12492: Highlights of June 2002 (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: MKarshan@aol.com

Foreign Press Liaison

HIGHLIGHTS OF JUNE 2002

JUSTICE AND SECURITY:
Reinforcing security in downtown business district.
Haiti's National Police Chief and high command visited
the business section of downtown Port-au-Prince to
talk to store owners about their security concerns and
put in place measures to reinforce security.  Within a
couple of days, the Police Chief of Port-au-Prince,
together with many officers, walked through the
downtown area to further demonstrate police commitment
and action to secure this district.

School of Magistrates graduates 104 new Justices of
the Peace.
104 Justices of the Peace graduated from a 4-month
course at the Magistrate School. .  These recent
graduates increase the number of justices of the peace
throughout the  country to 375, working throughout the
186 tribunals of peace.  Some of these tribunals of
peace are located in difficult to access areas.  From
1995 to 2001 the School of Magistrate trained 100 new
judges and provided continuing education for 120
justices of the peace.  This September 2002, an
additional 29 new judges will be put in service. The
Minister of Justice urged the judges to work to
prevent prolonged detention, a problem the President
insists on resolving and was included in his
announcement on judicial reforms in May.

Providing increased security during upcoming peak
travel season.
The Director General of the police announced measures
to provide reinforced security during the summer when
tens of thousands of Haitians and other tourists
vacation in Haiti, frequent nightclubs and travel to
the provinces. The police will maintain a presence in
areas where nightclubs are concentrated so clubs may
stay open late and will escort visiting musical bands
from the airport to their hotels.

Government breaks up smuggling network.
The government has made some arrests and is
dismantling a criminal network consisting of Haitians,
Dominicans and Chinese who allegedly smuggled several
hundred Asians through Haiti.  An ongoing
investigation is underway in Haiti and abroad and the
Haitian government said traffickers of illegal aliens
will be arrested and deported.  The government is
trying to institute mechanisms to prevent illegal
entry of persons being trafficked.

Disarmament campaign enters second phase.
The second phase of the disarmament campaign went into
effect on June 17th with roadblocks and vehicle
searches. The period for receiving money in exchange
for voluntarily handing in illegal arms is over.  The
Director General of the Police, Jean Nesly Lucien,
explained, "We think that if somebody is in possession
of illegal firearms and did not hand them in
voluntarily, but that we manage to recover them within
the framework of the disarmament operation, then the
law will be applied against that person. On the other
hand, if people would still like to hand in their guns
voluntarily the police will be pleased to receive
them. The work has already begun. We shall not
withdraw. We shall carry it out." Further, the Prime
Minister made it clear that no single sector is the
target of the disarmament campaign, nor is any sector
exempt.

The President of the Chamber of Deputies explained
that illegal arms have been a problem in Haiti since
long before the Lavalas government and therefore this
problem should not be attributed to the Lavalas
government. It was also  pointed out that during the
period following the multi-national intervention, the
Lavalas government had repeatedly requested that the
international community honor the UN resolution which
outlined their role in the restoration of democracy
and provided for assisting the Haitian government in
retrieving weapons still in the hands of those who
brutalized the country during the three year coup
d'etat period.

Celebration of 7th anniversary of Haiti's first
civilian police force and tribute to those injured in
line of duty. The 7th Anniversary of Haiti's first
civilian police force was celebrated at the National
Palace.  President Aristide honored the police. Paying
tribute to those who lost their lives, President
Aristide decorated those officers who were permanently
disabled and injured in the line of duty, including
during the December 17th attempted coup attack on the
National Palace.  Every unit of the police was
represented in a parade on the Palace grounds and
throughout the Champ d'Mars area.  In addition to
displaying vehicles used in their work, an exhibit
displaying materials such as bullet proof vests, etc.
was set up in the park and a seminar was held on
police cooperation with the population. Units present
in addition to the regular police units included:
Maritime police, firefighters, anti-terrorism/hostage
(SWAT) and anti-riot unit (CIMO), detective bureau
(BRJ), anti-drug trafficking unit (BLTS), prison
officers (DAP), Palace guard (USGPN), Presidential
Security Unit (USP), the Palace's anti-terrorist unit
(CAT). When Haiti's National Police was formed it only
included the police and some of its specialized units,
however, other security units were successfully
integrated into the National Police over the last five
years.

