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a190: Our experience with the coup d'itat (fwd)
From: KWILLS@UFM.ORG.
Monday, December 17th, 2001
Re: Coup d'état in Haiti
Dear Family and Friends,
Today's carefully laid plans did not materialize. I was planning on
taking Debbie, Lois, and Jenny to the airport, leaving here at 5:30
a.m., so they could fly to PAP to renew their residence permits. This
is the annual event that I went last week to do. We split them up
because it is easier logistically to get about half of the people
there one week and the rest there the next. Then I was going to pick
up boxes from the wharf, go to the lumber yard and order lumber for my
shop addition, pick up paint for Lois' tables, etc. Most of that never
happened except I did take the ladies to the airport and I did go to
the wharf. However, they never left Port de Paix.
A missionary from another mission came in a little bit after we
arrived and asked us if we had hear that there had been a coup d'état.
It was first reported that a group of former military leaders who had
been in exile in the Dominican Republic, just across the border, had
attempted to depose the president. After listening to the radio for a
while, the airline decided that they didn't want to fly to PAP today.
There was no traffic moving and no government offices would be open
anyway in Port au Prince so there was no use for the ladies to go. So
we retrieved all the baggage and decided that we would go to the wharf
to pick up the packages there. When we got close, we saw a great plume
of black smoke ascending into the air from a stack of three burning
tires in the intersection where we were intending to turn. This is how
Haitians demonstrate that they don't like something. We didn't (and
still don't) know if they were demonstrating for or against the coup.
We sat about a half block away trying to decide what to do. We didn't
see anyone demonstrating, only the tires burning, so we decided to
drive around them to go to the wharf. As we drove by, we could feel
the heat from the burning tires.
We were able to get to the wharf and pick up the items we were looking
for, even though everyone was pretty much just standing around
talking, listening to the radio, and trying to figure out what was
happening. Then we left. As we drove we saw the residue from burned
tires at various places on the streets and it wasn't long before we
came on some which were still smoldering. This was the same road we
had traveled but an hour and a half earlier and it was clean and bare
then. On the far side of town on the only road between Port de Paix
and our town of La Pointe, we came upon some tires about to be
torched. They had them laid across the road and were pouring kerosene
or gasoline on them. They were nice enough to wave us through before
torching them. Not more than 1/8 mile later, we came upon some that
were in a full blaze. We pulled over and parked. We were in between
two fires. There wasn't any violence and no one threatened us or
yelled at us or anything. Jenny and Lois had been through this at
various times in the past and they weren't worried, nor was I,
although none of us were too thrilled about it. After we had sat there
for a while a policeman arrived and told us a fire truck would be
there soon to extinguish the blaze. And shortly after that, it did,
arriving with the local SWAT team. After it was out, we followed them
for another ˝ mile or so and we all came upon another one. And then
two more after that. We were glad for the police escort and even more
glad for the guardian angels whom God sent to protect us. It was
interesting to observe that the people were not being violent and were
not even trying to hold us up particularly. They just wanted to make a
point and there are precious few ways of doing it in Haiti.
We arrived back to the campus safely and with no other disturbances.
The children were being let out of school early but other than that,
life appeared to be pretty much normal. Upon listening to the radio,
several theories were being postulated. One was that the military had
done it. One was that the Americans were involved. Another was that
Aristide had done it so that people could demonstrate in support of
him. So we really don't know what happened. All that we really know is
that it loused up our plans (but not God's) and now we don't know what
the next few days will bring. Tomorrow morning we will have radio
contact with the missionaries in PAP, where they say the air was thick
with smoke today, and they will tell us when they think it will be safe
to travel there.
Thanks to those of you who think of us and pray during these
situations and at other times as well. We truly appreciate the part
you play in making it possible for us to be in Haiti, serving this
nation which so desperately needs the Savoir.
By Grace Alone,
Ken and Debbie Wills