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[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: love haiti <loveayiti@hotmail.com>

The Return in full-force of the Attaché Phenomenon : NCHR cries out

Posté le 2 septembre 2003
http://www.nchrhaiti.org/article.php3?id_article=88



The history of dictatorship in Haiti is often associated with the existence
and usage of paramilitary forces, illegally created to neutralize
institutional structure envisioned by the Constitution and laws.* The
vitality of the Duvalier dictatorships relied on the actions or rather acts
of crime and intimidation of the National Security Volunteers (les
Volontaires de la Sécurité Nationale - VSN), commonly referred to as the
"Tontons Macoutes". Under the pressure of this force, the Haitian Army was
enslaved, humiliated and, more often than not, ignored. This private
militia, the key element in the repressive system in place, benefited from
complete freedom, official impunity and was responsible for numerous violent
acts that took place under the shadow of the dictatorship.

After the fall of the Duvalier dynasty in February 1986, the National
Security Volunteers structure was officially dismantled. This paramilitary
organization was rejected and condemned by Haitian society and its citizens
who had been forced into exile, and was declared outlawed. The Tonton
Macoutes were handed over to street justice and lynched in public by an
unrestrained population under the powerless watch of those who supported the
right to life, the right to a fair trial regardless of the serious charges
against an individual.

This forceful rejection and the overall international disapproval of all
forms of dictatorships were seen as signs that there would be no resurgence
of authoritarian power in Haiti. No one thought that Haiti would come to
relive, in one form or another, this kind of state organization, this method
of governing with the aid of armed gangs. No one dared to predict the
naivety of such thinking. Parallel to the euphoria in the streets, these
small groups in high places secretly plotted a murderous plan to transform
the dream of the people into a nightmare. In the barracks and military
posts, the Tonton Macoutes were replaced by attachés.

The military coup d'état period from 1991 to 1994 is marked with the red ink
signature of the attachés. Torture, rape, theft, pillaging, beatings,
summary executions, illegal arrests, disappearances, and arbitrary
detentions were the different forms of human rights violations committed at
the hands of attachés that had been officially organized into a paramilitary
group, the Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haiti (FRAPH).

The victims of this period of terror are numerous, estimated at five
thousand (5000) dead and disappeared. Pregnant women miscarried from being
kicked, slapped and bludgeoned (cocomacaque) while in custody in military
posts. People arrested in good health were left blind, missing an eye, a
broken leg, a fractured arm, a shattered eardrum and all other sorts of
injuries, or they were left dead and abandoned for the dogs.

The return of constitutional order symbolized hope, promising the Haitian
people security without cost, order, and an end to the bloodshed ("sekirite
gratis ti cheri, de l'ordre et la fermeture du robinet de sang" ). Even so,
blood never loses its color, and insecurity reigns supreme, maintaining the
same goal. For some time, one has witnessed the return in force of the
attaché phenomenon with the grimacing image of all that it characterizes.
The National Coalition for Haitian Rights (NCHR) is profoundly concerned
about the development of this dangerous phenomenon and the implication it
has for democracy and stability of the State, and so publishes this report
as a warning to the public.

I. THE CURRENT SITUATION IN POLICE STATIONS

Since the launching of Operation Zero Tolerance on 28 June 2001, the attaché
phenomenon has become prevalent in Haitian police stations. Specialized
units called Special Brigades (BS), composed of armed civilians dressed in
black t-shirts with the yellow inscription "BS" on the back, are being
integrated into the police stations, at first in the metropolitan zone and
now increasingly on a national level. In certain police stations, police
officers and attachés carry out the same activities.

These attachés operate under the official protection of those in charge at
the precincts, who, in some cases, provide each attaché with an
identification card, such as this one.

This report covers cases from the following police stations : Delmas 33,
Carrefour, Cité Soleil, Port-au-Prince, Pétion-ville, Gonaïves, Cap-Haïtien,
Trou du Nord and Hinche.

