25396: (news) Chamberlain: Justice minister Gousse resigns (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

PORT-AU-PRINCE, June 14 (AP) - Haiti's interim justice minister has
submitted his resignation, amid mounting international criticism
over the prolonged detention a former prime minister under ousted President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Bernard Gousse, Haiti's top law enforcement official, did not provide a
reason in a resignation letter sent Tuesday to interim
Prime Minister Gerard Latortue. A copy of the letter was obtained by The
Associated Press.

If accepted, Gousse's resignation would mark the first major departure
within Haiti's U.S.-backed interim government, appointed
last year after Aristide fled the country amid a February 2004 uprising.

It was unclear whether Latortue had seen the letter. Calls to both Latortue
and Gousse seeking comment went unanswered late
Tuesday.

In the letter, Gousse thanked Latortue for "allowing me to serve my
country" and expressed pride in "doing my civic duty after a
dictatorship."

"However, I am submitting my resignation as minister of justice and public
security," Gousse wrote.

Gousse has come under fire for the ongoing detention of former Prime
Minister Yvon Neptune, who was arrested 11 months ago but
charged only in May with orchestrating killings of Aristide opponents
before the revolt. Neptune denies the charge and is
reportedly refusing meals to protest his detention.

Gousse has also been accused of ignoring alleged atrocities by police
against pro-Aristide slum dwellers.

His possible exit comes as Haitian police and a 7,400-strong U.N.
peacekeeping force struggle to curb a rise in killings,
kidnappings and other violence that authorities fear could undermine fall
elections.

More than 700 people - including at least 40 police - have been slain in
the capital since September, when Aristide supporters
stepped up calls for his return from exile in South Africa.

In a letter sent this month to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, 10
U.S. lawmakers, all Democrats, called Haiti a "failed
state" and urged Rice to press for Gousse's removal for failing to release
Neptune.

"His attitude and his actions have actually increased Haiti's instability
and have guaranteed that Haiti will remain volatile even
after elections," wrote the lawmakers, led by Rep. William Delahunt of
Massachusetts.

U.S. Ambassador James Foley insisted Tuesday the lawmakers' call doesn't
reflect the views of the U.S. government. He said Gousse'
s resignation could become "a distraction" as authorities prepare for
elections scheduled for October and November.

"This is not the way the U.S. government acts in Haiti," Foley told Radio
Vision 2000. "We are not trying to dictate" to the
interim government.