24211: Hermantin ( news)Warm welcome for beloved Haitian priest (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>


Miami-Herald

Posted on Thu, Feb. 03, 2005

JIM DEFEDE/COMMENTARY

Warm welcome for beloved Haitian priest




Striding confidently into the storefront headquarters of Veye Yo, the Rev.
Gerard Jean-Juste raised his arms into the air and smiled broadly. The crowd
cheered as he went row by row, making sure to shake everyone's hand.

''It's like a father who returns home after being away too long,'' said Tony
Jeanthenor. ``Everyone is just excited to see him. We only told a few people
he was going to be here tonight, but the word spread. If we had announced it
on the radio, the street would have been full of people.''

That street, of course, is Miami's Northwest 54th Street, in the heart of
Little Haiti.

It was here that Jean-Juste first gained prominence as an outspoken young
priest who worked on behalf of his fellow Haitian refugees.

He helped form the Haitian Refugee Center in the 1980s and then a few years
later, Veye Yo, a grass-roots group that fought for democracy in Haiti.

RETURNED TO HAITI

In the early '90s, when Jean-Bertrand Aristide became Haiti's first
democratically elected president, Jean-Juste returned to Haiti, establishing
a parish in the slums outside Port-au-Prince.

When Aristide was forced from office a year ago, Jean-Juste remained in
Haiti.

Like hundreds of other Haitians loyal to Aristide, Jean-Juste was arrested
last year and thrown in jail. He was held for 48 days, accused of murder and
plotting the overthrow of Haiti's interim government, before a judge finally
released him, citing the government's failure to produce any evidence to
support their accusations.

Last month, Jean-Juste quietly left Haiti and traveled to South Africa to
meet with Aristide. On his way home, he stopped in Miami and naturally found
himself drawn to the street he remembers so well.

''I love it here,'' he told me. ``I love being here at Veye Yo. I love being
on 54th Street again. I spent 20 years on 54th Street. This is a place
Haitian militants will never forget. Most of the people who are here have
been in the struggle for quite a long time.''

With Aristide in forced exile, his political party, Family Lavalas, is
struggling. Some of its leaders have either been killed or forced to flee
the country. Many more are being held in prison, often without formal
charges. And then there is the inevitable infighting as various factions
within the party scramble for power.

As a result, the question often arises: Who speaks for Lavalas?

In the weeks and months ahead, the answer may be Father Jean-Juste.

His arrest and subsequent release dramatically raised his profile both in
and out of Haiti, and his recent trip to South Africa may give him the
appearance of having the blessing of Aristide, who himself was a firebrand
priest who became a politician.

PRESIDENTIAL TALK

There is even talk Jean-Juste may run for president when the country holds
elections later this year. Jean-Juste remains coy.

''I am a religious person; I love the church work we are doing,'' he said.
``I'm not interested in doing any other role, but what the people say is
another thing. I never said I was a candidate, but that is what they want.''

Does that mean he will run?

He said he does not believe so, but added, ``I cannot rule it out because of
the pressure I might get.''

Ultimately, he said, it will be the decision of Family Lavalas to decide who
will run for president. He then added: ``I know President Aristide was
drafted. And I know there is a lack of leadership.''

Jean-Juste stressed that elections can be held only if Aristide is allowed
to return to Haiti, if all of the political prisoners are freed and if there
is security in the country.

Jean-Juste returned Wednesday morning to Haiti and the church that feeds
hundreds of children twice a week.

''Since people found out I met with President Aristide, I've been receiving
threats, telling me that I'm going to be killed,'' he said Tuesday night.
``But I'm going anyway. I have to be there.''






--------------------------------------------------------------------------------