18653: Esser: Violence in Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: D. Esser torx@joimail.com

Detroit Free Press
http://www.freep.com

Editorial

Violence in Haiti
February 14, 2004

Haiti may be a world away from Iraq, but it is close to the United
States, and the violence sweeping across the island nation deserve
more attention.

The world's two leading proponents of democracy -- the United States
and the United Nations -- cannot remain on the sidelines while
violent rebels and militant supporters of embattled President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide rip Haiti apart. Each day since Feb. 5 has
brought at least one new death in Haiti, touching nearly every town
on the island.

At minimum, the United States and the United Nations must find some
diplomatic means of stepping in and pressing for a cease-fire before
the warring factions plunge Haiti into an all-out civil war. And
America, more than any nation, ought to feel some pressure to act,
given its decision to send troops to help restore Aristide to power
in 1994.

The current wait-and-see approach sends a troubling message to the
millions of Haitians subsisting on less than $1 a day, as they wait
for the fair and democratic political process promised under Aristide.

Aristide's alleged inability to control the police and his reported
role in flawed legislative elections in 2000 are at the center of
most of the rebel anger. The uproar over the elections robbed the
nation of millions of dollars in international aid, just one more
reason rebels claim that Aristide must go.

Yes, Aristide's time may be up. But that is a decision that deserves
to be made by the people through a democratic process, not a coup --
which is where Haiti appears to be headed.

Secretary of State Colin Powell, who was discussing Haiti on Friday
at a meeting with representatives of other nations in our hemisphere,
has repeated over and over America's disappointment with Aristide and
the violence. That disappointment must now turn to action, before
Haitians still hungering for democracy turn their backs, too.

Copyright © 2004 Detroit Free Press Inc.

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