DELMAS 33 POLICE STATION

The Delmas 33 police precinct is considered to be a true bastion of armed
gangs. The situation of those living in this community - more specifically
those of Petite Place Cazeau, Delmas 19, 31, 33 and 75 - is alarming. The
attachés of this station operate day and night and specialize in rape,
theft, beatings, summary executions, executing arrests followed by
disappearances, and kidnapping. They are implicated in numerous cases of
crime yet enjoy protection under the eyes of the stations' police officers.
They are assured official immunity. Their privileged targets are big
business owners, businessmen, owners of new vehicles, former military
personnel, political activists of the Opposition and Haitians returning from
stays in foreign countries. They use the inside of the police station to
torture and assault their victims. Places such as Adoquin (Delmas 33),
Habitation Vorbes (Petite Place Cazeau), and Route Bâtimat (connecting
Airport Road to Cité Soleil) are used as slaughterhouses. These attachés are
numerous, but the most well-known and most cruel are :


Jean Etienne SYLVAINCE

Reynold JOSEPH



Jeudius PIERRE



Jean Romanès DUVERGER

  Tony JEAN, alias Sonnen Chief of Zéro Tolérance, Delmas Police Station

  Daniel MOMPLAISIR

  Isaac JEAN LOUIS, alias Jonas Marcelin

  Gérald (nickname)

  Ivon (nickname)

  Cambell (nickname)

  Chouchou (nickname)

  Jean Webert MACEUS

Most of the individuals interviewed during the research of this report
requested to remain anonymous due to fear of repercussion. Nevertheless,
several cases of severe human rights violations committed by the hands of
attachés can be noted :

Valbrun VIGNET

Valbrun VIGNET is a mechanic living in the area of Petite Place Cazeau who
found himself in dispute with two (2) of his neighbours, Berlune PIERRE and
Marc Getro JOSEPH. These two (2) men solicited the aid of an attaché at the
Delmas 33 police precinct, Isaac JEAN LOUIS (alias Jonas), to assassinate
VIGNET. During the night of 18/19 June 2003, Isaac JEAN LOUIS (alias Jonas),
Berlune PIERRE and Marc Gétro JOSEPH appeared at VIGNET's home and riddled
the house with bullets. Valbrun VIGNET miraculously survived this attack by
escaping over a wall.

Félix PIERRE

On 12 May 2003 at approximately 11:00pm, members of the community brought
Félix PIERRE to the home of Jean Hernceau MORENCY, a member of the
community's Administrative Council (CASEC) of the 3rd communal district of
Delmas, on accusations of theft. Given the late hour and for reasons of
security, Jean Hernceau MORENCY decided to keep the alleged thief in the
CASEC office for the night in order to bring him to the Delmas 33 precinct
the following morning.

Once Mr. MORENCY had left, two (2) attachés from the Delmas 33 station,
Ivanov and Isaac JEAN LOUIS (alias Jonas) broke into the CASEC office and
bound Félix PIERRE, taking him to an undisclosed location. While en route,
they came across Mr. MORENCY. When questioned by Mr. MORENCY as to where
they were taking Félix PIERRE, the men responded by saying that they are
part of a Zero Tolerance group at the Delmas 33 station and that they had
decided to end the life of this alleged thief. At this point the CASEC began
to protest. Without hesitation, Isaac JEAN LOUIS drew his gun and opened
fire on Félix PIERRE. PIERRE was shot four (4) times and died on the spot.

This appalling crime took place on 13 May 2003 in the presence of several
witnesses. The Police Commissioner of Delmas 33, Emmanuel A. MOMPREMIER,
notified the same day the murder took place, only detained PIERRE's murderer
for three (3) days before releasing him. The alleged thief and the case will
never be brought before justice - a decision made by the chief of the Delmas
precinct.

Junior JEAN and Mankès ANÉLUS

Junior JEAN and Mankès ANÉLUS are two (2) young men from Petite Place
Cazeau. They were arrested sometime during the month of June 2003, in plain
sight, by attachés from the Delmas 33 station. They have been missing since.

Gueno DUCHENE

Gueno DUCHÈNE, 28 years old, was shot on Delmas 31, Maguana Street, on 23
June 2003 by attachés dressed in black, driving around in a police pick-up
truck.

Silendieu ESPERANCE

Silendieu ESPÉRANCE is a business man living in the area of Petite Place
Cazeau. He is constantly being exploited by attachés from the Delmas 33
police station with the overt complicity of police officers stationed at the
precinct. Each time an incident occurs, ESPÉRANCE informs judicial officials
and NCHR (who has been following the evolution of this situation). After two
(2) of his vehicles were stolen, ESPÉRANCE filed a complaint at the Delmas
courthouse, establishing that attaché Isaac JEAN LOUIS was responsible for
the theft. The two (2) vehicles were eventually found in his possession. The
Justice of the Peace of Delmas, Mr. Stevenson THIMOLEON, proceeded with the
arrest of the alleged thief on 4 July 2003. Informed of the arrest, Jean
TONY (alias Sonnen) - riding in a cream colored Cherokee, with a blue
illuminated license plate, number 2036 - arrived at the courthouse, leading
a group of heavily armed men with the intention of freeing his comrade, who
had already been transferred to the National Penitentiary. Nevertheless,
TONY profited from the occasion by threatening judges, clerks, lawyers, and
all those present in the courthouse.

