27333: Durban (news): WashPost Editorial - Security for Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

Offered without comment by L Durban <lpdurban@yahoo.com>:

Washington Post Editorial below was forwarded to me by a friend in
Washington who prefaces it with the note:
   ... Maybe a reason US doesn't want to touch the ballot
   boxes is because like every other time we've tried
   to help that ungrateful, hapless country, the  US
   gets blamed for interfering with the democratic process.
   Can (one) blame (the) US for having grown weary, IMO.

> From this morning's Washington Post...
Security for Haiti

Tuesday, January 24, 2006; Page A16

FIRST LADY Laura Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice both
traveled to Liberia to mark the inauguration last week of a
democratically elected president, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who has given
that devastated West African country hope for recovery from years of
war and anarchy. In a show of support for the United Nations
peacekeepers who remain vital to preserving security, two U.S. Navy
warships made an appearance off the Liberian coast. Yet, much closer to
home -- 600 miles from Florida -- the Bush administration continues to
deny critical security support to another failed state, Haiti.

With U.N. help, Haiti is trying to hold its own democratic election to
replace the interim government that has been in power for nearly two
years. But the vote, scheduled for Feb. 7, already has been postponed
four times because of organizational problems and Haiti's mounting
anarchy; there's no guarantee it will go forward even now. Much of the
countryside and capital continues to be controlled by armed gangs --
some loyal to exiled former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide, some to
his opponents in a deeply polarized society, and some to drug
traffickers and other criminals. The drug traffic, in which Haiti acts
as a transshipment point for cocaine on its way from South America to
the United States, goes virtually unchecked. Kidnappings occur at the
rate of 10 per day.

The Brazilian-led U.N. force of 7,200, made up of troops from Latin
America as well as such unlikely friends of Haiti as Jordan and Sri
Lanka, has never seriously attempted to restore order or disarm the
gunmen. Earlier this month its commander committed suicide. It is
expected to provide security for the elections but lacks the manpower,
professionalism and logistical support to do so. The danger of violence
is great: Among the more than 30 candidates for president are two
alleged drug traffickers; an insurgent leader; and a former president,
Rene Preval, who is bitterly opposed by the same coalition that forced
Mr. Aristide from office.

The United States has been the guarantor of Haiti's security for nearly
a century, repeatedly dispatching troops to restore order. Two years
ago a Marine force entered the country to escort Mr. Aristide into
exile. Yet, though it has endorsed and partially funded the election
process, the Bush administration refuses to make even the smallest
contribution to security. Last year Defense Secretary Donald H.
Rumsfeld rejected a proposal to provide a small rapid-reaction force to
back up the disarmament of the gangs. Now the Pentagon has rejected a
U.N. petition for a temporary supply of helicopters to assist in the
elections. Though Ms. Rice and other senior officials have visited
Haiti to sing the praises of democracy, the administration is unwilling
to commit even five helicopters to such tasks as securing the transport
of ballot boxes.

It's true that U.S. military forces are spread thin because of the
demands of Iraq and Afghanistan. But the administration's refusal to
spare even a handful of helicopters or a few hundred Marines for Haiti
makes little sense when instability there is sure to raise the flow of
refugees and drugs toward Florida. Haiti has a slim chance to follow
Liberia in establishing a legitimate government that can begin to
restore order with the help of foreign troops and donors. But if the
United States isn't willing to provide military backup in the Caribbean
as well as in West Africa, its success is unlikely.