Constitution and Democracy

Haiti: Aristide and the removal of Alexis

Anthony — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 20:46:10 -0400

ttp://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/4_13_8/4_13_8.html
HIP - Port au Prince, Haiti — The situation in Haiti was thrown into further confusion on April 12 as the Haitian parliament passed a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis. Led by rightists in Haiti's parliament such as Senators Youri Latortue, Adris Riche and renegade Lavalas party Senator Roudy Herveaux , the vote of censure was passed on April 12, 2008 at 11:55 am EST.
President Rene Garcia Preval, following controversial U.N.-sponsored elections in 2006, appointed Alexis as Prime Minister. Alexis served for an administration touted as a coalition government backed by the United States and the international community that included members of the so-called opposition that forced former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide into exile in 2004. Alexis' administration gave the final appearance of a legal veneer to the ouster of Aristide and his political movement known as Lavalas by co-opting former grass-roots leaders into his government.

Did He Jump or Was He Pushed? Aristide and the 2004 Coup in Haiti

Anthony — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 16:01:38 -0500

Did He Jump or Was He Pushed? Aristide and the 2004 Coup in Haiti
by Peter Hallward
December 15, 2007
haitianalysis.com

Massive demonstrations in Haiti catch UN by surprise

Anthony — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 16:25:23 -0500

Massive demonstrations in Haiti catch UN by surprise
(HIP) Challenging recent assertions made by the United Nations that the
Lavalas movement is dead, crowds estimated at well over 100,000 took to
the streets of seven major cities throughout Haiti on February 7 to
demand an end to the UN occupation, freedom for political prisoners and
the return of exiled president Aristide. Lavalas is the political
movement of Haiti's desperately poor majority and the political party
of president Jean-Bertrand Aristide who was ousted on February 29, 2004
in a coup reportedly backed by the United States, France and Canada.

The Freedom of the Press Barons: The media and the 2004 Haiti coup

Anthony — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 18:43:28 -0500

The Freedom of the Press Barons
The media and the 2004 Haiti coup
February 1, 2007
by Isabel Macdonald
The Dominion - http://www.dominionpaper.ca
In February 2004, the US, Canadian and French governments supported
an illegal coup d'etat that overthrew Haiti's democratically elected
government of the Lavalas party, led by Jean-Bertrand Aristide. In
late 2003, "civil society" groups--financed and supported through US
and Canadian government-funded "democracy enhancement" programs--
began calling for Aristide's ouster. They were joined in early
February 2004 by armed terror squads. In the pre-dawn hours of
February 29, 2004, President Jean Bertrand Aristide, who had been
elected with 92 per cent of the popular vote, was forcibly removed
from Haiti on a US government airplane, while Canada's Joint Task
Force 2 secured the airport.

Democracy Now! Another Massacre in Cite Soleil?

Anthony — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 14:06:32 -0500

Another Massacre in Cite Soleil? Haitian Human Rights Activist Accuses UN of Killing Dozens in Recent Attack on Port Au Prince Neighborhood
Friday, December 29th, 2006
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/12/29/1446230
Haitian human rights activist Lovinsky Pierre-Antoine discusses last week's UN raid of Cite Soleil. Published reports put the death toll as high as 17 but Pierre-Antoine said the actual death toll could reach 80. [rush transcript included]
In Haiti, more than 1000 people marched through the streets of Port Au Prince Thursday to protest the presence of UN forces in the country, and to call for the return to power of the democratically elected former President Jean Bertrand Aristide. Aristide lives in exile in South Africa after his ouster in a US-backed coup nearly three years ago.
Thursday's march followed the deaths of as many as seventeen civilians who were shot by UN troops in the capital city's impoverished Cite Soleil neighborhood last week.

