21304: Lemieux: AP: US soldiers in Haiti face anger and resentment (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: JD Lemieux <lxhaiti@yahoo.com>

US soldiers in Haiti face anger and resentment

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?: Unlike in 1994, when the US
was asked by Haitians to restore order, troops
are confronted daily by hostile and rebellious
street gangs

AP
PORT-AU-PRINCE
Monday, Apr 12, 2004
Six weeks into a mission to stabilize Haiti,
American troops have confiscated fewer than 150
weapons among the thousands held by rival
factions. In not much more than six weeks, the US
soldiers will give way to a UN force -- and the
Americans are counting the days.

US troops are picking up trash, patrolling
streets and continuing searches for weapons. It's
the second such peacekeeping mission for the
Americans in a decade, and many feel they are
hampered by their 90-day mandate and hostility
that contrasts sharply with the joyous welcome
they got in 1994.

"I don't think three months is going to change
much," said US Marine Staff Sergeant John
Schultz, 34, of Hammond, Indiana.

Still, he finds Haiti a respite from Iraq: "I've
been there twice, and each time I hope will be
the last."

Haiti's crisis couldn't come at a worse time for
US President George W. Bush's administration,
which is attempting to fill a power vacuum
created by Jean-Bertrand Aristide's departure
while coping with mounting casualties in Iraq --
all during an election year.

On a one-day visit this week, US Secretary of
State Colin Powell pledged support but made no
long-term promises. He said the administration
does not plan on spending more than the US$55
million earmarked for Haiti -- about US$20
million less than last year and a fraction of the
US$235 billion that flowed months after the last
intervention.

Less money means less chances of getting guns off
the street, though everyone agrees that is the
only way to secure the Caribbean country of 8
million people.

Yet there is no buyback program to entice
Haitians to give up weapons and street gangs both
for and against Aristide remain armed, along with
motley groups of rebels.

A multinational force of 3,600 soldiers and
marines -- more than half American, the rest
Canadian, Chilean and French -- patrol the
streets, clear garbage piles high enough to hide
a sniper and secure key installations such as the
airport and presidential National Palace.

The primary goal is to bring order ahead of the
arrival of a UN force scheduled to take over in
June. Brazil will lead the force and plans to
send about 1,500 army, navy and air force troops.
Other Latin American countries such as Peru,
Chile and Argentina indicated they could
contribute troops to the peacekeeping mission,
expected to last six months.

The Americans arrived as Aristide supporters
bewildered by his departure set up flaming
roadblocks where they robbed motorists and killed
some, looted businesses and warehouses, including
one containing US food aid, and both sides in the
conflict were carrying out reprisal killings.

While a semblance of order has been restored to
the main cities, many provincial towns controlled
by rival gangs or rebels sporadically erupt in
violence.

Despite the brevity of their mission, the US
troops have had their resolve tested. Early in
the deployment, troops shot and killed six
Haitians they said either fired on them or tried
to run roadblocks. A handful of others were
injured in gun battles.

Haitians accused the Americans of being
trigger-happy and noted French troops have not
once been fired at or used their firearms. US
officers responded that the Americans patrol the
most dangerous areas, the sprawling slums that
are strongholds of Aristide supporters. In
addition, the French speak a language close to
Haiti's Creole.

To counter anger and win trust, US troops have
scaled down patrols to help with small community
projects.

"Here you can really see the efforts you make,"
said Gunnery Sergeant James Ganbrell, 29, from
Grand Junction, Colorado. "It's not like Iraq.
Most people know you're here to help and you can
really walk away with a good feeling because of
that."

"We're happy they're here," agreed Ronel
Monpremier, 30, a laborer. "The country is still
insecure, they're helping us feel a little
safer."

But hostility and anger remain, fed by Aristide's
claims that he was forced from power by the US on
Feb. 29.

It's a vastly different scenario from the 1994
intervention when former US President Bill
Clinton, overriding opposition from the US
military, Congress and public, sent 20,000 troops
to restore Aristide, Haiti's first democratically
elected president. Those troops arrived after the
Haitian military that ousted Aristide agreed to
stand aside.

"The difference is we asked for American help in
1994," said Rodny Jean-Baptiste, a 32-year-old
gas station attendant. "Today, the US troops
aren't bringing anybody back and they're not
really helping."

US troops must deal with armed pro- and
anti-Aristide gangs and the rebels whose swift
advance across Haiti led to Aristide's flight. In
addition, the interim government installed with
US support is seen as being an elite in a shady
alliance with ex-soldiers in Aristide's army,
including convicted human rights violators.

"It's hard to take seriously our efforts in Haiti
given they [US Marines] are working alongside ...
known killers,'' said US Representative Maxine
Waters, a California Democrat who supports
Aristide.

While US troops do not work with the rebels, they
have done little to disarm them.

Some see the US-led operation as a stopgap
providing only temporary relief in a country
bedeviled by violence since its independence 200
years ago.

"The potential for errors is much higher this
time because the international forces have less
control over the population," said Alix
Fils-Aime, a security adviser under Aristide in
1994. "There are more armed gangs now who are not
going to give up."






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