a1691: Former Haitian dictator re-arrested (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Robert Benodin <r.benodin@worldnet.att.net>

Former Haitian dictator re-arrested
By Canute James in Kingston
Published: April 16 2002 18:37 | Last Updated: April 16 2002 18:40

Prosper Avril, the former dictator of Haiti, has been arrested on charges of
complicity in the murder of several people killed by soldiers 12 years ago
when he was the country's president.
His arrest was made shortly after his release from prison, time he served
for plotting a coup.
Mr Avril's release, ordered by a court, and his re-arrest, will increase
already high political tension in the Caribbean state, one of Haiti's
leading businessmen said on Tuesday. "This incident is mired in legal
controversy and will add to instability."
Mr Avril was chief of security for Jean-Claude Duvalier, a dictator who was
overthrown and exiled by a popular rebellion in 1986. Mr Avril overthrew a
military junta in 1988 and took power, but was exiled two years later by
popular protests.
An effort to free him failed in January when a judge ruled that he should
stay in prison. This was overruled last week by a higher court that
concluded that his arrest was illegal. His earlier arrest followed his
appearance at opposition party rallies.
Haitian government officials have maintained that Mr Avril is "a danger" to
the country, and that he planned to over throw the government of President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide. The ex-dictator's lawyers have rejected the
accusations.