#3935: What is Mike Norton on? Chamberlain answers Pina (fwd)

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

> The arrests also included the arrest of several
> prominent members of the Popular Organizations 
> which support Lavalas. As one might expect, you 
> are not going to see that little fact made note of 
> anywhere in the mainstream press.


Much as Kevin Pina might wish that to be so, perhaps
to prove a ideological point, the inconvenient fact 
is that the arrest of pro-Lavalas people _has_ been 
reported by the despised "mainstream press" -- both 
by Norton (AP) and Bauduy (Reuters), the only 
English-language mainstream press reporting 
regularly from Haiti and which feed other news outlets 
(see the reproduction of the news of the pro-Lavalas 
arrests in the LA Times article).

Check your recent Corbett posts, folks.  It's there 
in black and white.  

However, when you arrest a senate candidate (Paul
Denis) and other candidates from the so-called
opposition, these naturally merit more prominence,
by all reasonable standards of journalism, or even 
plain word-of-mouth in any circumstances, than the 
arrests of "several prominent members of Popular
Organisations."  

If elections were held, it was because Aristide and 
others think some institutions (parliament, say) are 
important.  So let's have no specious rubbish
about "Popular Organisations" meriting more 
prominence that the arrest or detention of a senate 
candidate.  Lest we be hoisted on our own petard, since
Aristide agreed to the elections, and took part in them,
and won them.

Or perhaps the Lavalas victory is yet another one of 
those famous "provocations."  Like the "provocation"
that he was "forced" to participate?  Like he was "forced"
to return in triumph to Haiti in a US plane three months 
after saying he'd "never, never, never" agree to be restored 
by military force.  Anything's possible really, I suppose.

Even that if one day Aristide were to be arrested and then 
freed a day or two later, the event would be described as 
a "detainment."  

(Kevin wrote of the OPL arrests:
"...these should have been more appropriately called 
"detainments" rather than arrests as all have been freed 
after a short period of time.")

No, you can be quite sure Kevin would've called Aristide's 
"detainment" an arrest.

  
        Greg Chamberlain