16742: (Chamberlain) Haiti fails US drug test (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

     WASHINGTON, Sept 15 (Reuters) -

(...)

     In his annual assessment of major narcotics producing and transiting
nations, President George W. Bush said Monday Haiti and Myanmar had "failed
demonstrably" to meet their obligations to fight drugs but he dropped
Guatemala from that list.

(...)

     In a list unchanged from his last report on Jan. 31, Bush named the
following as major drug-transit or producing nations: Afghanistan, the
Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,
Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan,
Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Thailand, Venezuela, and Vietnam.
     While saying Haiti and Myanmar failed to meet their international
obligations and U.S. laws on fighting illegal drugs, Bush waived penalties
-- chiefly the loss of most U.S. aid -- on Haiti on national interest
grounds.