9935: Re 9927: Journalistic standards and intellectual honesty - Antoine comments (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: GUY S ANTOINE <guyantoine@windowsonhaiti.com>

Is Haitian society so polarized by pro and anti Lavalas forces that we are witnessing 
the dying days of intellectual honesty?  When Mr. Louissaint came to the list with his
demand that Minister Guy Paul be fired, this was my response:

" Damn!  I am not in a position to defend any member of the Lavalas government, 
  but this simply is a frontal assault on my common sense.  I am 100% certain
  that this << "Brignol Lindor was not killed as a journalist but as a member of the 
  'Democratic Convergence'>>  is not ALL that Guy Paul said, unless he is a
  bumbling idiot, with half the brains of a chicken...  
"Perhaps the decision you have already reached is the correct one, but I certainly 
 will not be led to it based on half a sentence surely extracted from a much larger 
 context.  Then again, you may have reached the wrong conclusion, so please take 
 the time to present some decent argumentation before asking us to embark on what 
 could be a witch hunt.
"There is ABSOLUTELY NO EXCUSE for this truly barbaric act, NO MATTER 
 WHO is the victim. Lajistis ann Ayiti te mEt kokobe men nou pa kab pEmEt li 
 kontinye ap drive nan labou konsa."

For those who do not understand the Haitian language, the last sentence says:
Justice in Haiti may be crippled but we cannot allow it to continue to be driven
in the mud in that manner.

It has been brutally suggested, not once but twice, by the publisher of the Haitian
Times that I was merely defending the statement by Minister Paul and therefore
justifying "hacking someone to death".  It would then seem that my ABSOLUTE
condemnation of this act in my original letter did not matter one bit. It would seem
even criminal for me to demand that Mr. Louissaint provide the full declaration of
Minister Paul's statement before we uncritically rush to judgment.  I THANK MR. 
CHARLES ARTHUR FOR PROVIDING TO THE LIST THE TRANSCRIPT
OF MINISTER PAUL'S DECLARATION, so that finally everyone on this list
can see who was right before proceeding on wholesale condemnations. I hope
that it provides Mr. Louissaint who couldn't think of a possible context for the 
minister's statement an example of how the media, in this case, Radio Metropole, 
can blatantly attempt to manipulate us. 

What I find truly dubious is for the publisher of the Haitian Times to continue to
declare that I was "trying to defend a statement", for having demanded that the
fuller declaration be produced.  Please re-read my original statement once again, 
if it is so hard to understand.  The wording of Minister Paul's statement may have
been unfortunate, but the clear attribution of unsavory intentions to others, not at
all based on what they said, is simply callous.

That politicians in Haiti use this tactic should come as no surprise to anyone. That 
the same tactics be used in our midst by the publisher of an upright newspaper is 
surprising, at least to me.

In my entire history of writing to the Corbett list, I have demanded that criminals
be brought to Justice regardless of their political affiliations and regardless of
their social and political status, be they presidents, senators, or simple men on 
the street.  The lack of Justice in Haiti and our PHENOMENAL HISTORY
of L'ENQUETE SE POURSUIT is what has always pained me the most about
my country of origin.  I cannot think of a higher priority.  This should transcend
ALL POLITICS.

You may persist in defaming me for having demanded a fuller context, but I
think that the truth now speaks for itself.

Guy S. Antoine
Windows on Haiti