Take hard look at Haiti if you think Canada is building democracy

Anthony — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 18:33:17 -0500

Take hard look at Haiti if you think Canada is building democracy
By CHRISTIAN HEYNE
Halifax Chronicle Herald, Pg A11
http://www.halifaxherald.com/Search/548180.html
WE ALL are concerned about democracy and human rights. Especially around the time of celebration of Christmas, a time for extra compassion. When Afghanistan comes up in Canadian debate, it is the military method that is questioned by many, not the idea of helping Afghanis to have a life. Democracy we support, officially, and privately anyway. Or do we? I am afraid some Canadians at the top are speaking with "forked tongue."
There seems to be a disconnect between the leading lights of our country and the population at large. While most Canadians see themselves as peacemakers still – even the footsoldiers – there is a little problem in the real world of our actions abroad. Canadian CEOs, think tanks, fast-talking military brass, the politicians, all seem to have little respect for the Canadian majority when it comes to foreign policy actions.

Haiti: The Return

Anthony — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:59:47 -0400

The Return
Article By Brian Concannon, Jr. - Aug 25 2006
http://coanews.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=1218
Say "the return" when discussing Haiti, and people who follow events in the country know you are talking about the return of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide from his exile in South Africa.
Mr. Aristide was ousted in a coup d'etat in February 2004, and flown, against his will, in a U.S. government plane to the Central African Republic. He has since settled in South Africa, at the government's invitation, but has always said he will return to Haiti when the conditions are right.
The conditions are getting closer to right, although President Aristide would now return as a private citizen. President Rene Preval was elected on February 7 and inaugurated on May 14, 2006. His Ministers were ratified by Parliament on June 7, replacing the brutal and unconstitutional Interim Government that had ruled since the coup.

AHP editorial: The double standards pose a mortal threat to democracy and human rights

Anthony — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 20:30:56 -0400

AHP News - May 29, 2006 - English translation (Unofficial)
The adherence to a policy of double standards constitutes a mortal danger to democracy and human rights
Any policy of double standards is a deadly poison acting against the birth of democracy or its reinforcement in a country.
In any country where law and justice have meaning, any abuse is an abuse, any violation of human rights is a violation of human rights and any criminal act is a criminal act, regardless of who commits them.
Unfortunately Haiti is one of the countries where the most notorious violators of human rights can be elevated to the ranks of heroes while someone who is guilty of theft or who is innocent altogether can be presented publicly as the most notorious criminal as long as such an act suits an agenda, as long as, you belong to a given social or political sector, as long as... whatever.
We have become accustomed to the indecent practice of preferring to create a lot of commotion and thereby transform a lie into the truth and to downplay evidence until we fall into our own trap...
And that is what happened to us in the elections of February 7, 2006. The majority of the population thwarted a sector in decline that believed it truly possessed all the power because it dominated the economic, political and judicial machinery from one end to the other, and on top of that, it controlled the propaganda machine.

Political Prisoners Still Locked Up in Haiti

Anthony — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 12:10:15 -0400

Machete Massacre perpetrators released from prison - political prisoners still locked up
by Lyn Duff
San Francisco Bay View
At least six police officers involved in last summer's Gran Ravin massacre were released from prison weeks ago, and charges against them may be dropped, according to a legal official who asked that his name not be used.
The officers, including former division commander Carl Lochard, were released March 9 on their own recognizance. The men were part of a larger group of police officers and attachés from the Lame Ti Machete (Little Machete Army) who attacked a crowd of spectators at a "Play for Peace" soccer match that was organized by the local community and funded by USAID last August.
Witnesses say police officers shot into the crowd, picking off individuals to execute. Those fleeing were stabbed by attachés armed with machetes that were reportedly distributed by officers at the Martissant police station shortly before the attack.

Neo-Colonial Protectorate Codified in Haiti?

Anthony — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 14:27:40 -0500

Forwarded by Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network
www.margueritelaurent.com
Friends,
In 1804, after a glorious victory over France, our forefathers rose from the tomb of slavery to heaven of freedom, defeating the most powerful nation in the world, and declared themselves free forever. This victory became possible not because of the superiority of their military capacity, but
because of their unity, extraordinary courage, and, most importantly,
because of their yearnings for the universal human liberty. The former
slaves were denied any education. It was a crime for them to even learn how
to write their own names. Still, despite of their lack of education, they
created a free and independent Republic conceived in liberty and freedom.
In other words, by defeating slavery and becoming the only self-made Black
Republic in the world, Haiti taught the world of the danger of slavery and
the value of liberty. As such, Haiti became a guiding light for every black
people and slave-nations in the world, a source of pride for every lover of
liberty and sovereignty.