Posted on 03/04/2004 5:15:25 PM PST by blam
U.S. Says Aristide Rescued From Violence
Thursday March 4, 2004 10:46 PM
By GEORGE GEDDA
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. role in helping President Jean-Bertrand Aristide leave Haiti was partly a rescue operation because it spared him ``almost certain violence'' from armed gangs opposed to him, the State Department said Thursday.
Aristide and his supporters have contended that the United States coerced his departure, consequently subverting Haiti's democratic processes.
``We did not advocate his stepping down,'' State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.
Boucher also brushed aside criticisms from the 15-nation Caribbean Community, which called for an investigation into Aristide's charges.
``It's time to look forward. It's time to focus on what we can all do for the people of Haiti,'' Boucher said.
Jamaican Prime Minister P.J. Patterson said Wednesday he was ``extremely disappointed'' that the U.N. Security Council elected not to send peacekeepers to Haiti to restore order and thereby ensure the survival of the elected government.
Boucher said the United States had no interest in sending troops to prolong Aristide's rule.
The United States is under no obligation to risk ``American blood and treasure'' on behalf of any elected hemispheric leader ``who might have misgoverned, who might have created more violence, who might have mismanaged his entire mandate,'' Boucher said.
In his remarks Wednesday, Patterson recommended a U.N. investigation in Haiti.
Boucher said the U.S. record is clear. ``There is nothing to investigate,'' he said. The administration has repeatedly said that Aristide departed voluntarily to spare his country further violence.
In response to the U.S. actions, the Caribbean Community said it does not intend to provide peacekeepers under the circumstances.
Patterson said Aristide's claim that he was forced to step down constituted a ``very dangerous precedent not only for Haiti, but also for democratically elected leaders and governments throughout the region.''
Meanwhile at the Pentagon, Brig. Gen. David Rodriguez, deputy director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said there has been a significant decline in looting and other crimes in Haiti that occurred after Aristide's departure.
He told reporters that the Haitian police are responsible for stopping criminal activities.
U.S. Marines sent to Haiti will support the police, but ``we're not there for law enforcement,'' he said. Instead, the Marines are there to protect key sites with the aim of enabling aid and, eventually, U.N. peacekeepers, to enter the country.
REALLY.. well it took long enough.. this accusation should have been vetted immediately if not sooner.. WHo ever is in control of this should be horse whipped.. Ari Fleicher would have jumped on this like white on rice..
WHos in charge of this story for the administration Tom Daschle..? an idiot no doubt.. Somebody needs to lose his or her job.. It was obvious he was removed for his own safety what took so long...?
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