20188: Nealy: RE: 20167: Durban: Dysfunctional Democracy in Wash Times (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: David Nealy <dlnealy@msn.com>

Thanks, Lance durban, for bringing us that excellent, thought-provoking
piece by Georgie Ann Geyer. She makes many good, balanced points and makes
it clear that many share the blame for the current situation and that the
solution has many facets.

Gerard LaTortue seems to have an almost unique set of experiences
(International scope, development efforts, MArch 2003 comprehensive proposal
for Haiti) and contacts (UN, US, Gonaives etc.). That set of qualifications
brings some optimism that his transitional team (particularly if it includes
some other respected figures willing to take on this mission) can bring
progress to Haiti.

M. Alexandre's call for disarmament, together with the plan to do it with
the HNP in the forefront with the International forces backing them up also
brings some optimism to an otherwise impossible task.

Maybe we are seeing some light at the end of the tunnel for Haiti. I would
hope that M. Aristide and M. Kurzban (I suppose he does what he's paid to do
though) would try to find a constructive role to play rather than continue
to confuse the picture with the claims of "kidnapping" etc. It seems obvious
that M. Aristide did not want to leave Haiti or to leave power, but it also
seems obvious that he had little choice in view of the failure of his own
police, chimeres, etc. to stop the rebels.

The US seems to have made a hard choice, too, to refuse to fight his enemies
when Aristide enjoyed so little support and so much criticism from so many
elements of Haitian society (students, CONAP, business, former supporters
turning against him, etc.) Perhaps a "No Win" situation for the US decision
makers.

This situation of an elected leader who loses support because of bad and
even illegal, lethal actions by his cronies does raise real questions about
democracy, as addressed elsewhere. There's a lot of gray area here. HOWEVER,
the real focus should be on giving the Haitian people who have suffered so
much what they need even more desperately now. To do that there must be
cooperation, compromise, stability, protection of the people, disarmament,
etc. Let the new government work with the Int'l forces there to provide it,
please.

David

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