23089: (Chamberlain) Ex-rebels hold Haitian town, seek new Army (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

     By Joseph Guyler Delva

     PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Former soldiers who helped
overthrow Haiti's government patrolled the streets of a town they took over
to back demands for a new Haitian Army, local media reported on Tuesday.
     The ex-soldiers, who formed the backbone of a rebel force that drove
then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide into exile on Feb. 29, chased police
from the southern town of Petit Goave on Saturday. In camouflage military
uniforms, they spread into the streets on Tuesday trying to win the
confidence of the people.
     The takeover of Petit Goave, about 35 miles (56 km) southeast of the
capital, bore echoes of the revolt against Aristide early this year, when
rebels took over one town after another in northern Haiti.
     It illustrated the unrest still dogging the Caribbean country, the
poorest in the Americas, under the interim government that took over from
him and despite the presence of a Brazilian-led U.N. peacekeeping mission.
     Haiti's interim prime minister, Gerard Latortue, sent a delegation to
negotiate with the ex-rebels. But the officials were turned away by
rock-throwing supporters of the soldiers.
     Rebel leaders had warned Latortue weeks ago to expect trouble if his
government did not reinstate Haiti's army, which was disbanded by Aristide
in the mid-1990s. The ex-soldiers also say the government owes them 10
years of back pay.
     Remissainthe Ravix, the leader of the former soldiers, said he is
prepared to send a delegation to negotiate with the government but his men
would not compromise on issues such recreating the army and paying back
salaries.
     Many residents of Petit Goave seemed to welcome the former soldiers,
shouting "down with the police, long live the army," as they attacked the
government delegation.
     Some Aristide supporters, however, fled Petit Goave in fear for their
lives after the rebel takeover.
     "It is incredibly tough for our militants, who are the principal
targets for those criminals," said Sidney Claudy, a leader of Aristide's
Lavalas Family party in Port-au-Prince. "We have at least eight militants
who escaped from Petit Goave who are in hiding."
     Several thousand Aristide supporters took to the streets in
Port-au-Prince to denounce what they called political persecution and
demand the release of jailed Aristide supporters.
     On Monday, France's junior foreign minister, Renaud Muselier, came
under attack when gang members in the Cite Soleil slum fired at a hospital
he was visiting.
     A French diplomat said a Cite Soleil resident was killed in the attack
but local radio reported a second person had died. Two police officers, one
Haitian and one French, were wounded.
     Muselier and his entourage spent about two hours inside the hospital
and were able to leave only after troops from the United Nations
peacekeeping force intervened with armored vehicles and a helicopter.