Aristide leaves haiti

[siceone]

Rebels Threatened to Attack Capital Unless Leader Resigned

By TIM WEINER and LYDIA POLGREEN

Published: February 29, 2004

ORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Feb. 29 — President Jean-Bertrand Aristide left Haiti at dawn today, resigning under intense pressure from the United States, according to Haitian and American officials.

Mr. Aristide was the first democratically elected president in Haiti's 200 years of independence, following a long line of dictators, despots and military men. His presidency crumbled as armed rebels seized Haiti's north this month and Bush administration officials announced an "Aristide must go" stance this weekend.

The rebels, led by veterans of Haiti's army, disbanded by Mr. Aristide, had threatened to attack the capital unless the president left power.

Mr. Aristide flew from Haiti on a small jet that left Port-au-Prince about 6:45 a.m, according to a United States official here. There were conflicting reports on where Mr. Aristide was headed.

The chief justice of the Supreme Court, Boniface Alexandre, was sworn in as the head of a transitional government until elections in 2005.

"The task will not be an easy one," Mr. Alexandre said at a news conference. "Haiti is in crisis."

He added that the country "needs all its sons and daughters. No one should take justice into their own hands."

In the wake of Mr. Aristide's departure, gunfire was heard in the capital and smoke was seen rising from the city center.

Mr. Aristide was a radical Catholic priest when he rose to prominence in the 1980's as an opponent of military rule and political dictatorship in Haiti. He was expelled from his order for his politics in 1988 and became the leader of a political coalition seeking democracy. Elected president overwhelmingly in 1990, he was overthrown in a violent military coup in 1991 and fled into exile, first to Venezuela, then the United States.

He was returned to power in 1994 by a military invasion led by the United States. Haiti's constitution barred him from succeeding himself as president, but he won a second five-year term in 2000. Over the next three years, his power eroded as political corruption in his government and political anger in the street grew out of control.

Many of his former supporters became his sworn enemies. An armed rebellion erupted in Haiti's north on Feb. 5, and several hundred of the rebels quickly seized half the nation and threatened to storm the capital, sparking fear and havoc.

Roughly 100 Haitians have been killed in battles among rebels, police and Aristide supporters this month. Hundreds more have tried to flee in boats bound for Florida; most have been intercepted by the United States Coast Guard and shipped back to Haiti.

Mr. Aristide's fall was sudden. Barely 32 hours before he left, in his last address to the nation as president, he said, "I will be at my desk on Monday."

American policy toward Mr. Aristide shifted swiftly, too.

In July, Brian Dean Curran, then the United States ambassador here, said, "The United States accepts President Aristide as the constitutional president of Haiti for his term of office ending in 2006."

The Bush administration decided in the past three days, as a senior administration official said Saturday, that "Aristide must go," regardless of his constitutional authority. That message was communicated directly to Mr. Aristide hours before he left this morning. France, Haiti's colonial occupier, also called for the president to step down.

In a statement issued Saturday night and authorized by President Bush, the White House blamed Mr. Aristide for "the deep polarization and violent unrest that we are witnessing in Haiti today."

His departure enables a proposed international peacekeeping force to land in Port-au-Prince, secure the capital and enable desperately needed food and economic assistance to flow to Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere.

That force would try to stabilize Haiti — a task that could take years — and prevent a fresh flood of desperate refugees trying to reach Florida.

Luigi Einaudi, assistant secretary general of the Organization of American States and the group's point man on Haiti, who met often with Mr. Aristide and his opponents, trying to resolve Haiti's deepening political crisis, said in a telephone interview this morning that Mr. Aristide "did what he felt was right for his country, which is in a very polarized state."

"I hope that a succession can be handled constitutionally and peacefully, without excessive turmoil," Mr. Einaudi said. "I'm very concerned that the situation has so already undermined any state authority that things will be difficult in Haiti for a long time."