Toussaint Louverture's spirit lives on in dedicated
police.
Throughout his speech President Aristide explained the
historical significance of Toussaint Louveture, "Today
the strength Toussaint had in him that made him the
first of the black nation, the genius of the race, is
inside each and every policeman who behaves well." The
President announced that the bust recently sculpted of
Toussaint, and  exhibited in the National Palace,
would be sent to Fort-de-Joug, France, where he died
on April 7, 1803.

Non-jury criminal trials held.
As outlined by President Aristide in his speech last
month which announced sweeping judicial reforms,
non-jury criminal trials were held from June 10-14th
hearing twenty cases and handing down convictions in
cases of robbery, attempted murder, criminal
association, drug trafficking, assault and battery,
and armed robbery.

Relieving overcrowding of prisons and prolonged
detention.
The justice and prison authorities are working to
review files of those detained in the prison facility
in Gonaives to identify those in prolonged detention,
with the goal of relieving overcrowding and lengthy
pre-trial detention.  This is one of the measures
President Aristide announced in his list of judicial
reforms last May.

New police chief installed in Belladere.
After the murder of six members (including children)
of the family of Fanmi Lavalas coordinator in
Belladere, a new police chief was installed there.
The government initially made twenty arrests following
the murders and is considering putting a police
station on the border for better control. The police
reported that a person(s) came across the border and
returned to the Dominican Republic immediately
following the attack. Belladere has been the scene of
violence on a number of occasions including the July
28, 2001 armed attack on its police station.

PRESS AND JUSTICE:
Haiti's Chief Judge and another justice participate in
hemispheric conference on relationship between press
and the courts and the reinforcement of press rights.
The Chief Justice and another judge of Haiti's highest
court participated in the Hemispheric Summit on
Justice and Freedom of the Press in the Americas in
Washington, D.C. sponsored by the Inter American Press
Association (IAPA).  The goal was to create a dialogue
between justices and journalists to foster greater
support for freedom of the press and of expression in
the Americas.   During the conference, which brought
chief justices of the Western Hemisphere together for
the first time, justices and journalists exchanged
experiences on the relation between the Courts and the
media; the incorporation of inter-American mechanisms
of protection of speech into domestic laws; and
debated topics including the role of the press and the
judicial system; the principles of the Declaration of
Chapultepec and the Inter-American Declaration of
Principles on Freedom of Expression, etc.

DRUG ABUSE:
Fighting substance abuse as part of national strategy
to combat drug trafficking.
On the occasion of the International Day Against
Substance Abuse, whose theme worldwide was Substance
Abuse and AIDS, Rene Magloire, the coordinator of
Haiti's new National Commission against drug
trafficking and abuse, participated in an event held
by the non-profit substance abuse program, APAAC, and
revealed the Commission's plans, including forming a
committee incorporating numerous partners to work
together to combat substance abuse.

ENVIRONMENT:
International Day of the Environment and year round
efforts.
On the occasion of the International Day of the
Environment, the Minister of the Environment recalled
the steps the government taken to protect the
environment over the years, including the creation of
this Ministry, submitting a Code for the Environment
to the Parliament for consideration, the training of
3,000 environmental agents, weekly conferences at the
Ministry encompassing many professionals in the area
of environment, the submission of a television series
to the national television station discussing
environmental and ecological issues, the signing of
international conventions and acting in compliance
with these conventions, in addition to numerous
projects to restore and protect the environment. For
International Day of the Environment, the Ministry of
Environment held a weeklong seminar on effective
development honoring the natural resources of the
country.

DEVELOPMENT:
Haiti-Japan Cooperation.
Haiti and Japan signed an agreement in which Japan
will provide $2.8 million dollars of non-reimbursable
aid to the government of Haiti for Haiti to use in
purchasing rice from Japan.  The revenues generated
from the sale of the rice in Haiti will be used by the
government for development projects that will in turn
improve the quality of life of Haitians.

POLITICAL CRISIS:
Government and Fanmi Lavalas continue to work toward
resolution of political impasse.
President Aristide, who continues to be open to
negotiations, met with the Convergence to discuss an
end to the political impasse stemming from the May 21,
2000 elections and reiterated his willingness to sign
a political accord without any further delay. The
meeting was held at the residence of the papal nuncio
during an OAS mission to Haiti led by the OAS
Assistant Secretary General and Minister of Foreign
Affairs of St. Lucia. Jonas Petit, the spokesperson
for majority party Fanmi Lavalas, explained that Fanmi
Lavalas continues to seek an accord along the terms
agreed to by all of the parties last October,  "We
hope that we shall be able to move rapidly to the
signing of that agreement. All that I can say is that
that accord proposal concerned the different points we
had already discussed and agreed upon and that we were
even ready to sign last October. In principle, that
proposal should not prevent us from signing the
agreement as we were ready to do so last October."

