[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
#1855: Re: #1829: Sunday Observer article on Haiti : Laleau replies to Durran
From:NLaleau@aol.com
<< I believe such crowd killings have little
to do with the functioning or non-functioning of the judicial system. >>
Dear Mary,
You are a serious lover of Haiti, I know that, but you are gravely mistaken
about the crowd killings. They have EVERYTHING to do with the
non-functioning of the judicial system.
If there was a system of justice in place, people would not be resorting to
vigilante justice on a large scale. Or if it occurred, the justice system
would quickly put an end to it. But the opposite is true -- almost the only
justice people can obtain today is what they get for themselves. And that is
a horrible breeding ground for all kinds of crime. Anyone can form a gang
and go after an innocent person, claiming that he/she has committed some sort
of atrocity. I saw apparent vigilante justice working, with apparent
accuracy and even integrity, on a number of occasions in 1994-95. But this
type of action is very easily faked and backfires on the very people who need
justice the most.
If I took anything away with me from Haiti in 1996, it was a profound respect
for the rule of law and due process. Crowd killings are a desperate measure,
taken by people who deserve far better, and usually do it only as a last,
desperate measure of self-defense.
Sincerely,
Nancy Laleau