Robert Fatton Jr., a native of Haiti and chairman of the politics department at the University of Virginia, agreed.

"There are no functioning institutions in Haiti," he said. "Things could very easily unravel. I think we are in for a long crisis. You are going to have a hellish situation without an international peacekeeping force. The armed gangs could go wild. It looks to be a vacuum of power in the short term and that's very dangerous, if there is no center and the country cannot hold."

[livin42nite]

The devil in this guy just never goes away does it. Follow the news, he just accused bush's administration of kidnapping him and forcing him to resign. Right now in Haiti, there is celebration in the streets for haiti being free from his terror rule and this guy makes up some bs to cause division again again in haiti and have his armed supporters go crazy. On top of that he is trying to screw bush over and have the american people hate their president. Man to think we had to live with the devil for so long in haiti.

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by livin42nite

The devil in this guy just never goes away does it. Follow the news, he just accused bush's administration of kidnapping him and forcing him to resign. Right now in Haiti, there is celebration in the streets for haiti being free from his terror rule and this guy makes up some bs to cause division again again in haiti and have his armed supporters go crazy. On top of that he is trying to screw bush over and have the american people hate their president. Man to think we had to live with the devil for so long in haiti.

Take it easy. We completed the coup d'etat by removing him. That's a fact. He didn't leave. The US could have intervened so that the two time democractically elected president would not be overthrown by rebels, when if fact the US assisted this coup. Get your facts straight.

[livin42nite]

Got my facts all straight, not gonna get in this argument with you but lived this situation. I'm haitian, live in haiti half the year and the rest of the time in miami. Aristide needed to go and the americans thank god they are good people and helped convince aristide to finally give in for the good of his people.

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

Take it easy. We completed the coup d'etat by removing him. That's a fact. He didn't leave. The US could have intervened so that the two time democractically elected president would not be overthrown by rebels, when if fact the US assisted this coup. Get your facts straight.

bro..the guy is Haitian...i think he knows whats up:tongue:

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by livin42nite

Got my facts all straight, not gonna get in this argument with you but lived this situation. I'm haitian, live in haiti half the year and the rest of the time in miami. Aristide needed to go and the americans thank god they are good people and helped convince aristide to finally give in for the good of his people.

Ok, you're from Haiti. How do you feel about the World Bank not cancelling debt and not approving badly needed loans for more development?

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by mrmatas2277

bro..the guy is Haitian...i think he knows whats up:tongue:

I don't think it has anything to do with being haitian. The US didn't convince Aristide to leave. We forced him. By definition that's a coup.

[howardstone]

Originally posted by siceone

Rebels Threatened to Attack Capital Unless Leader Resigned

By TIM WEINER and LYDIA POLGREEN

Published: February 29, 2004

ORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Feb. 29 — President Jean-Bertrand Aristide left Haiti at dawn today, resigning under intense pressure from the United States, according to Haitian and American officials.

PUSSY

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

I don't think it has anything to do with being haitian. The US didn't convince Aristide to leave. We forced him. By definition that's a coup.

and the French and others had nothing to do about it? please...this is why i think the US should go back to "isolationism"...that way we cant be blamed for anything, but i am sure we would some how...

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

I don't think it has anything to do with being haitian. The US didn't convince Aristide to leave. We forced him. By definition that's a coup.

Was it the right thing to do?

[livin42nite]

Originally posted by mr mahs

Was it the right thing to do?

Thank god it was done, here are a couple of threads I had on here from the past that are a long read but u might learn or thing or two same as the rest on the board. The democrats and the black caucus are trying to make it look like aristide is a victim and was overthrown but this is a criminal that was convinced to finally resign. The bush administration did not act late, aristide did. SHould have resigned before.

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=193423

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=204219

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=205157

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=213689

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by livin42nite

Thank god it was done, here are a couple of threads I had on here from the past that are a long read but u might learn or thing or two same as the rest on the board. The democrats and the black caucus are trying to make it look like aristide is a victim and was overthrown but this is a criminal that was convinced to finally resign. The bush administration did not act late, aristide did. SHould have resigned before.

