[News] Haiti news: Tens of thousands of supporters of Lavalas demonstrate

[claude]

AHP News - December 26, 2003 - English translation (Unofficial)




------------------------------------------------------------------------


Tens of thousands of supporters of Lavalas demonstrate in favor of respect 
for the Constitution; several thousand members of the Group of 184 
demonstrate to call for the ouster of the authorities
------------------------------------------------------------------------



Port-au-Prince, December 26, 2003 -(AHP)- Several tens of thousands of 
supporters of Fanmi Lavalas demonstrated Friday to call for respect for the 
full term in office for President Jean Bertrand Aristide as provided under 
the Constitution and to ask the political parties of the Group of 184 to 
take part in elections if they wish to hold power.

Setting forth from outside the Eglise du Perpétuel Secours church in Bel 
Air, the demonstration gained strength the length of its route, the crowd 
chanting slogans and singing patriotic songs punctuated by prayers, and 
asking Haitians to unite to celebrate the bicentennial of national 
independence.

They appealed to the new leader of the opposition, André Apaid, to end what 
they called the funding of the campaign of destabilization that can only 
slow down the country's development. They also asked students who are part 
of the political coalition of the 184 to join the ranks of the population 
despite the ephemeral privileges they are enjoying today.

The demonstrators paused in front of several foreign embassies including 
the U.S. and French Embassies to ask that Haiti be given "a chance".

" Do not become accomplices of those who are bent on upheaval and 
violence", chanted the demonstrators outside the U.S. Embassy.

In front of the French Embassy, they denounced the "paying of funds to 
sabotage the celebration of the bicentennial of Haiti's independence".

The Haitian authorities are asking France to pay restitution in the amount 
of $21 billion in return for the massive double debt of independence 
imposed upon Haiti by France, including 90 million gold francs paid to 
France beginning under Haiti's President Boyer, pursuant to France's 1825 
ultimatum, which was the price for recognition of Haiti's independence 
after Haiti had suffered the brutal acts of the colonial period.

Several government officials, many students, members of civil society, 
officials of Fanmi Lavalas and members of Parliament took part in the 
demonstration alongside tens of thousands of supporters of the party in power.

Deputy Rudy Hérivaux said that this demonstration is tangible evidence that 
the population is disposed to compel the Coalition of 184 to respect the 
Constitution.

The opposition has the right to demonstrate, but it has no right to call 
for the trampling of the Constitution of 1987 and to engage in acts of 
violence in an effort to oust a democratically elected president.

Two Lavalas activists were killed on December 22 during a demonstration by 
the Group of 184.

Several other members of Parliament said that the Haitian people will never 
fall to its knees before those they call the neo-colonists who they say 
wish to maintain the population in a state of misery.

The demonstrators said that the majority will be in front of the National 
Palace every day to keep an eye out for any attempted coups. It will also 
be in front of the National Palace and in Gonaïves on January 1st, 2004, to 
celebrate.

At the same time, several thousand supporters of the opposition along with 
students demonstrated Friday in Port-au-Prince to call again for the ouster 
of the elected government.

Some other sources, including AP, estimated that the demonstrators from the 
Group of 184 only numbered several hundred on Friday.

The demonstration set forth from Place Boyer in Pétion-Ville and ended at 
the Place Jérémie, after having passed through a large part of the capital.

The police provided a high degree of security for demonstrators, who on 
this occasion adhered to the route they had submitted to the police.

Several political leaders including André Apaid, Paul Denis and Micha 
Gaillard took part in the anti-government demonstration.



AHP December 26, 2003  3:45 PM

The Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 863-9977
www.freedomarchives.org 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://freedomarchives.org/pipermail/news_freedomarchives.org/attachments/20031228/098d60b1/attachment.htm>