As a side note, those in police custody at the Delmas 33 station are
required to handover seven hundred and fifty (750.00gdes) to avoid beatings
and to purchase their freedom should they have the means to do so.

Jackson SYLVAIN

On 24 February 2003, Jackson SYLVAIN, age 34, was reported missing following
a discussion he had had with an attaché from Delmas 33.

Pierre DULY

Pierre DULY, a Haitian citizen, won three hundred and fifty thousand (Gdes
350,000) in the New York lottery. Betrayed by an envious neighbor known as
Yvon, DULY was kidnapped on 19 May 2003 by Jean TONY (alias Sonnen) and
Chouchou, two (2) Delmas 33 attachés. His body was later found in Adoquin.

Léon REGOIS

Léon REGOIS was murdered on 8 July 2003 by attachés from the Delmas 33
precinct circulating the area in a vehicle from the PNH. The men collected
the body and disposed of it at the Haitian University State Hospital (HUEH).

Mrs. Judie C. ROY

On 14 July 2003, Mrs. Judie C. ROY, leader of REGROUPEMENT PATRIOTIQUE POUR
LE RENOUVEAU NATIONAL(REPAREN) - a political party of the Opposition -
Jeantel JOSEPH, Coordinator of the CENTRALE NATIONALE DES TRAVAILLEURS
HAÏTIENS (CNTH), Chavannes JOSEPH and Adler REVAUD were arrested in Lilavois
by officers from the Brigade for Research and Intervention (BRI). They were
first taken to the National Police Academy where their torture began. Later
they were transferred to the Delmas 33 precinct where they were kept in a
secret holding cell for five (5) days during which time men in civilian
clothes inflicted various sorts of torture on them.

POLICE STATION and SUB-POLICE STATION of CARREFOUR

The police station of Carrefour, [formerly] under the direction of Josaphat
CIVIL [in 2002], maintains a significant force of armed civilians working
under the control of officers for the purposes of carrying out illicit acts.

On 26 October 2002, Emmanuel AUGUSTE, a former soccer player of the Black
Eagles, was reported missing after having been arrested and taken to the
Carrefour police station.

On 30 November 2002, Willio JEUNE, a young boy of twelve (12) years, was
arrested and savagely tortured at the Saint Charles sub-police precinct of
Carrefour.

The threshold of the horror at this police precinct was crossed during the
night of 7/8 December 2002 when three (3) young men from a single family
were assassinated by Carrefour police officers. According to an [internal]
police report, dated 20 December 2002, Andy PHILIPPE (20 years old),
Vladimir SANON (21 years old), and Angelo PHILIPPE (22 years old) were
murdered by :

  Blanc (nickname) : attaché at the Saint Charles sub-police precinct

  Ménard MEDAT : Agent 3

  Josaphat CIVIL : Police Commissioner

  Pierrot GIVENS : Agent 2

  Pierre AUGUSTIN : Agent 2

Several other attachés and police officers are named in the report as
accomplices in the murders. Not one of these officers and/or attachés has
ever been the object of any legal proceedings and each continues to occupy
his post. Furthermore, the allied attachés are placed under the protective
blanket of impunity. And they say that a judicial inquiry is in process !

GONAIVES POLICE STATION

Since Camille MARCELLUS, current Departmental Director of the Police, took
over leadership in Gonaïves, the city has been subjected to practices that
are reminiscent of the powerful Castera CÉNAFILS era. The acts of torture
that are appearing are of the same nature, as the townspeople are being held
hostage by police aids and armed civilians. Similar to Delmas 33, those in
police custody must pay to avoid beatings. Individuals arrested for
political reasons are transferred to Delmas 33 where they are not placed
within the judicial circuit. The most well-known case is that of Ephraïm
ARISTIDE who was arrested on 28 April 2003 and driven to Port-au-Prince. He
was held in police custody despite a court order for his immediate release
from the honorable Octélus DORVILIEN, the Doyen of the Court of the First
Instance in Gonaïves. DORVILIEN became Doyen with the support of the
Cannibal Army following the forced departure of former Doyen Napéla SAINTIL
who was forced to be demoted due to his refusal to return to Gonaïves.

