19656: (Craig) UN Wire: Aristide Resigns; French, U.S., Canadian Troops Arrive In Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Dan Craig <hoosier@att.net>

Aristide Resigns; French, U.S., Canadian Troops Arrive In Haiti
Monday, March 1, 2004

Two planes with dozens of French troops landed today in Haiti's capital
of Port-au-Prince, joining U.S. Marines and Canadian Special Forces that
arrived in the country yesterday after Haitian President Jean-Bertrand
Aristide resigned and fled into exile, Agence France-Presse
<http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040301/wl_afp/haiti_france_040301131053>
reports.

A third plane was expected to arrive from France, bringing to 150 the
number of French troops in the country.  The deployment is part of a
multinational force authorized yesterday by the U.N. Security Council
(AFP/Yahoo! News, March 1).

The U.N. resolution authorized the force to "contribute to a secure and
stable environment" across Haiti for up to three months, after which the
United Nations could establish a peacekeeping force to remain longer
(Stephen Hedges, Chicago Tribune
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0403010190mar01,1,6513294.story?coll=chi-news-hed>,
March 1).

Rebels arrived in the capital this morning, joining hundreds of
residents dancing in the streets and celebrating the end of Aristide's
power.  Some people, however, watched celebrations indifferently, with
their arms folded (Dodds/James, Associated Press
<http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040301/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/haiti_uprising&cid=589&ncid=716>/Yahoo!
News, March. 1).

The United States sent more than 150 Marines to the country shortly
after Aristide left.  According to U.S. State Department spokesman
Richard Boucher, the United States helped Aristide to flee.

In a statement read on national television by Haitian Prime Minister
Yvon Neptune, Aristide said he was resigning "to prevent bloodshed"
(CNN.com
<http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/americas/02/29/haiti.revolt/index.html>,
March 1).

He arrived today in the Central African Republic, along with his wife
and a small entourage.  In an address to Central African Republic state
radio, Aristide said, "In overthrowing me, they cut down the tree of
peace.  But it will grow again, because the roots are well-planted."

According to the radio station, Aristide would stay in the country for a
few days and possibly head to South Africa (Joseph Benamsse, AP
<http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/sns-ap-aristide-exile,0,1528511.story?coll=ny-top-span-headlines>/Newsday,
March 1).

South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad, however, said the
country has not received any request from Aristide for asylum.

"No request has been made," Pahad said.  "If and when it happens we will
have to consider it at Cabinet level.  We will want to consult with the
regional players CARICOM <http://www.caricom.org/> (the 15-nation
Caribbean Community) and the Organization of American States
<http://www.oas.org/> and with other key players, France and U.S.A."
(AFP
<http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/Politics/0,6119,2-7-12_1491707,00.html>/News24.com,
March 1).

With Aristide's resignation, Haiti's Supreme Court Chief Justice
Boniface Alexandre is the country's new president in a transitional
government.

Boucher said Alexandre will remain president until new elections can be
held, while Neptune will remain prime minister until a replacement is
appointed "in the next days."  U.S. officials said the new government
would probably be restructured to give more power to the prime minister
over the president.

CNN.com reports that after Aristide's resignation, gunfire could be
heard in the streets of Port-au-Prince, although it was not clear if it
was in celebration.

Yesterday, U.S. President George W. Bush urged "the people of Haiti to
reject violence and give this break from the past a chance to work and
the United States is prepared to help" (CNN.com).

U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan also warned opposition leaders that
they are not above the law and that "they will be held individually
accountable for any breaches of international human rights and
humanitarian law" (U.N. release
<http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=9924&Cr=Haiti&Cr1=>, Feb. 28).

Yesterday, rebel leader Guy Philippe said his rebels "don't intend to
fight anymore" and that he would give "unconditional support" to Alexandre.

"The only problem was with Aristide," Philippe said.  "We don't have any
problem with Aristide's followers" (CNN.com).

In the Little Haiti neighborhood in Miami, one of the largest Haitian
communities in the United States, Aristide's opponents celebrated his
resignation, while government supporters insisted that the exiled
president should be returned to power and remain until his term ends in
2006.

"We do want him to go back, and he has to, because if he does not finish
his term, no other president will finish his term ever again in Haiti,"
said Julio Ostinvil, who has lived in the United States for 23 years.

Ostinvil, along with other government supporters, also accused the Bush
administration and the international community of not getting involved
quickly enough to avoid Aristide's departure.

"It's a shame for the president of the United States, shameful, for him
to see the bloodshed of the present and not do anything until the
president was gone," Ostinvil said (Adrian Sainz, AP
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-3806714,00.html>/London
Guardian, March 1).

At least 70 people have been killed in the three-week uprising, most of
them police officers (U.N. Wire
<http://www.unwire.org/UNWire/20040225/449_13454.asp>, Feb. 25).

In related news, UNICEF launched an appeal Friday for $7.6 million in
urgent funding for its emergency operation in the next six months in
Haiti, where it said women and children have been "caught up by the
collapse of civil authority."

"We have to keep children alive now by vaccinating them and providing
clean water," said UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy.  "But we're
also looking six months ahead, and to a range of solutions that are
going to be needed to get Haitian children back to school, and to ensure
that children and mothers have basic life-saving medical care" (UNICEF
release <http://www.unicef.org/media/media_19527.html>, Feb. 27).