27530: Hermantin(News)S. Florida Haitians are looking home as hope, fear mingle on eve (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Sun Sentinel

S. Florida Haitians are looking home as hope, fear mingle on eve of election


By Alva James-Johnson
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

February 7, 2006



As Haitians trek to the polls today to elect a new government, their 
compatriots in South Florida are feeling a wide range of emotions.

Those who demonstrated in 2004 to oust former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide 
from office are disappointed in the interim government that followed. And those 
who supported Aristide are still bitter that he no longer heads their nation.

But most of all, Haitian-Americans in South Florida, home to the largest 
Haitian population outside the country, wish the best for an impoverished land 
that has been buffeted by political turmoil for 200 years.

"There's a lot of fear and uncertainty around this election," said Marleine 
Bastien, vice chairwoman of the Haitian-American Grassroots Coalition in Miami. 
"We hope things will be well, and the people of Haiti will be safe."

Haiti's latest round of political woes began Feb. 29, 2004, when Aristide was 
removed from office during a violent rebellion. A U.S.-backed interim 
government led by Boca Raton retiree Gerard Latortue replaced his government.

The interim prime minister promised to lead the country to a brighter future 
with the help of the Haitian Diaspora, which pumps more than $1 billion into 
the economy annually. But many of his supporters said he never delivered.

"I think most people I've spoken to feel very disappointed and depressed," said 
Parnell Duverger, a Haitian-American economist in Fort Lauderdale. On Monday 
night, some expatriates were scheduled to gather for prayer vigils in Miami's 
Little Haiti and at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Delray Beach.

"The service will be dedicated to Haiti, that's the best we can do right now," 
said the Rev. Roland Desormeaux, who said he is hopeful the election will help 
solve some of the country's turmoil.

Jacques Lafontant, president of the United Haitian-American Democratic Club in 
Palm Beach County, which represents more than 100 Haitians, fears more fraud 
than democracy.

"We believe the election will take place, but it will not be a democratic 
election," he said. "Somebody is going to not be elected, but selected. I'm 
supporting none of those candidates, none of them."

Others in South Florida are staying close to their radios for the latest news 
from home.

Among those watching the election closely is the Rev. Gerard Jean-Juste, a 
Catholic priest recently released from a Haitian jail for cancer treatment in 
Miami.

On Monday he stood outside the Wyndham Fort Lauderdale Airport Hotel in Fort 
Lauderdale, his neck still healing from a biopsy incision. With all the 
strength he could muster, he endorsed his friend, former Prime Minister Rene 
Preval, for president.

Preval, who belongs to Aristide's Lavalas Party, served as the country's 
president from 1996 to 2000, between Aristide's two terms.

"He's the most popular among the candidates," said the priest, who turns 60 
today. "With the good results coming, this is my birthday present."

Jean-Juste and other Lavalas leaders said Aristide supporters will gather today 
at the headquarters of Veye Yo, a Lavalas organization, in anticipation of a 
Preval victory.

Other Haitian-Americans questioned whether Preval could serve without Aristide, 
now exiled in South Africa, pulling the strings.

"He was president before, but he wasn't president in his own right," said 
Gerard Ferere, a Boca Raton retiree and Latortue supporter. "What would Preval 
do now on his own? I don't know."

Jean-Juste and his supporters, who said they had paid for a room and made 
arrangements to hold the news conference inside the hotel, were evicted Monday 
morning, said Jack Lieberman of the Haitian Solidarity Committee, a 
pro-Aristide civil rights group.

"I can't believe this would have happened if this was a Haitian official or 
someone in favor with the powers that be," Lieberman said.

A woman who answered a phone call to the Wyndham said management had no 
comment.

Broward Sheriff's Office deputies were called and reporters were told they 
couldn't enter the building.

Chief Bryan Cowart said deputies had received a call from the hotel reporting a 
public disturbance. He said his deputies turned people away because hotel 
management asked them to do so.

Throughout South Florida, rumors of a possible massacre at the polls back home 
spread. And many were still angry that Haiti doesn't allow dual citizenships, 
meaning Haitians with U.S. citizenship can't vote.

"It's very frustrating for us," said Margaret Armand, a Haitian-American 
community activist in Plantation. "They want our money, but they don't want our 
votes."

Staff Writer Erika Slife contributed to this report.

Alva James-Johnson can be reached at ajjohnson@sun-sentinel.com or 
954-356-4523.


Copyright © 2006, South Florida Sun-Sentinel