CAP-HAITIEN POLICE STATION

On Saturday, 5 July 2003, four (4) police officers from the police station
in Cap-Haïtien accosted Mr. Franck JULIEN, father of the Coordinator of the
Initiative Citoyenne, Mr. Frandley Denis JULIEN. Officers forced him into
his own vehicle where they held him hostage. Concluding that they would not
get the ransom demanded - the sum of five thousand dollars (US$5,000) - the
men left, two (2) of them leaving business card with the names James GARÇON
and Oscar.

TROU du NORD POLICE STATION

Liliane DELORME, eight (8) months pregnant, was beaten until covered in
blood on Wednesday, 21 May 2003 by two (2) police officers of the sub-police
station Trou-du-Nord.

HINCHE POLICE STATION

The following are the names of the attachés at the Hinche police station :
Bidry THOMAS, Sanon JEAN, Grolobo, Ti Jean, Cotière, Lecor NORCIUS, and
Kenson EXIL. They operate under the direction of Negupe SIMON (promoted to
Assistance Departmental Director of the Police of the Central Department)
and participate in all forms of criminal activity.

December 2002

Mercidieu AUGUSTIN (alias Péché), of Los Palis, was arrested by attachés
under the direction of Negupe SIMON and has been missing ever since.

March 2003

During the annual congress of Mouveman PEYIZAN PAPAY (MPP) a dispute arose
between Police Chief Negupe SIMON and State Prosecutor of the Court of First
Instance of Hinche, Jean René MICHEL. Following the dispute, attachés under
the direction of the Police Chief and Bidry THOMAS surrounded the
courthouse, locked the doors and arrested the court bailiff, Elie
BAUDELAIRE.

May 2003

On 18 May 2003, Josué TELUSMÉ was murdered by Jean SANONCE in the first
communal district of Ouanario, in the community of Hinche. SANONCE is an
attaché at the Hinche police precinct.

June 2003

On Sunday, 1 June 2003, Hébert CÉRUPHIN, Coordinator of PATI NASYONAL
PWOGRESIS REVOLISYONÈ AYISYEN (PANPRA) in the Central Plateau and founder of
the COOPÉRATIVE DES PAYSANS CULTIVATEURS in Cerca Cavajal, was arrested by a
group of hooded men dressed in black led by Negupe SIMON (Assistant
Departmental Director) and Bidry THOMAS, an attaché at the Hinche precinct
who was promoted to the level of inspector and is currently in charge of the
police station in Thomassique. Hébert CÉRUPHIN was subjected to inhumane
treatment under the pretext that he is connected to the armed groups
operating in the area of Pernal. Without any legal procedures being
followed, he was transferred to the National Penitentiary.

Joseline DESROSES, a young girl, was shot in the mouth on 2 June 2003 at the
Hinche police station. Joseline DESROSES' attacker is none other than
Junior, a police officer from the fourteenth (14th) promotion of the PNH,
stationed at the Hinche police precinct. The officer opened fire on Joseline
after she refused his sexual advances, acting as if Haitian society has
returned to the disturbing times of Astrel BENJAMIN.

PETION-VILLE POLICE STATION

The Special Brigade of the Pétion-Ville police station is most known for the
arrest of Rosemond JEAN, leader of the COORDINATION NATIONALE DES
SOCIÉTAIRES VICTIMES (CONASOVIC), arrested on the charge of possession of
illegal firearms. The police spokesperson strongly backed up this thesis.
The hearing held at the correctional court more than six (6) months later
would reveal that the weapon presumably found in Rosemond JEAN'S possession
belonged to a police officer working in the General Direction of the Haitian
National Police.

PORT-au-PRINCE POLICE STATION

16 September 2002

The names attachés of the Port-au-Prince police station are always cited in
cases of human rights violations. Yet the most celebrated case to their
credit is that of Félix BIEN-AIMÉ and his two (2) companions, Dial NORMIS
and Paul Jean MUSAC. These three (3) were arrested and taken to the
Port-au-Prince police station in broad daylight, following an undeniably
provoked traffic accident. They have been reported missing ever since.

3 December 2002

Armed civilians of the Special Brigade (Zéro Tolérance) desecrated the
Faculty of Ethnology building while assaulting and arresting students.

CITE SOLEIL POLICE STATION

March 2003

On Sunday, 9 March 2003, at approximately 4 :30pm, the Coordinator of la
Coordonnatrice FANM SOLEY LEVE, Carline SIMON, and her husband Serge SIMON,
were participating in a meeting about micro-credit organized by FANMI UNI
POU LAPÈ AK DEMOKRASI in there area of Fort-Dimanche, La Saline. A group of
armed individuals, in collusion with the Police Commissioner of Cité Soleil,
Xavier BRIXON, stormed the organization's headquarters and proceeded to hold
the SIMONS hostage for an hour. The bandits demanded a ransom of five
thousand dollars ($US 5,000) in exchange for their release.

