a fraudulent U.S. "fix," followed by the threat of more tyranny and death squads with "Baby Doc""s return, and use of a billion dollars in aid (from many countries but controlled by the U.S.) as a bludgeon.

[rabs]

11. Was thinking the exact same

From your post

Now I need to find out about Mirlande Manigat, the one who will be running against U.S. pick(?) Martelly in this U.S. show (if they pull it off).

----------------------

I really do not know who this woman is and what she stands for. Will be poking around to see what I can find too.

[Peace Patriot]

12. i got a positive hit on Mirlande Manigat, reading between the lines of this

Slime Magazine article. 11/15/10

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2031412,00.html

They say "critics fear" she might have "authoritarian designs" (like guess who?)--a major tip-off that this may well be the woman for Haiti!

--

"She backs changing Haiti's constitution to allow dual citizenship, which could aid the country's reconstruction by tapping into the resources and talents of the vast Haitian diaspora, including more than a million Haitian Americans. But critics, based on some of her teachings of Haitian constitutional law, fear that Manigat could have authoritarian designs to expand presidential powers — which she denies."

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2031412,00.html#ixzz1BopCkgBo

--

You have to read corpo-fascist 'news' article backwards, to understand anything these days. "Authoritarian" means she'll kick corporate butt. And the "critics" who "fear" this are the editors of Slime magazine and their corporate masters.

Here's an interesting paragraph to interpret. Notice the word "but" (no pun intended) and what it refers to...

--

"...Manigat and her supporters may see Nov. 28 as a chance for revenge, especially since many Haitians believe her 80-year-old husband will be a power behind her throne if she wins. But Manigat insists that she and the RDNP — which she calls a center-left, "capitalist with a human face" party in the tradition of successful moderate Latin American leftists like Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva — want to check a venal elite that she accuses of "grave social indifference and insensitivity. It was there before, but after the earthquake it has shown itself in worse ways."

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2031412,00.html#ixzz1BoqVeJVf

--

Now what does this "but" mean? It seems to mean that her husband is unacceptable to corpo-fascists. He is not "center-left"/"capitalist with a human face." But she is. So he must have been a real leftist--a socialist--and that is likely why he got ousted in a military coup, back when. 1988, yup, Reagan and his henchmen.

See how they're playing their Slimebag game--like all the slimes in the corpo-fascist press--pitting Lula da Silva against tougher leftists (who are ALSO successful, but they don't say that). Lord, how I admire Lula da Silva for not playing that game!

She promises to be "vigilant against fraud trickery" in the election (first round). Hm. That didn't work out so well.

All in all, I am impressed with Manigat. Maybe she's the one that the U.S. is trying to prevent from winning!

-----

The Miami Hairball has a pre-election poll saying Martelly as a "distant third" (to Manigat and Preval's protege Celestin, who were neck and neck at that point). How did Martelly come up second (or did he?). (With the U.S.-France-Canada 'counting' the votes, we can't know.)

They say one disturbing thing about Manigat--that she has the support of "a powerful group of senators." That sounds ominous (corrupt rich elite?).

But it's the Hairball. Of all the lying scumbags in the corpo-fascist press, they're the worst--and that's saying something. They could've just made it up. They seem to want her--and that is definitely not a good sign.

On to more research--and more reliable sources.

[Peace Patriot]

13. Whoa! I found what looks like a great news site on Haiti!

For instance:

MICHEL MARTELLY HAS PAID A LOT OF MONEY TO PUT HIS MOB ON THE STREETS JANUARY 17TH IN AN EFFORT TO EMBARRASS JEAN CLAUDE DUVALIER.
January 17, 2011
http://www.haitian-truth.org/category/daily-reports/

I'm going to be reading this site in depth. I'll come back with a report.

[Peace Patriot]

15. They say Manigat was Preval's first choice.

"IT IS WORTH READING THIS SEPTEMBER 18 ITEM ON PREVAL’S PLAN – AT THAT TIME… THIS CONCEPT IS STILL PLAYING A PART IN THE ONGOING DISASTER SINCE MANIGAT WAS PREVAL’S CHOICE THEN, AND REMAINS SO IN THE MUDDLED GAME. HAITI: PREVAL WILL WIN BY LOSING"

http://www.haitian-truth.org/it-is-worth-reading-this-september-18-item-on-preval’s-plan-–-at-that-time…-this-concept-is-still-playing-a-part-in-the-ongoing-disaster-since-manigat-was-preval’s-choi/

---

They say Preval is very worried about prosecution for his crimes, and that Manigat made a deal with him. They say Preval was going to fix it for Manigat. They don't trust her. They think she will be manipulated by the Preval mob. And they are really down on Martelly--total criminal and personal slimebag.

But (if the U.S. is to be believed) Preval fixed it for Celestin, his protege. Maybe this is mis-direction by the U.S. and the manipulator of Manigat will be the U.S.? (--if she's manipulable)

This site is quite gossipy, without any documentation (that I've seen yet--only 2nd article I've read there) on their serious charges. So I'm taking back "great" but it's still quite interesting and I will thoroughly check it out.

[Peace Patriot]

16. I'm back to GREAT news site on Haiti! Just found this. 75% of Haitians didn't vote!

http://www.haitian-truth.org/haitis-election-a-farce-too-far-even-by-recent-standards/

Haiti’s election a farce too far, even by recent standards
January 20, 2011

By Brian Fitzpatrick

California Representative Maxine Waters recently called upon the Government of Haiti “to set aside the flawed November 28th elections and organize new elections that will be free, fair and accessible to all Haitian voters.” On the massive decisions and responsibilities facing Haiti’s next government, the Congresswoman said that “If these decisions are made by a government that is not perceived as legitimate, the recovery process could be impeded for years to come.”

