23359: (Chamberlain) Aristide says he part of solution to Haiti's woes (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

     By Mboniso Sigonyela

     JOHANNESBURG, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Ousted Haitian President Jean-Bertrand
Aristide said on Friday he could be part of the solution to strife in the
Caribbean nation, convulsed by violence since he was forced into exile in
February.
     "I'm part of the solution because I was elected by the Haitian people
and the Haitian people today are open for dialogue as I'm open for
dialogue," Aristide told public broadcaster SABC in South Africa where he
was granted exile.
     "We can have that dialogue to pave the way for a better life and I
think it's time to do that," Aristide said in one of his first public
interviews since the latest violence erupted.
     Haitian police backed by U.N. peacekeepers have battled Aristide
supporters amid gang violence that has killed 45 people in recent days,
including seven policemen.
     The military commander of U.N. troops in Haiti, Brazilian General
Augusto Heleno Ribeiro Pereira, recently said Haitian authorities must act
to quell the hostilities, but only on the basis of credible intelligence.
     Aristide was overthrown in a military coup during his first term in
1991, and disbanded the army after he was restored to power in 1994. Many
former soldiers joined with rebel leaders to oust Aristide in February and
hundreds have since joined Haiti's police force.
     Members of Aristide's Lavalas Family party have accused interim
authorities of using squads of former soldiers to intimidate, persecute and
kill slum residents.
     Government officials accused Aristide loyalists of beheading a former
soldier they believed to be spying on them.
     South Africa, one of Aristide's staunchest supporters, granted the
former president and his wife refuge in May and they have since taken up
research fellowships at a South African university.
     Pretoria says Aristide was the victim of U.S.-sanctioned "regime
change" and has backed a United Nations probe into events surrounding his
departure from Haiti on Feb. 29 in the face of an armed revolt.
     Aristide, who has kept a relatively low profile since arriving in
South Africa, told the SABC that forces opposed to his government were
sowing havoc in the country.