Commission on reparations finishes its work.
Haiti's Inter-Ministerial Commission on Reparations
for damages to property in the aftermath of the
attempted coup attack on the National Palace on
December 17th continued its investigation and is
scheduled to release its report and recommendations.
The Commission worked as well in cooperation with the
OAS mission on this matter.

Chronology of the "political crisis."
The Haitian government newspaper, L'Union, published a
special issue (#821) focusing on the "political
crisis" which arose from the May 2000 elections.
http://www.journallunion.com

ECONOMY:
Government revenues and where they go.
The Customs administration collected 470,728,402
gourdes in May, an increase of 110 million gourdes
over the May 2001 collections, which is a 71%
increase.  460 million gourdes went into the National
Treasury and 10 million for third party accounts.
These monies were generated through duties, fees and
fines (191 million gourdes),  internal taxes (more
than 268 million), and taxes collected along the
border (more than 49 million gourdes).  An amount
estimated at over four million gourdes was collected
for the local government administrations and more than
five million in fees from the port authorities.

EDUCATION:
State administers exams to half a million students.
The Ministry of Education administered state exams to
nearly half a million students throughout all nine
departments: 98,000 students took the 9th grade state
exam; 240,000 took the 6th grade state exam and 40,972
took the baccalaureat 2nd part.

National literacy campaign in all corners of the
country.
A new literacy center was opened on Rue des Miracles
which serves the merchants of Croix-des-Bossales.
Ceremonies were held in both the North and South
awarding certificates to those who have been attending
literacy classes.  Classes continue to be held
throughout the country and in all of the government
offices. The President continues to encourage all to
participate and explains at every opportunity how
literacy is important and relevant to every government
office and service. The literacy program is officially
launched in Pilate and in the North. The Ministry of
Sports and Youth launched its first phase of its work
in literacy with 19 centers opened for literacy
classes.

CARICOM:
Haiti to become  full member of CARICOM early July.
With last month's legislation permitting Haiti to
become a full member of CARICOM (Caribbean Community),
Haiti is scheduled to be officially admitted into
CARICOM as it's 15th full member during the upcoming
23rd Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government
of the Caribbean Community scheduled to be held in
Guyana from July 3-5.  From 1982 - 1997 Haiti had
observer status and from 1997 to present was a
provisional member. Advantages for Haiti as a member
of CARICOM include an increase in regional trade,
customs advantages on exports, and strengthening of
relations with other CARICOM member countries.

INFRASTRUCTURE:
Water taxi bypasses Carrefour traffic.
Meeting standards set by Haiti's Service Maritime et
de Navigation d;Haiti (SEMANAH), the government
licensed a ferry to transport people from
Port-au-Prince to Mariani.

Modernizing traffic.
The Circulation department has had lines painted on
several main streets in the Champ d'Mars area to
control traffic flow and prevent accidents.

Major renovation of Bicentenaire area for 2004 slated
to begin.
The government announced short-term and long-term
plans for renovation and construction to be performed
with PL-480 monies in the Bicentenaire area in
anticipation of the festivities in connection with
2004, Haiti's 200th anniversary since the victory of
the slave revolt making Haiti the world's first black
republic. The work includes reorganization of the
Croix-des-Bossales market area including providing
large containers for the merchants to use for storage
of their products in exchange for a small rental fee,
to generating money from advertising on the container
walls.  These containers and traffic will be limited
to specific areas enabling the marketplace itself to
be more spacious and accessible.  The two-year plan
includes enlarging and restoring the wharf area,
extending the shoreline, revitalizing local commerce
including the sale of crafts sold in the immediate
area. The work also includes reforestation of the area
where the TB Sanatorium is located in the mountain
area of Carrefour-Feuilles, as well as drainage, to
prevent water from flowing down to the Bicentenaire
area, as it does now.  A parking lot across from EDH
is planned and they plan to move the car repair
businesses and the merchants out of the area, along
with abandoned cars..

Petit Goave park under renovation.
As a result of meetings held between the government
and representatives in Petit Goave in the aftermath of
violence there late December and earlier this year,
the government is renovating the town square park.

