Haitians taking justice into own hands

AP ^ | Mar 5, 2004

[george wythe]

It took an armed posse five days to track down Ti Roro. Once they did, Roro was beaten with sticks, taken to the morgue to identify his alleged victims, ringed with gasoline-soaked tires and burned alive.

With no police, no courts and no law, communities are taking justice into their own hands, hunting down former militants of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide who they say made their lives a living hell.

"It took him more than an hour to die, but as he was burning, he admitted to all of the 15 people he killed in the last year," said Joubert Muraille, 41, who witnessed Wednesday's killing but said he did not participate. "He deserved it 1,000 times."

This small colonial city 40 miles west of the capital has been bitterly divided since Aristide won his second election victory in 2000 and pro-government militias began terrorizing opposition members.

The climate changed quickly, though, when Aristide fled Sunday. Police vanished, government officials fled, court offices bolted shut and pro-Aristide militias went on the run from armed posses stepping in as ragtag sheriffs.

The posses are responsible only for rounding up the Aristide militants. They say they don't kill anyone.

That's left to the mercy of the population.

Roland Lysias said it was Ti Roro who killed his 21-year-old son, Junior, two months ago because he had been a known member of an opposition group. He said Roro cut off his son's feet, severed his hands, gouged out his eyeballs and set him ablaze.

Lysias said he didn't take part in Roro's killing, but asked the community for justice.

"We had to treat evil with evil," said Lysias, 72, his face withered, hands shaking. "If there was another way to bring about justice, I would accept that. But right now there is no other way. This is the only justice we can find right now."

Witnesses to the killing said the crowd cheered as Roro was set afire. After he was dead, family members of alleged victims threw rocks at his charred corpse. The town's residents quickly buried the body across the street from the hospital, next to a heap of foul trash.

[FITZ]

Maybe we or some country should take over only half of Haiti --- tell them they get our kind of rule if they choose to live in the half we took, and they can do their self-rule in the other half --- but our rule would have to be pretty firm and strict --- all kids in schools, no drugs, Voodoo mind control is out, both parents support their children. I'm not sure it could be the USA because we're too politically correct and liberal ourselves.

[cyborg]

Make it like Samoa and American Samoa. Throw out the voodoo trashy religion which is really at the core of a lot of Haitis issues. I don't see it happening because the libs will go in there like a flood make it a fine mess as they are accustomed to. If I was rich as in Bill Gates, I'd buy half and make it a resort country like Cancun.

[wardaddy]

Nice vernacular post. Mimics my own 6 years of experience there from 88-94.

I would offer though that life in Peitionville and Kenscoff is decent if you have the money and protection.

Wouldn't want to raise children there though and took my ex-wife once and she bugged out and would not return.

[cyborg]

Why did your ex wig out? *LOL*

[tet68]

Politically incorrect? How about this.

What Democrat mobs are good at is sensing if their opponents are weak, lack resolve or unable to hurt them. If so they go into a feeding Frenzy. But wade into a mob of angry Democrats and grab the leader by the throat and drag him out maybe with a beating to go with it, and they become very docile.

I'm still looking for a Republican with enough balls to give them that beating. (In a political sense I assure you.)
I think GW is that man but I'm still waiting for it to happen.

Disclaimer.
No Democrats were harmed during the typing of this post.

[sociotard]

Literaly you can see the exact border between Haiti and Dom Rep becasue there are almost no trees in Haiti, it's been clear cut to make charcoal which is what most people do to make a few bucks.

Well, more or less. Bear in mind, there is a rain shadow effect, as prevailing winds pass over the cordilla central, so that needs to be taken into acount. But yes, it is an envirnmental nightmare.

[wardaddy]

She was wigged congenitally but we did get stopped at a roadblock at San Marc one night by some drunken soldiers with their AR-15 knockoffs in one hand and Barbancourt rum in the other....and they thought she was mighty purty.

Thankfully, I knew the local warlord-strongman so they backed off after a 20.00 tip.

She was terrified and caught first plane home the next morning.

[cyborg]

You really DO know everyone! Why don't you write a book?