AHP News March 12, 2006, http://www.ahphaiti.org
English translation (Unofficial)
Preval discusses Haiti's economic and social situation with Condoleezza Rice: the secreatry of state fears new tensions due to the overlong delay for the investiture
Santiago, Chile, March 12, 2006- (AHP)- American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice declared Saturday that she is worried about the risks that too much time between the first round of Haitian presidential elections (February 7th) and the investiture of the new president (now postponed to the beginning of May) may stimulate troubles in Haiti.
The American head of diplomacy expressed these concerns when she met the Haitian elected President Rene Preval, after they had participated to the ceremony of investiture of socialist President Michelle Bachelet.

Since the February 7th elections, tension had largely gone down, including in populist neighborhoods of the Haitian capital.

In regards to Mrs. Rice’s apprehensions, René Préval declared that actions must be taken to consolidate this substantial reduction of insecurity and violence. "Socio-economic initiatives must be taken right now, for example in the area of Cite Soleil", he told Mrs. Rice, adding that the new situation requires that the MINUSTAH’s presence be modified," pointing out that the international force's tanks must now be replaced by public works' equipment.

President Preval held the same arguments in his conversations with President Bachelet and other Chilean authorities. Michelle Bachelet was very receptive, Rene Preval declared.

With Condoleeza Rice, discussions also went around the law bill named HOPE in which the United States would grant Haiti special tariffs, in order to help investments in Haiti in the field of textile. This project would mainly create 80.000 jobs in one year.

According to Mr. Preval, the equipment being already in place in Haiti, the only thing that Haitian entrepreneurs (ADIH) will have to do is to begin an operation of lobbying with large American clothes firms and with the American Congress also for the vote of the project. However, Preval pointed out that the 3 years given to the project are not enough to attract an important number of investors.

AHP March 12, 2006 12:40 PM

Over one hundred people demand interim Prime Minister Latortue’s arrest in Montreal

Montreal, March 12, 2006- (AHP)- About one hundred demonstrators demanded Saturday in Montreal the arrest of Haitian interim Prime Minister Gérard Latortue, whom they accuse of "crimes against humanity."

The demonstrators, under the initiative of the organizations "Resistance haïtienne au Quebec" and "Haiti Action Montreal", chanted slogans hostile to Mr. Latortue who was at the office of Quebec Prime Minister on Sherbrooke Street. They accused Latortue of serious responsibility in political assassinations, massacres and summary executions and of putting in prison hundreds of opponents including former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune and former Minister of Interior Jocelerme Privert.

"Meanwhile, individuals condemned or accused of involvement in real massacres, including higher executives from the National Police and a former leader of paramilitary, Louis Jodel Chamblain, are freed," they declared, outraged.

"Latortue should be judged for his crimes instead of being welcomed by Canadian leaders," the demonstrators also declared.

After Mr. Charest's office, they followed Gérard Latortue at the Haitian Consulate on Rene Levesque Boulevard. "We will make life hard for him for all he did to the Haitian population", many of them declared, accusing Latortue of having shown happiness at the murder by the police of several people taking part in a demonstration for the return of President Aristide shortly before September 30, 2004. "They shot us, we shot them, some of them fell and we went after the others," he also had declared.

A group of people also demonstrated Friday against Latortue's presence in Ottawa where a meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper went unnoticed, far from cameras. While in Port-au-Prince , Mr. Latortue's press bureau declared that he was answering an official invitation from Canadian and Quebecois prime ministers, in Ottawa, Mr. Harper’s entourage was rather quiet about the matter. "No press conference is planned after the meeting, organized at Mr. Latortue's request," a spokesperson for the Canadian prime minister corrected.

The demonstrators in Montreal and Ottawa also called the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) to "stop its prevarication to organize the second round of legislative elections," over one month after the February 7th presidential elections.

The CEP proposed April 21st after the vote, planned for March 19th, was postponed for untold reasons. Only one out of the 1300 candidates in contention for the 129 jobs of deputies and senators was able to get elected at the first round, according to the results communicated by the CEP.

We still don’t know for sure the date of elected President Rene Preval’s investiture (some say at the beginning of May). He has been visiting 3 countries of South America for the last three days, Brazil, Argentina and Chile, where he took part in the ceremony of investiture of socialist President Michelle Bachelet.

The Haitian community in Montreal has about 75.000 members, which makes it the most important one in Canada.

AHP March 12, 2006 6:40 AM