She has a point. The next Haitian president will preside over a fortune in pledged reconstruction funds, and the international community should be striving to ensure that a democratically elected, legitimate Haitian government is put in place to make sure those funds are properly spent. But is it?

Well, no. Missing from the vast majority of reporting is the great unspeakable: the fact that Haiti’s largest and most popular political party, Fanmi Lavalas, was prevented from taking part in the elections, which cost some $30m (paid for by the U.S.) at the same time that an estimated one million Haitians are still living in temporary shelters.

The technicality dreamt up by Haiti’s electoral council to exclude Fanmi Lavalas was that it had submitted “improper documents.” Wyclef Jean, probably the most instantly recognizable Haitian on the planet, knows all about such scams, having had his bid to run in the elections thwarted by a residency ruling.

In essence the elections, which now lie stalled amidst uncertainty over which candidates should advance to a run-off, were boycotted by the Haitian people. A recent report from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) said that some three quarters of Haitians did not vote. This is before one even mentions the widespread ballot-stuffing, fraud and exclusion from the registry which the CEPR says it witnessed on the ground.

(MORE)

http://www.haitian-truth.org/haitis-election-a-farce-too-far-even-by-recent-standards/

[Judi Lynn]

3. So many thanks to your research in response to Peace Patriot's post to you.

It provided the missing information we needed as a FOUNDATION before reading the stuff spun by media propaganda pros.

Now it's easy to see why what we've read before seemed so strangely empty about Martelly! All the truth was missing!

I am proud and thankful to have read it, and feel so damned lucky to have had the chance. Glad to secure it for future use, a starting place, the beginning of knowledge about this "Stealth Duvalierist." They gave us everything but a marching band about him earlier, in corporate media, really pushing his identity as a natural wonder, a phenom.

Even accompanied the death squads in their midnight ramblings, helping to murder leftists as they slept: a potential "President of Haiti," eh?

Thanks to Peace Patriot, who, like EFerrari, has been watching Haiti so hard.

Hope our Haiti activist friend will see your comments. She undoubtedly has personal info. on this guy.

[EFerrari]

5. There is a deal between Baby Doc and State, imo, because

he's trying to position himself as a benefactor who is trying to get the funds Switzerland holds released to Haiti (an upgrade from a thief, no?). And he's calling for a US entity to be the disburser of those funds.

So, instead of Switzerland releasing those funds to HAITI, it looks like the plan is to get them released to the US with some kind of kick back to this slimeball.


Duvalier explains reason for return to Haiti: Aid rebuilding

PORT-AU-PRINCE — A U.S. attorney for Jean-Claude "Baby Doc'' Duvalier said Friday the one-time strongman's surprise return to Haiti was, in part, to help secure a $6 million bounty in Swiss bank accounts.

"Not for himself,'' attorney Ed Marger said after Duvalier spoke publicly for the first time since abruptly returning to Haiti. "`What he would like to do with the funds in Switzerland is to contribute that to the rebuilding of the country. And that is one of the reasons why he came back.''

Duvalier did not address the Swiss funds in his prepared statement, in which he said that he returned after 25 years in exile to mark the first anniversary of the devastating earthquake.

"When I made the decision to come back to Haiti to commemorate this sad anniversary with you, in our country, I was ready for any kind of persecution,'' he said. "But I believe that the desire to participate by your side in this collaboration for the national reconstruction far outweighs any harassment I could face.''

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/01/22/107253/duvalier-explains-reason-for-return.html#ixzz1EjZnS9Ed


Lawyer: Duvalier wants U.S. entity to disburse frozen funds

Port-Au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) -- An American attorney representing Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier said Saturday that the former dictator returned to Haiti in hopes of recovering millions frozen in Swiss bank accounts and channeling them through a U.S. intermediary to help rebuild his troubled homeland.

In the past, Duvalier has attempted to personally claim the $5.7 million in a bank account belonging to a family foundation. But attorney Ed Marger said the highly controversial and polarizing former leader now wants to use the money to help Haiti, devastated a year ago by a massive earthquake.

"He doesn't want the funds for himself," Marger told CNN. "He wants a transparent entity to release the funds."

Marger is working with two other Georgia attorneys -- former Republican congressman Bob Barr and Mike Puglise -- to find a company that could transfer those funds. Marger named business consultants Ernst & Young and Deloitte as two possibilities.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/americas/01/22/haiti.duvalier.barr/index.html?section=cnn_latest

I think I'm going to :puke:

[Judi Lynn]

7. Don't even try to give him the stolen money. He wants it all to go where it belongs! n/t

[dipsydoodle]

6. Just gets worse

doesn't it :(

[Judi Lynn]

8. Doesn't even seem possible, does it? n/t

[dipsydoodle]

9. I think the next time

anyone uses the words USA and democracy in the same sentence to me face to face I'll just punch them.

[Judi Lynn]

14. I wonder where we could have gone wrong? There have been so few wrong deeds!

We have such a splended rep just everywhere, dipsydoodle, for all our fine national deeds for others.

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2007/09/07/bums_wideweb__470x284,0.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com.nyud.net:8090/albums/v167/may_contain_nuts/bums.jpg http://img171.imageshack.us.nyud.net:8090/img171/504/barebottomedactivistsgw9.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us.nyud.net:8090/img187/9964/meerkat3hf3.jpg

http://www.szepseg.com.nyud.net:8090/uploaded_images/george-bush-contemplating-732351.jpg

[EFerrari]

17. I'm wondering if there are protests that aren't being reported.

Not the fake ones -- they always get covered, but real ones. :shrug: