22869: Esser: Statement Regarding Ron Daniel's cruising into Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: D. E s s e r <torx@joimail.com>

Statement Regarding Ron Daniel's cruising into Haiti Urgent Action
Requested
August 4, 2004

Ron Daniel's cruise must dissociate with Coup D'etat initiators and
implementers, starting with Frandley Denis Julien and the morally
repugnant Group 184 business elites and their death squad supporters

Dear Friends,

Haitian pro-democracy activists hereby denounce Ron Daniel's apparent
close association with those who supported the violent and illegal
overthrow of the Constitutional Government of Haiti. We urge Ron
Daniel's cruise endorsers, organizers, funders and participants to
dissociate with Coup initiators, implementers and supporters,
starting with taking Frandley Denis Julien, Ron Daniel's cruise
spokesperson in the North of Haiti, off the cruise organizers'
payroll. It is imperative that a public statement be issued, by
cruise organizers, concerning this and clearly and unequivocally
stating that Haiti Support Project's "Cruising Into Haiti" is not
only not an endorsement or recognition of the illegitimate Latortue
government but cruise organizers publicly disavow the February 29,
2004 Coup d'etat and are calling for an end to the widespread
repression of the People of Haiti and the occupation of Haiti by
supporters of the Coup d'etat.

Decent folks worldwide who strongly support Haiti and its people's
free expression and universally acknowledged democratic processes and
principles cannot simply ignore the ground situation in Haiti today
and the lack of participation, on the part of the Haitian masses, in
their own country's affairs, including with Ron Daniel's "Cruising
into Haiti" when it arrives in Haiti.

We therefore suggest a press conference with about five or six or
more of the big name endorsers of the cruise ( such as, Rep. Conyers,
Danny Glover, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Suzan Taylor, Don Rojas of WBAI,
Rev. Al Sharpton, former New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial, Katherine
Dunham, Harry Belafonte and/or Sonia Sanchez and other prominent
leaders and personalities) be immediately convened, declaring that
they are no longer going and disassociating their names with the
project because it cannot go into Haiti without dealing directly and
being received by the illegal, U.S--installed Latortue government
whose on-going repression against the masses of Haitian people is
well documented in recent human rights reports, just released in
July, 2004 by Amnesty International, Institute for Justice Democracy
in Haiti, Haiti Information Project, the Haiti Accompaniment Project
and others. All these reports should forthwith be made available to
the press and cruise participants and endorsers who decide to
continue with the cruise.

At the very least, these human rights reports, a method for including
the participation of the average Haitian person in Haiti and a media
advisory stating dissociation with the bloody Coup implementers must
be issued well before the cruise departs (August 14, 2004) by cruise
organizers and endorsers. The cruise is scheduled to arrive in Haiti
August 19, 2004 aboard Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas. (see:
http://www.cruisingintohistory.org/pressroom.htm )

Cruise organizers must publicly disavow the February 29, 2004 Coup
d'etat and call for an end to the widespread repression of the people
of Haiti and Haiti's occupation. That's the only way a cruise
honoring Haiti's Revolution could makes any sense right now on the
eve of Bwa Kayiman, 2004.

We urge everyone concerned about protecting and saving the life of
the average Haitian person in Haiti this August, 2004 to call, write,
fax Ron Daniels at the Haiti Support Project (877-424-8404 phone.
email: info@cruisingintohistory.org) or, at the Center For
Constitutional Rights in New York (212-243-3805 phone, 212 243 2007
fax); Congressman John Conyers, Jr (202 225 5126 phone, 202 225 0072
fax. e-mail: John.Conyers@mail.house.gov); Mr. Don Rojas of WBAI
(212-209-2800 phone, e-mail - drojas@wbai.org) and any of the cruise
endorsers mentioned above, urging them and cruise organizers to
denounce the Coup d'etat, unequivocally support Haiti's resistance to
tyranny and dissociate with Coup d'etat supporters such as Group 184,
the Latortue regime, Guy Philippe and his death squad members and all
those responsible for the violent overthrow of the Constitutional
government of Haiti and for the current repression of the Haitian
masses as evidenced in the aboved-referenced July 2004 human rights
reports.

Marguerite Laurent, Esq.
Founder/Chair
Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network
August 4, 2004
Erzilidanto@aol.com
Website: Margueritelaurent.com

BACKGROUND INFORMATION and THE ROLE OF GROUP 184 IN THE RON DANIEL's
CRUISING INTO HISTORY: -

A July 21st, 2004 post by Frandley Denis Julien with reference to the
"position" of the Ron Daniel's cruise participants and endorsers

In the post below, Frandley Denis Julien, head of Group 184 in the
North of Haiti, and the spokesperson for Ron Daniel's "Cruising into
History", is describing the "purpose" and/or "position" of the Ron
Daniel's cruise! Not good. It is a celebration, Coup-supporter Denis
Julien maintains, of Haiti's independence.

Mr. Frandley Denis Julien states, and we quote, in the original French,

" Cruising into history » vise un double objectif, a ponctué Denis
Julien. Premièrement, il constitue un témoignage de la solidarité
existant dans la communauté noire qui ne saurait rester indifférente
aux 200 ans d'indépendance de la première république noire. D'autre
part, cette croisière sera une bonne occasion de vendre une image
positive d'Haïti pour attirer les touristes. La chaîne américaine BET
accompagnera les artistes noir-américains qui feront le déplacement.
" (See,
http://news.caribseek.com/Haiti/Haiti_Press_Network/article_274.shtml )

Brief english translation of above: According to Frandley Denis
Julien: Cruising into Haiti has two objectives. First, it testify to
the solidarity that exists between the Black community that won't
remain indifferent to the 200 years of independence of the First
Black Republic. And, secondly, this cruise will be a good occasion to
sell a positive image of Haiti to attract tourists! BET, the Black
American TV network will accompany the African-Americans coming on
the cruise." (See,
http://news.caribseek.com/Haiti/Haiti_Press_Network/article_274.shtml )

Fact is, today, the people of Haiti, are not free. The people of
Haiti are being terrorized under an installed, imported
U.S.-supported dictatorship that came to power through force and in
the aftermath of the overthrow of the Constitutional government. What
sort of macabre "tourist" attraction is this that Ron Daniel's
Cruising-into-History would be promoting? At whose expense?

This appalling message Mr. Frandley Denis Julien delivers, on behalf
of Ron Daniels' Cruising-Into-History, appears to implicate the
African-American celebrities in a blatant lie and dangerous
propaganda.

Caricom, the African Union, Venezuela, the Congressional Black
Caucus, all, have publicly DENOUNCED and refused to recognized the
Latortue regime and/or ignore, or endorse their brutal repression of
the Haitian people. The OAS has even passed a resolution calling for
an investigation into the Coup D'etat. Thus, for, Ron Daniels, of the
Haiti Support Project and Center For Constitutional Rights, to be
either directly or indirectly endorsing this illegitimate government,
to the point where his representative, the head of Group 184 in the
North, is announcing that, U.S. African-American celebrities, such as
Danny Glover, Harry Belafonte, Katherine Dunham, Rev. Al Sharpton,
Jesse Jackson, et al, all, are coming to Haiti, to stand in
solidarity and celebrate that Haiti is free for 200 years! This lie
must be immediately denounced by the celebrities mentioned below by
name by Mr. Julien.

Haitians are not free today. Their elected leaders, have all been
summarily removed and replaced by the un-electable Group 184
supporters and their death squad co-horts.

If cruise endorsers, organizers and supporters remain silent,
especially after the Frandley Denis Julien post below has come to
their attention and do not acknowledge they are being used by this
murderous Latortue regime, then their silence equals nothing-less
than support for the current genocide (3,000 Haitians dead since Feb.
5, 2004) and repression of Fanmi Lavalas supporters (jailing of Prime
Minister Yvon Neptune and folksinger/humanitarian, So Ann, amongst
others) and the (350,000 ) internal Haitian refugees living in fear
and in hiding in Haiti today. Because of the Coup supporters, such as
Ron Daniel's group 184 spokesperson, Frandley Julien Denis, there are
tens of thousands of Haitians right now in marronage, which is
causing severe economic and social dislocation for those in hiding
and for their hosts. And, for every Yvon Neptune and So Ann that we
know about, there is at least a hundred anonymous poor people in
similar conditions, arbitrarily arrested and being retained in chains
behind bars by the coup initiators and supporters.

Mr. Frandley Denis Julien's free use, below in his July 21, 2004
post, of big names such as Mr. Danny Glover, Katherine Dunham, Harry
Belafonte, Jesse Jackson, to support this illegitimate Latortue
government, as if the people of Haiti have not suffered a Coup
D'etat, MUST NOT to unchallenged.

Haiti's constitutional rule advocates and friends must remind Mr. Ron
Daniels and the endorsers and participants of Cruising Into History
that if Ron Daniels and TransAfrica could have issued a press release
before joining the Haitian people in the celebration of their
bi-centennial, under a Constitutional Government, back on January 1,
2004, basically when a minority was trying to usurp power from the
majority of Haiti's African population - a press release stating that
their institutional and personal presence at Haiti's bicentennial
celebration on January 1, 2004 and beyond, was NOT in support of the
then Constitutional government, but in support of the "People of
Haiti", (See, Transafrica Forum's webpage at
http://www.transafricaforum.org/newsletter/news_jan1_04_200haiti.html )
-

Then, what more should be done now that the sanctity of Haitian
sovereignty has been violated and Group 184, the terrorist/death
squads that supports them, et al, have, through killing Haitian
police, releasing murderers and convicted felons from prisons and
burning down villages, and with foreign troop support, actually
succeeded in usurping power from the peaceful majority of Haiti's
African population.

It is imperative and will likely save Haitian lives for cruise
organizers to state unequivocally their disassociation with the
unconstitutional Latortue and all those who participated in the
violent overthrow of Haiti's democratic process. Cruise endorsers and
organizers shall cast a shadow on their participation and their
institutions unless they dissociates and openly denounce the current
US-installed and unconstitutional Latortue Regime and its repression
of the Haitian masses.

First, it would be most regrettable, if the pro-democracy celebrities
endorsing Ron Daniel's cruise were not made aware of Mr. Daniels and
Haiti Support Project's close connections with the opposition that
overthrew the Haitian people's Constitutional government as evidence
by their Group 184 spokesperson in the North of Haiti.

Second, it would be irresponsible if said endorsers and organizers,
went to Haiti, with no knowledge, as recently reported by Amnesty
International, Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti, Haiti
Information Project, the Accompaniment Project and others, of the
brutal state supported repression of the Haitian people under
Latortue/Group 184/Guy Phillipe's reign of terror since February 29,
2004.

Third, we believe these reports, by human rights monitors, just
released this July, 2004, describing the widescale grassroots Haitian
resistance and continuing repression of the People of Haiti by the
Coup d'etat government and its death squads should be distributed and
made available to all participants, endorsers, and/or organizers of
Cruising Into History, who wish to be informed and educated about the
current continuation of the Haitian Revolution they wish to celebrate.

Finally, it is our position, that is dangerous if not criminally
negligent for the Ron Daniel's Cruising-into-History sponsors,
participants and endorsers to ignore these reports outlining the
mayhem and chaos ruling Haiti today that was NOT present under the
people's Constitutional government and to blithely enter Haiti to, as
Frandley Denis Julien, states below, as testimony of the "solidarity
that exists between the Black community that won't remain indifferent
to the 200 years of independence of the First Black Republic and to
use the cruise as a good occasion to sell a positive image of Haiti
to attract tourists!"

If the descendants of those enslaved Africans who first put liberty
into application in this Western Hemisphere, are today being hunted
down, denied the right to congregate, the right to freedom of speech,
the right to participate in the freedom they inherited from their
forefathers and mothers, the right to schooling, literacy, freedom of
religion, security of their person, a living wage; if they are
fighting, bleeding, starving and dying to make real the Haitian
Revolution's promise; if the people of Haiti no longer even have
structural democracy, never mind justice, transparency and
participatory democracy, then what better objective could
African-American glitterati.could have then to come to Haiti, this
August, 2004, during Bwa Kayiman, and publicly denounce these
descendants' lost of even structural democracy and stand firm with
them for the application of democratic principles and processes.

If the trip is designed to both pay tribute to the history of Haiti
and honor the contributions of the Haitian people to the world, then
what better objective could there be other than for
Cruising-Into-History to come denouncing the Haitian people's brutal
repression, providing press coverage and media light about the
people's real repression and glorious resistance to tyranny since the
Coup d'etat while collectively celebrating the continued Haitian
Revolution.

Marguerite Laurent, Esq.
Founder and Chair,
Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network
August 4, 2004