July 2003

On 12 July 2003, the participants of the Caravane de l'Espoir rally in Cité
Soleil, the country's largest shantytown, were attacked by individuals led
by Robenson THOMAS (alias Labannière) and Woodson LEMAIRE (alias Colibri),
operating under the patronage of police leaders and elected authorities.

While the list of cases cited and police stations mentioned is not
exhaustive, it serves to create public awareness regarding the attaché
phenomenon while revealing the seriousness of the problem, the link existing
between the police force and the attachés, and the laissez-faire attitude of
the public authorities.

II. THE WIDESPREAD NATURE OF THE PHENOMENON

The attaché phenomenon is not only evident in the police stations. The
National Palace, the Ministry of the Interior, certain departmental
delegations such as Hinche, Gonaïves and Cap-Haïtien, certain city halls and
CASEC offices are overflowing with attachés. Members of pro-governmental
popular organizations are armed and find protection from one (1) or more of
the abovementioned institutions. A large number of these attachés are
overtly integrated into the ranks of the Haitian National Police ; one notes
several such cases from the last police promotion. While this practice is
widespread, it is possible to highlight the case of the Central Plateau,
exposed by the former interim PNH Director, Jean Robert FAVEUR, who received
a list of nineteen (19) attachés to be integrated into the police and
installed in various police stations across the Central Plateau. The
following is the said list :

Name, Position, Transfer

JOSEPH Madsen, Inspector, Belladère

JOSEPH Monvil, A2, Belladère

ROMAIN Enock, A2, Belladère

JEAN Yonel, A1, Belladère

BRICE Milot, A1, Belladère

THOMAS Borès, A1, Belladère

PIERRE ANTOINIER Moise, A1, Belladère

PARET Murat, A2, Baptiste

JANVIER Jean Audent, A1, Lascahobas

MAXIME Enock A2 Lascahobas

RAPHAËL Mathurin, A2, Lascahobas

FILEUS Emile, Officer, Baptiste

JEAN FRANCK Ducaste, A1, Baptiste

ELIEN Micanol, A1, Baptiste

JODSON Vertus, A1, Lascahobas

NACER Bernadeau, A2 Thomonde

VILLIER Harry, A3, Lascahobas

DESIRE Myrtho, A1, Boucan Carré

JEAN JACQUES Nardy, A2, Baptiste

In January 2002, in Dena, a district of la Vallée of Jacmel, a baptismal
ceremony was held for the son of Reverend Phède CIVIL, brother of René
CIVIL, the leader of JPP (jan'l pase'l pase) who is the child's godfather.
The attachés that accompanied CIVIL took advantage of the opportunity to
make a quality display of their weaponry and the extent of their power.
Judge for yourselves :


This report does not take into account cases involving the Cannibal Army of
Gonaïves, Bale Wouze of Saint Marc, the Armée Cercueil in the lower
Artibonite, Dòmi nan Bwa of Petit-Goâve, TKL de Saint Jean Bosco, armed
gangs of Cité Soleil, La Saline, and Martissant and the other armed groups
spreading terror, with the obvious complicity of public authorities.

CONCLUSION

It has become blatantly obvious that the arbitrary practices that were
forcefully denounced during the coup d'état period are resurfacing. The
traditional methods used to control are re-emerging, modified, intensified
and used increasingly by the same individuals that once criticized them. The
attaché phenomenon has thus become part of the repressive system put in
place by those in power. The impunity that attachés enjoy and the collusion
between members of the special brigades and officers of the Haitian National
Police provide incontestable proof that the phenomenon is part of a
governmental strategy. The break from the past so hoped for by the Haitian
people has not occured.

One of the consequences of this situation is the obstacle to the access to
justice. Political opponents who are arrested or actively pursued are not
treated humanely. Judicial recourse then becomes a privilege for certain
political or social sectors that possess the necessary means. Those in
charge at police precincts are becoming wealthy in plain view for all to
see. This has been confirmed and denounced by the former Chief General
Inspector of the PNH, Mr. Harvel Victor JEAN-BAPTISTE, when he said that all
armed gang in the Republic function under the direction of police officers.
Therefore, it is imperative that something be done before it is too late. If
this attaché phenomenon is not curtailed, Haiti runs the risk of being
transformed into a bandit -State living on the fringe of the civilized
world.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Translated from original text in French


nchrhaiti

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