20437: Esser: Furious at Jamaica welcoming Aristide, Haiti freezes diplomatic ties (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: D. Esser torx@joimail.com

Agence France Presse

March 15 2004

Furious at Jamaica welcoming Aristide, Haiti freezes diplomatic ties

PORT-AU-PRINCE : Haitian ex-president Jean Bertrand Aristide arrived
in Jamaica, provoking the ire of authorities in Haiti, who froze ties
with the neighboring nation and warned the visit could fuel violence
in Port-au-Prince, where a US Marine was shot and wounded overnight.

Citing security reasons, Jamaican authorities declined to say where
Aristide and his wife Mildred went after landing at Kingston's Norman
Manley international airport following their flight from the Central
African Republic.

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As the plane was landing in Kingston, Haitian prime minister Gerard
Latortue announced in Port-au-Prince he had suspended relations with
Jamaica.

"I am immediately recalling the ambassador and we are freezing our
relations with Jamaica," Latortue said at a news conference.

He also said he would reconsider Haiti's relationship with the
Caribbean Community (Caricom) group, which is currently headed by
Jamaican Prime Minister Percival Patterson.

Patterson had invited the Aristides to spend time in Jamaica, where
their two daughters currently live.

The visit has infuriated Haitian authorities who fear Aristide's
return to the Caribbean region, just 200 kilometers from his
homeland, could lead to renewed violence in the Port-au-Prince, where
his hardcore supporters went on a rampage following his resignation
and departure from Haiti on February 29.

US officials shared that concern. "Jamaican authorities are taking a
certain risk," US Ambassador to Haiti James Foley said on Friday.

Aristide has insisted he remains the constitutional president of
Haiti and claimed that the United States and France kidnapped him and
forced him to fly to Bangui. Washington and Paris have dismissed the
claims.

As they headed to the Caribbean, US Marines announced their first
casualty since they deployed to Haiti hours after Aristide's
departure.

A US Marine was shot and wounded in the arm Sunday evening during a
patrol of Bel Air, a slum just hundreds of meters from the
presidential palace, where support for Aristide runs strong, and
where at least two gunmen were shot dead by US troops in a gunbattle
last week.

The new commander of the 2,700-strong multinational force in Haiti,
made it clear Monday his troops would get tough with gunmen.

"Make no mistake, my Marines will not idly stand by as thugs and
rebels kill and maim innocent civilians," Brigadier General Ronald
Coleman said at a ceremony at which he took command of the US,
French, Chilean and Canadian troops.

"It is our mission to help stabilize the country ... we will do
whatever is needed to do that," he said.

Coleman later told journalists that the US-led troops, who currently
conduct comparatively small "presence patrols" in the violence-torn
capital, will become more visible.

"In the near future you will see more forces of the multinational
force out and about," he said at the outdoor ceremony at the
university compound that serves as headquarters for the US-led troops.

Latortue and interim president Boniface Alexandre both thanked the
troops for helping restore stability to Haiti.

"Haiti will be forever grateful for the help you are giving us in
this difficult transition," Alexandre said.

Latortue, for his part, pledged that the government he plans to
announce Tuesday would devote itself to restoring democracy to the
impoverished country, which has been rocked by a deep political
crisis since fraudulent elections in 2000.

"The government I will head will do its utmost to plant the seeds, to
establish the foundations of democracy so that it will germinate and
grow and become strong," he said.

Latortue also said the new government would be ready by Tuesday
evening. "It is a firm date, so that the cabinet can be sworn in
Wednesday at the latest," he told a local radio station.

But he said discussions on the make-up of the government were still
underway. "There is nothing definite ... we are discussing the
resumes, the honesty, the competence, the democratic commitment of
every candidate."

Over the past days, Latortue, a longtime UN diplomat who was briefly
foreign minister in 1988, has held meetings with political party
representatives, including members of Aristide's Lavalas party.

He has stressed the need for reconciliation and said he planned to
form a government of national unity.

- AFP
.