PRIME MINISTER:
Prime Minister presents report on his first three
months.
Prime Minister Yvon Neptune presented Parliament with
a report of his first three months in office, which
contained a breakdown of accomplishments in different
sectors, including extensive infrastructure work on
roads and agricultural achievements. He stated, "With
regard to economic and financial activities, the major
concern of the Ministry of Economy and Finances during
the period in question was to increase fiscal receipts
through the continuation of
the reform of the fiscal system, to limit the budget
deficit through better control of public expenditure
and to improve the quality of services offered to the
people. At the same time, the ministries have been
ordered to struggle by all means against the gangrene
of corruption and waste. Thanks to these measures,
fiscal and customs receipts have increased by nearly
20 per cent compared to the receipts in the same
period last year."

Transparency in government.
On June 27th the Council of Ministers' meeting, which
was attended by President Aristide, was opened to the
press.  President Aristide talked of the importance of
transparency and the need for the Haitian people to
know where the government gets its finances, how it is
able to employ 46,000 government employees, and how
much is actually spent on government projects. The
various ministers outlined the work they had
accomplished in June giving
the budget for each, listing both revenues and
expenditures relating to the work.  President Aristide
said that despite the financial embargo against Haiti,
the government was working the best it could to serve
the people adding that the economy is stable but
stagnant. Monies are generated through customs. taxes,
licenses, etc. The Minister of Public Works said
projects currently being executed by his office cost
305,000,000 gourdes.

CORRUPTION:
Zero Tolerance against corruption in public
administration.
As part of the Zero Tolerance campaign against
corruption in public administration, President
Aristide visited the director of Teleco and questioned
why the state telephone company was unable to install
telephones for those who have applied for services.
The President inquired as to why it takes so long for
telephone lines to be repaired, noting that 6,382
phone lines are out of order, while Teleco has a plan
to install 18,222 in eight months.  The President
urged Teleco to adopt an emergency plan, which would
allow the customer some hope of satisfaction without
corruption, without having to pay money on the side.
Shortly after the meeting some employees of Teleco
were let go.

Teleco started the first phase of its emergency plan
to repair telephone lines in downtown district as well
as Bel-Air and lower Delmas. A commercial sponsored by
the government is being aired which denounces
corruption in all its forms and explains that with
money saved in the absence of corruption the
government would be able to provide a larger amount of
services.

The Minister of Public Health denounced corruption and
racketeering occurring in the State University
hospital.

Zero Tolerance in Cap Haitian in police.
Action is being taken against police in Cap Haitian
implicated in corruption.  These police participated
in various crimes including robbery, drug trafficking,
assassinations and extorting money for release from
detention.

HAITIANS LIVING ABROAD:
Giving Haitians living abroad the respect they
deserve.
With some modifications to the original proposed
legislation, the Senate passed legislation which would
give all persons of Haitian origin advantages they
were not able to legally enjoy until now.

Receiving Haitians repatriated from the Dominican
Republic.
Haiti's director of the Office of National Migration,
Lovinksy Pierre-Louis, reported that upwards of 8,000
persons had been repatriated to Haiti from the
Dominican Republic since January 2002.

Assisting Haitians in the Dominican Republic.
Haiti's Ambassador to the Dominican Republic stated
that the government of Haiti has issued 30,000 birth
certificates in the first stage of assisting
undocumented Haitians in the Dominican Republic.
Having passed the lower house, the Senate passed the
2001-2002 national budget with modifications.

HEALTH:
Ministry of Health purchases US $30,000 worth of
medicines for general hospital in wake of doctors'
strike making changes as well in the hospital
pharmacy.

Health organizations and both governments work
together in Haiti-Dominican conference to put in place
island-wide strategy to combat HIV/AIDS.
This conference also addressed the frontier region,
which has been identified as a high-risk area for HIV
transmission because of sex workers there
accommodating travelers crossing the border. An accord
was reached during this conference for joint efforts.

COOPERATIVES:
President Aristide clarifies government's position on
cooperatives and takes action to protect depositors.
During a meeting at the National Palace, President
Aristide discussed the status of cooperatives, "In
May, the members of Parliament were supposed to have
voted the bill concerning the cooperatives.  Once it
is done, the Central Bank will have the legal basis to
intervene in the control of cooperatives, just like it
is regulating banks now.  The minute the Central bank
will have the legal authority in hand, there will be
more control, more discipline, more aid, so there is
less disorder. There are some people who have an order
not to leave the country. Those people are not only
from the cooperatives, which were badly handled, but
also come from some banks that are mismanaged.  Some
people have been arrested already. All members of
cooperatives who need to know where your President
stands, well you know it now.  As soon as the law is
voted for, the central bank will have more power in
hand to bring more control.  And before this is done,
all the things I just mentioned will be taken care of,
and if more measures need to be taken, they will be
taken.  So you are not by yourself in this, and I will
not leave you by yourself."

