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6666: HAITI JOINS DRUG WAR (fwd)
From: nozier <nozier@tradewind.net>
Published Tuesday, January 16, 2001, in the Miami Herald
HAITI JOINS DRUG WAR
Welcome change in policy from President-elect Aristide.
After a dangerous flirtation with cocaine smugglers, Haiti finally is
sending
positive signals about fighting drugs. The Haitian government has
agreed to cooperate with American anti-narcotics efforts along its
coastline. And its new president-elect, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, has
pledged to enact tough new laws against traffickers and money launderers
who have quickly turned Haiti into a haven for Colombian drug lords. The
measures are necessary and a welcome change from recent policies that
have resulted in Haiti's rapid ascendancy as a major drop-off point for
illegal drugs. Both the outgoing administration of Bill Clinton and the
incoming one of George W. Bush should be pleased and supportive of
Haiti's change in direction. For three years, Haiti's parliament failed
to ratify a pact with the United States that would have allowed U.S.
ships and planes to patrol Haitian waters and airspace. But last month,
the parliament endorsed the agreement. Now President-elect Aristide vows
to support two new measures that would make it
tougher for drug dealers to operate in Haiti. One bill would require
depositors of
large amounts of cash to fill out a form and would force banks to open
their books
on trafficking suspects. The second bill sets stiffer penalties for
convicted dealers
and makes it easier to extradite suspects to the United States for
trial.
It's a pity that the new get-tough measures weren't put into effect
earlier. But the
Haitian government has struggled of late with creating basic
infrastructure, such
as roads and sewers, and with establishing rudimentary systems of
justice,
education and economic development.
Meanwhile, Colombian drug traffickers seized on Haiti's close proximity,
its lax
law enforcement and its eager bribe-takers to virtually transform the
country into a
transshipment fixture of drug-smuggling operations. Evidence of the
illegal
activities is plainly visible in mushrooming sales of luxury homes and
cars, and
burgeoning banking enterprises in a country where per-capita income is
the
lowest in the hemisphere.
The Clinton administration has quickly welcomed the change, while the
new Bush
team has been less forthcoming about its position. But the scourge of
drugs is
nonpartisan and nondiscriminatory. No matter who occupies the White
House,
the United States should applaud Mr. Aristide's initiative and join
Haiti in this fight.