- After receiving his diplomatic passport to return, Haitians
eagerly await his arrival. For them and millions of global supporters,
it can't come a moment too soon. Reactions express varying views.
-
- On February 18, AP headlined "Aristide backers march
amid talk of Haiti return," saying:
-
- In Port-au-Prince, thousands rallied in support "as
people close to the former leader say he plans to return soon from (US-forced)
exile in South Africa."
-
- Marchers "seemed largely festive, with loudspeakers
blaring music and young men drinking beer in the hot sun." Eugene
Mirthil, an unemployed worker, spoke for others saying:
-
- "We must have the return of Dr. President Aristide
as a simple citizen to help us get better as a country as a people."
-
- Washington calls his return disruptive ahead of March
20 runoff elections. Maryse Narcisse, Aristide's spokeswoman, said:
-
- "I cannot say when exactly but he will be back before
the March 20 elections."
-
- On February 17, AFP headlined, "South Africa to
help Aristide return to Haiti," saying:
-
- It affirmed its "facilitating the return of former
Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to his home country after years
in exile."
-
- International Relations Minister Maite Nkoane-Mashabane
confirmed his request to leave, saying, "We are consulting with all
interested parties to facilitate his return back home at the appropriate
time," noticeably avoiding a specific date.
-
- On Febuary 17, Reuters headlined, "Aristide to return,
but as Haiti spoiler or savior?" saying:
-
- "A month before Haiti's decisive presidential election
run-off, the political figure getting all the attention is not a candidate,
and he is not even in the country."
-
- Aristide's planned return "is making waves in this
volatile, earthquake-ravaged country," a man beloved by Haiti's poor
"but loathed by business leaders and the wealthy," so his plans
"triggered alarm bells in Washington and elsewhere."
-
- According to Mark Schneider, senior vice president of
the right wing International Crisis Group:
-
- Knowing powerful forces oppose him, "it would seem
that if he truly wanted to help Haiti, he would remain away at least until
after a new government is sworn into office" - ignoring his two impressive
electoral victories, his 90% or more popular support, his forcible 2004
exile at gunpoint by US marines, and as a citizen, international and Haitian
law affirm his right to return any time, irrespective of other events past
or upcoming.
-
- Moreover, he stated his intentions clearly - to "return
to Haiti to the field I know best and love: education." Believe it!
It's true, and he's entitled to use his skills freely for his people. They,
of course, badly need him.
-
- A recent rumor suggested his imminent arrival, getting
Belizair Dorwing, an unemployed worker, to say:
-
- "We want to know when (he) comes so we can gather
a crowd to welcome him at the airport....the country is gripped in poverty
and unemployment. It is Aristide that can save it."
-
- Fanmi Lavalas organizer Ansuto Felix said, "We believe
it's....a good thing for the health of the democracy of the country....for
him to return."
-
- However, according to Rosny Desroches, head of Haiti's
Civil Society Initiative, "His return will cause tensions, he is not
someone who will be able to speak a language to appease passions."
-
- Desroches, in fact, was a member of the infamous Group
of 184 Civil Society Organizations (G-184) and its Democratic Platform
of Civil Society Organizations and Opposition Political Parties. CIA operatives
provided aid, and America's National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and
International Republican Institute (IRI) bankrolled them. They and other
US agencies meddle often in other nations' internal affairs outrageously
and illegally.
-
- In Haiti, G-184 represented an anti-Aristide/Lavalas
alliance of business and other Haitian elites. With Washington's support,
they profited hugely by ruthless exploitation, tolerating no democratic
interference. Led by businessman Andy Apaid, it was formed specifically
against Aristide to oust him.
-
- Today, his supporters and progressive observers see brazen
political motives behind pressure against his return. Nonetheless, he plans
and deserves to come.
-
- On February 14, Aristide's counsel, Ira Kurzban, wrote
a Miami Herald op-ed headlined, "In defense of Aristide," saying:
-
- His return "is long overdue. (He's) wanted to return
ever since he was forced into exile in 2004."
-
- "There is no justification for him not to; he is
a Haitian citizen, charged with no crime; and the Haitian constitution
explicitly prohibits compulsory political exile."
-
- So does international law, discussed in a previous article,
accessed through the following link:
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- http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2011/02/aristide-given-diplomatic-passport-to.html
-
- "The ball is now in South Africa's court."
WikiLeaks released diplomatic cables showing Washington exerted enormous
pressure on South Africa to prevent his leaving.
-
- Yet American and French authorities arranged Baby Doc
Duvalier's return, a former despot never held accountable for nearly 15
years of state terror and scandalous corruption. Another previous article
explained, accessed through the following link:
-
- http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2011/01/baby-doc-in-haiti.html
-
- America is never politically neutral, nor did it ever
respect Haitian sovereignty from its 1804 liberation to today. Moreover,
local authorities were pressured "into arbitrarily allowing (anti-Aristide/Lavalas)
kompa singer Michel Martelly (a known past Duvalier supporter) to proceed
to an elections run-off against former first lady Mirlande Manigat..."
She, in fact, got 6.4% of registered votes on November 28. Martelly got
4.5%.
-
- Haitians want neither. Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas was prohibited
from participating, even though it's overwhelmingly the nation's most popular
and legitimate people's party.
-
- Round one was a sham. Round two promises more. Washington
won't tolerate Haitian democracy to maintain imperial political, economic
and social control, allowing no popular rights, equity or justice.
-
- Yet Haitian and international law let registered voters
alone "decide their own political destiny. New first-round elections,
including Fanmi Lavalas and all eligible parties this time, are the only
democratic way forward. Aristide should also be allowed to return....No
foreign power," especially America, "has the right to impede
it."
-
- On February 10, Mark Weisbrot's London Guardian article
headlined, "This time, the people of Haiti may win," saying:
-
- For over two centuries, Washington "has been the
prime cause of instability in Haiti," notably since Aristide's first
1990 election. "Now that (he's) returning, we can expect to see a
massive smear campaign against him in the mainstream media," full
of outrageous false accusations.
-
- Washington and supportive media reports will call him
corrupt, despotic, and dangerous to regional stability, even though he's
coming only a private citizen unrelated to Haitian politics. No longer
can he "be denied the right to return to his country," says Weisbrot.
-
- Hopefully, he's right saying "Washington will have
to adapt to a new reality, as it is discovering in Egypt," even though
Murarak's ouster (so far) changed nothing, nor will it unless committed
popular pressure persists for thus far unachieved democratic governance.
Wherever imperial Washington has interests, harsh realities present daunting
challenges against it. For sure, Aristide and honest observers understand.
-
- Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at
lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com
and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the
Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays
at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs
are archived for easy listening.
-
- http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/
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