27956: (news) Chamberlain: South Africa-Aristide

[corbetre@webster.edu]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

   PRETORIA, Feb 21 (AP) -- Ousted Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide
said Tuesday he was willing to return home after two years in exile.
   In an interview with South African television, Aristide stopped short of
setting a date. He said he would decide on his return after consulting with
Haitian President-elect Rene Preval, the South African government, the
United Nations and other involved countries.
   Aristide has been a "guest" of the South African government since being
ousted in February 2004.
   The interview marked the first time Aristide has spoken in public since
Feb. 7 elections in Haiti won by Preval.
   Aristide and Preval hold similar views about ending the subjugation of
Haiti's poor black majority by a lighter-skinned elite. Aristide nurtured
Preval's career, but the two men have subsequently fallen out.


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