Parliament passes legislation regulating cooperatives.
Shortly after, Parliament passed legislation
regulating cooperatives, which makes the government's
bank, the Banque de la Republique d'Haiti (BRH), the
overseeing body with mechanisms to control
cooperatives and protect their depositors.
Administrative oversight will be done by the Counseil
National des Cooperatives (CNC).

CHILDREN:
Children's Rights.
The President honored the International Day of the
Child by hosting an event with school children from
public and private schools. The President talked about
the recent passage of the law prohibiting violence and
abuse against children and also of the government
subsidized textbook program. The Secretary of State
for Sports and Youth held a seminar at the public
beach for youth ages 8 to 16 on the rights of
children.  The National Library announced that First
Lady Mildred Aristide facilitated the donation of 254
books geared for children ages 4 to 14. The recently
passed legislation prohibiting violence and abuse of
children continues to be cause for celebration and
there are many messages on the airways empowering
children and asking children and adults to respect one
another.

Government efforts to encourage and enforce men's
responsibilities as fathers.
Proposed legislation on paternity responsibilities was
put before Parliament this month for consideration.
The Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Women's
Conditions co-sponsored a forum addressing the
question, enforcement and the repercussions of
neglect, often resulting in troubled adolescents.

NON-PROFITS IN HAITI:
President Aristide meets with Haitian and foreign
NGOs.
President Aristide held a meeting at the National
Palace with more than 200 representatives of Haitian
and foreign not-for profit organizations operating in
Haiti. The President heard of various obstacles facing
NGOs in their work and is seeking ways to resolve
these problems.

WORLD CUP:
Providing access to view World Cup.
Thousands gathered around the 6ft television screens
the President had installed in many of the city's
parks so people could view the World Cup games, which
are held in the middle of the night and at dawn.  .

INTERIOR:
Cite Soleil is one of the areas voted as a commune.
New communes get mayoral councils.
As a follow-up to Parliament's passage of legislation
making Cite Soleil, Tabarre, Plaine du Nord, Maissade,
Belladere and Ennery communes, the President, by
presidential decree, named mayoral councils to these
new communes, until elections take place.  (A mayors
office consists of a mayor and two adjunct mayors).
Becoming a commune will permit each area to have his
or her own police station, as opposed to a
sub-station, and a police chief to oversee the
station.  Additionally, it will allow for better
representation, entitlements, accountability, and
control.

DISASTER:
Responding to flood victims in the South.
Dr. Yolaine Surena, director of the government's
disaster bureau, Protection Civile, met with the
Haitian Red Cross, the Ministeries of Public Works and
of Public Health, with a delegation from the South and
various private institution to coordinate a response
to the recent flooding which took the lives of 31
people and left 5,000 homeless, destroyed agricultural
land, cut off roads and destroyed potable water
sources.

HUNGER:
Providing access to low cost food.
A new community store was opened outside of St. Marc
which sells essential food products at reduced prices.


School lunch program gets assistance from Taiwan.
The government of Haiti's Canteen Scolaire program
(school lunch program) which feeds 145,000 children a
full hot meal in school received one million dollars
from Taiwan for the upcoming school year together with
praise from the Ambassador of Taiwan to Haiti, Michel
Lu, who talked of the demonstrated success of this
program.

Regulating the prices of essential food products.
The Minister of Commerce met with the Chamber of
Deputies reporting on measures to control prices of
essential food products in the marketplace.

President Aristide addresses World Agriculture
Organization conference in Italy.
President Aristide addressed the World Agriculture
Organization conference in Italy and presided over one
of its sessions.  The President cut his attendance
short to return to Haiti for what was supposed to be
the re-launching of political negotiations with the
opposition.  President Aristide recently was awarded
their prestigious Food Medal for his dedication and
efforts to alleviate hunger. During his speech
President Aristide pointed out the difficulties facing
Haiti in actualizing a national strategy for poverty
reduction while some countries have imposed economic
sanctions against Haiti. The President thanked those
countries that oppose the sanctions.

The Minister of Agriculture announced that the second
phase of agrarian reform is now underway.

For press releases and speeches in French, please
visit the National Palace website at
http://www.palaisnational.org

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