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=193423

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=204219

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=205157

http://bbs.clubplanet.com/showthread.php?threadid=213689

No need to explain I feel it was good thing to do to save lives just wondering what the resident idiot thought....

[livin42nite]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

Ok, you're from Haiti. How do you feel about the World Bank not cancelling debt and not approving badly needed loans for more development?

They knew aristide was putting that money into his pockets as well as his drug money. He was using that money to stay in power, enrich his own life while the poor got poorer, and to arm supporters of his that killed innocent lives for him.

[igloo]

Originally posted by mr mahs

just wondering what the resident idiot thought....

Resident idiot, so true...

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by livin42nite

They knew aristide was putting that money into his pockets as well as his drug money. He was using that money to stay in power, enrich his own life while the poor got poorer, and to arm supporters of his that killed innocent lives for him.

the man was an animal...he has ZERO sympathy from me...

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by livin42nite

They knew aristide was putting that money into his pockets as well as his drug money. He was using that money to stay in power, enrich his own life while the poor got poorer, and to arm supporters of his that killed innocent lives for him.

So it is your belief that all peaceful methods of censure were exhausted in removing Aristide?

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

So it is your belief that all peaceful methods of censure were exhausted in removing Aristide?

Who cares he had to go!

[bigpoppanils]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

I don't think it has anything to do with being haitian. The US didn't convince Aristide to leave. We forced him. By definition that's a coup.

it was a coup, but it was not US-sponsored. The US only sent in troops for peecekeeping. The US did not take over.

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by bigpoppanils

it was a coup, but it was not US-sponsored. The US only sent in troops for peecekeeping. The US did not take over.

US troops 'made Aristide leave'

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,8833298%255E1702,00.html

President Aristide says, 'I was kidnapped' 'Tell the world it is a coup'

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/03/01/1521216

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by jamiroguy1

President Aristide says, 'I was kidnapped' 'Tell the world it is a coup'

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/03/01/1521216

not for nothing...but would u believe Aristide? i dont believe Castro and i dont believe Aristide...

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by mrmatas2277

not for nothing...but would u believe Aristide? i dont believe Castro and i dont believe Aristide...

Good point.

Administration Denies Aristide Kidnapped

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=589&u=/ap/20040301/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/us_haiti_18&printer=1

[pattbateman]

this is fuckin insane

remember that one fuck a couple months ago that was posting all that aristide shit??? and all you fucks were like ' yeah man hope he gets takin care of' yadda yadda yadda....

you know what? yeah, haiti was next on our republican secret list of countries we are takin over

next is england....simons beware!

[livin42nite]

I was that one fuck pattbateman.

Aristide is a crazy lunatic, since the early 90's the cia reported that but clinton had him sent back since he was still the popular leader in Haiti. Back then it was a coup d'etat as the people wanted him and he was forced out. This time around story is completely different and Aristide being the loony he is, now is trying to cause complete chaos in Haiti and trying to cause division in the United States. You anti-bush people I suggest you don't jump on this one to make bush look bad cause it will slap you in the face as the truth will come out im sure and you'll realize that in the end the bush administration did a great job in haiti and did not have a violent coup where they 'kidnapped" aristide.

[pattbateman]

exactly,

this man called this coup months ago

he can see the future!!!

[cintron]

Aristide naturally has to say he was kidnapped or forced at gunpoint to leave, else he loses face in front of the world.

If he admitted to turning tail and running, the future might even be more grim for him wherever he ends up running to.

hell, if one of my neighbors here decided he wanted to skip town and he was well known for being a dickhead even though i'd stuck up for him in the past, you can bet i'd donate 20 bucks for the moving truck to expidite his departure...

and hence, the US gave Aristide a jet...