April 17, 2008 at 05:39:38

Peter Hallward's "Damming the Flood" - Part II

SAVE AS FAVORITE

VIEW FAVORITES

By Stephen Lendman (about the author) Page 3 of 9 page(s)

opednews.com Permalink

In Gonaives, however, on February 5, 2004, an "alliance of criminals, death-squadders and former soldiers" (called the Cannibal Army) launched the final operation (in the words of one rebel leader) to "liberate Haiti from the dictator Aristide:"

-- they overwhelmed the Gonaives police force in a three hour gun battle;

-- burned the station and released about 100 inmates;

-- torched homes of the mayor and other FL officials;

-- took a new name - the Revolutionary Artibonite Resistance Front;

-- on February 7, they undertook their most important engagement - ambushing an inept police counterattack, killing seven officers;

-- they now had total control of the city, took Hinche (in central Haiti) on February 16 and Cap-Haitien (in the northeast) on February 22.

The CD and dominant media trumpeted Haiti's impending liberation and created myths about why it approached - the Aristide dictatorship, criminal gangs portrayed as liberators, the CD never inciting violence, and Haiti's elites determined to achieve a "political" and "democratic" solution. Of course, these claims were lies with victims called oppressors and dark forces portrayed as liberating ones. All the while, however, the insurgency didn't proceed smoothly.

Despite their resources and backing, aside from Gonaives, Hinche and some Central Plateau villages, rebels were challenged by a resilient and well-organized resistance. Almost every time, an alliance of police and pro-FL activists sent the aggressors packing. On February 9, Lavalassians regained control almost everywhere. On February 10, rebels retreated to their Gonaives stronghold. Across the Central Plateau, Haitians recognized them as the return of the hated army.

Then later in February, well-armed insurgents "steamroller(ed) their way quite easily across most of northern Haiti." The government, in turn, concentrated on defending Port-au-Prince, and Aristide still hoped for a negotiated solution. It was wishful thinking.

As events unfolded, Aristide's retreat and refusal to issue a national call to arms sealed his fate. Rebels cut off the road from the capital to Cap-Haitien, halted food convoys to the north, fuel ran out in the city, electricity failed, hospitals closed, and conditions became desperate. Things were heading for a showdown, and by late February only Lavalas partisans could be trusted to protect the government. At the same time, pressure was building for Aristide to resign, but he persisted in seeking a negotiated solution.

In mid-January, he agreed to CARICOM's proposal to accept an opposition prime minister, hold new elections, take further measures to disarm his supporters, and reform the police. The opposition ignored him, and the effort fell flat. It was followed by a February 21 Roger Noreiga proposal in his role as the ruthlessly duplicitous regional Assistant Secretary of State. It gave everything to the opposition and called for Aristide's unconditional surrender. Even so, to quell violence, Aristide accepted it, yet even that conciliatory gesture was rejected.

The whole process was a charade, and Noriega revealed it by canceling final negotiations and ending any chance for settlement short of an Aristide resignation. The French were quite happy to go along and for good reason.

It stemmed from a 2003 Aristide call for France to repay the massive sum it extorted in 1825 compounded by a modest amount of annual interest. But at 5% up to 2003, it amounted to $21 billion dollars and clearly rankled the Chirac government. By September 2003, members of its embassy had a full-time anti-Aristide job, and except for the US, no other country so enthusiastically wanted him out.

By fall 2003, France rejected Aristide's request and called it based on "hallucinatory accounting." The French Socialist Party agreed, denounced the Aristide "dictatorship" and called for his resignation. After that, Aristide was too preoccupied with his survival to press the issue, and post-coup in April, his successor Latortue called the claim "illegal, ridiculous and was only made for political reasons. The matter is closed." More on this (made-in-USA) appointee below.

In the meantime on February 20, Colin Powell said the US wouldn't "object if Aristide agreed to leave office early." US Ambassador Carney called Aristide "toast," and Haiti's President told CNN on February 26 that an international community token gesture would have stopped the insurgency in its tracks. A single call from Powell would have done it. However, on February 25, the Franco-US alliance blocked the last-ditch CARICOM Security Council proposal to save the government. Then on February 28 (hours before the coup), the White House press secretary blamed Aristide for "the deep polarization and violent unrest....in Haiti." It was about to come to a head at the hands of US troops.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

I am a 72 year old, retired, progressive small businessman concerned about all the major national and world issues, committed to speak out and write about them.

The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author
and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.

Contact Author

Contact Editor

View Authors' Articles

Book Recommendations for "France Independent"

The Independent Walker's Guide to France: 35 Extraordinary Walks in 16 of France's Finest Regions (The Independent Walker Series)
by Frank Booth

$14.95
Lowest New Price $9.72
Number of pages: 206
Publisher: Interlink Publishing Group

Independent Study for Gifted Learners (Practical Strategies Series in Gifted Education)
by Susan K. Johnsen

$12.95
Lowest New Price $7.15
Number of pages: 112
Publisher: Prufrock Press