17384: Lonbrit Ayisyen: Open Letter to Associated Press (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Lonbrit Ayisyen <lonbritayisyen@hotmail.com>

Open Letter to Associated Press



After reading the November 15, 2003 article, entitled Aristide protesters,
supporters clash in Haiti, relating the events that took place in
Port-au-Prince
Haiti on November 14, 2003, many feel compelled to make the following
points.
The Associated Press has the professional responsibility to provide
objective
and accurate information; unfortunately, this article is neither objective
nor
accurate.



The first point is that the group organizing this assembly was never
identified
nor defined.  Unfortunately, the reporters covering the event did not deem
it
necessary to specify that Group 184, that organized the gathering, is
comprised
of over 300 organizations from all the vital sectors of the civil society,
only
18 of which are private sector associations. It should be noted that the
Group
of 184 is NOT an opposition coalition or a political party.  It is a civic
movement of which the primary goal is to organize the different factions of
the
Haitian civil society and to find the minimum consensus that will allow us
to
live and progress together.


The article labeled the gathering as a demonstration against Jean Bertrand
Aristide. In fact, it was an initiative by civic groups to present a
proposal
for a social contract and a possible consensus to end the political gridlock
and
attempt to reconcile a torn nation.


The figures used - “thousands of rock throwing protesters”, “8,000 Aristide
partisans” were neither accurate nor validated. It is true that there were
thousands of people gathered on the Champs de Mars on November 14th. But it
must
be emphasized that while some of them were in fact supporters of Aristide,
an
unaccountable, but significant number of the people in the melee were
individuals who came to listen to the presentation of the Social Contract
promised by the Group of 184.  The majority of the attendees were NOT
chanting
praises to the Haitian President, nor were they aggressive towards anyone.
Considering the general chaos, how was it possible to objectively count the
number of people there and to distinguish who was who when everyone was
thrown
in together?


The only people throwing rocks were Aristide supporters.


The article stated that several people had been arrested for illegal
possession
of firearms. It failed to mention several important facts:


These people were part of the security contingent of Group 184.
The police had duly authorized this contingent.
This contingent was simply escorting the podium authorized by the police on
which the speakers were to stand.
The police issued a public statement on May 7, 2003 saying the firearm
licenses
could not be renewed for the present and that ALL licenses were extended for
an
indefinite period of time until further notice. So the firearms were in fact
legal.


Therefore, these people were arbitrarily arrested and are being detained
illegally, violating the most basic human rights put forth by international
agreements ratified by the Haitian government. It must also be noted that
these
people were denied council for several hours.



The article also stated that the US is withholding funds to Haiti.
Ironically,
just this past week, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved
three
loans totaling $176.9 million that is programmed to be signed by the
contested
parliament that was “elected” in the flawed May 2000 vote.




Furthermore, there were critical facts that were left out. There was a
well-planned strategy to prevent people from coming to this gathering.

Bottlenecks were organized at all major arteries leading to the meeting
area:
every vehicle was searched for as long as twenty minutes, some cars
containing
large numbers of people were forced to turn back, city garbage trucks
mysteriously broke down in the middle of numerous streets, Aristide
supporters
verbally and physically intimidated groups on foot.



It must also be noted that the people who came to listen to group 184 were
from
all walks of life, including many prominent members of the private sector,
intellectuals, students, union representatives, members of local
neighborhood
associations, peasants, farmers and factory workers. This marked a historic
turning point in Haitian history when rich and poor, black and mulattos,
marked
their common desire to find a way to live together.



The other members of the international press present at the event, notably
Agence France Press, presented a totally different account of that day.



Not only were the facts misleading and misconstrued, the article also missed
the
essential element, and presented a decidedly partisan account of events. The
reality is that not only does democracy not exist in Haiti, but we are in
fact
living in the grip of a totalitarian rule because the Haitian people cannot
gather peacefully to discuss social issues. People are arbitrarily and
illegally
arrested and indefinitely detained, often without access to council.
Government
supporters intimidate, verbally and most often physically attack or kill
opponents with total impunity. The police force and the judicial system are
shamelessly used to intimidate and imprison opponents. Reporters are
harassed
and threatened everyday. Some radio stations have been vandalized or
attacked
and even forced to shut down. The presence of attaches operating in police
stations all around the country has been confirmed by several human rights
groups and by U.N. inspector Louis Joinet. Numerous accounts of human rights
violation are recorded everyday.



L'Innitiative de Support au Groupe des 184

_________________________________________________________________
Share holiday photos without swamping your Inbox.  Get MSN Extra Storage
now!  http://join.msn.com/?PAGE=features/es