[News] Haiti's Most Famous Political Prisoners Announce Hunger Strike

[News at freedomarchives.org]

Haiti's Most Famous Political Prisoners Announce Hunger Strike

By Bill Quigley, Professor of Law, Loyola University
New Orleans.  Bill is in Haiti as a volunteer attorney
with the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti,
www.ijdh.org Contact duprestars at yahoo.com Phone
in Haiti 509.401.4822

     Political prisoners Yvon Neptune, Haiti's former
Prime Minister, and Jocelerme Privert, former Minister
of the Interior, survived the massive prison revolt at the
National Penitentiary of Haiti on February 19, 2005.
The Saturday afternoon revolt began with the firing of
heavy automatic weapons at the main gate of the prison and
the sudden disappearance of all the guards.  In the
chaos one guard was killed and 490 of the 1250
prisoners left.

Ministers Neptune and  Privert were forcibly taken out
of the prison by former military people concerned for
their safety.  Once secure, they immediately called on
international authorities to guarantee them
a safe return to the prison.  They were returned to
the penitentiary by the UN authorities within hours
of the end of the revolt.

     Speaking from a cement cell with no running water, no
bathroom, and no electricity, Yvon Neptune and
Minister Privert vowed not to eat to until the
injustice and insecurity of their confinement is
addressed. Privert has been in prison since April 2004
and Neptune since June 2004 and neither has a trial
date set.

     Yvon Neptune said, "My life has been in real danger
since the elected President of our country was removed
in February of 2004.  This is the third time my life
has been put in danger in prison.  There was an
assassination plot against me in the fall confirmed by
the National Police.  Then there was the prison
massacre on December 1, 2004, in which unknown numbers
of prisoners were killed.  When the prison was
attacked this weekend, my life was again clearly and
seriously in danger.  I could easily have been killed
by people inside or outside of the prison.  Who is it
that keeps putting me in situations where I
might be killed?"

           After Neptune and Privert returned to the
prison by the UN, Haitian authorities wrongfully
reported that the two men had been captured by
national police, a charge Neptune said is a total lie
and a story repudiated by the UN.

     Neptune concluded by asking, "We have been patient
for over eight months.  We have given time for the
government and the international community to act.
Enough is enough."

*******
Forwarded by the Haitian Lawyers' Leadership Network
******

"Men anpil chay pa lou"  is Kreyol for - "Many hands make light a heavy load."

See, The Haitian Leadership Networks'  7 "Men Anpil Chay Pa Lou" campaigns 
to help restore Haiti's independence, the will of the mass electorate and 
the rule of law.
http://www.margueritelaurent.com/law/lawpress.html
*******************
Here is what you can do to help us help the people of Haiti:
**********************
HLLN - Action Requested from Haiti solidarity groups and activists for 
justice and democracy

Please circulate our mailings and posts to your mailing list and e-mail 
contacts. Subscribe or unbscribe by writing to: Erzilidanto at aol.com

Read, adopt and circulate the Haiti Resolution (see below) from the Haitian 
Lawyers Leadership Network: 
http://www.sfbayview.com/080404/haitiresolution080404.shtml  , and/or the 
Porto Alegre Declarations on Haiti adopted at the World Social Forum in 
2005: http://www.margueritelaurent.com/pressclips/declaration.html

Circulate the human rights reports, especially the latest Miami Law Center 
report
http://www.margueritelaurent.com/campaigns/campaignone/human_rights_reports/c1humanrightsreports.html

Do Press Work: Join our letter writing campaigns to help free the political 
prisoners in Haiti, stop the persecution of Haiti's most popular political 
party and restore Constitutional rule. Write a letter, call the media, fax, 
- See our Press Work page for sample letters and contact information:
http://www.margueritelaurent.com/campaigns/campaignone/presswork/pressreleases_hll.html

Volunteers to maintain and send us updated or new phone numbers and 
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Virtual interns and volunteers are needed to help us translate selected 
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extrapolate them, but need help to put it together and into the format 
pages on our website for "List of Victims" and "Personal Testimonies": See: 
http://www.margueritelaurent.com/campaigns/campaignone/campaignone.html

HLLN Networkers are urged, in addition to the general writing campaigns and 
e-mail circulations, to also consider volunteering as primary 
coordinators/contributors to one of our seven campaigns 
http://www.margueritelaurent.com/campaigns/campaigns.html

One internet savvy volunteer interested in logging and archiving, on our 
new Ezili Danto blog, (not yet unveiled) the regular Erzilidanto posts we 
send out so that those who only want to see these at their leisure or who 
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Fundraise for the work of HLLN, donate to our projects, or, better yet, 
earn money, save lives and spread meaning and value by becoming an HLLN 
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use our logo and HLLN materials to sponsor a "To Tell The Truth about Haiti 
Forum and Teach-In." 
http://www.margueritelaurent.com/DNC_2004/dnc_slideshow/DNC_2004_01.htm

Proceeds from such teach ins will go to pay the Associate and to continue 
the work of HLLN projects, such as, our partnership with AUMOHD, the young 
human rights lawyers in Haiti who are defending the defenseless poor whose 
only crime is that they voted for Lavalas, supported Constitutional rule or 
are resisting a return of the bloody U.S.-trained Haitian army and 
US-sponsored dictatorship. For information on AUMOHD, go to: 
http://www.april6vt.org/

*********
The Haiti Resolution:

1. Support the return of constitutional rule to Haiti by restoring all 
elected officials of all parties to their offices throughout the country 
until the end of their mandates and another election is held, as mandated 
by Haiti's Constitution;

2. Condemn the killings, illegal imprisonment and confiscation of the 
property of supporters of Haiti's constitutional government and insist that 
Haiti's illegitimate "interim government" immediately cease its own 
persecution and put a stop to persecution by the thugs and murderers from 
sectors in their police force, from the paramilitaries, gangs and former 
soldiers;

3. Insist on the immediate release of all political prisoners in Haitian 
jails, including Prime Minister Yvon Neptune, other constitutional 
government officials and folksinger-activist Sò Ann;

4. Insist on the disarmament of the thugs, death squad leaders and 
convicted human rights violators and their prosecution for all crimes 
committed during the attack on Haiti's elected government and help rebuild 
Haiti's police force, ensuring that it excludes anyone who helped to 
overthrow the democratically elected government or who participated in 
other human rights violations;

5. Stop the indefinite detention and automatic repatriation of Haitian 
refugees and immediately grant Temporary Protected Status to all Haitian 
refugees presently in the United States until democracy is restored to 
Haiti; and

6. Support the calls by the OAS, CARICOM and the African Union for an 
investigation into the circumstances of President Aristide's removal. 
Support the enactment of Congresswoman Barbara Lee's T.R.U.T.H Act (HR 
3919) which calls for U.S. Congressional investigation of the forcible 
removal of the democratically elected President and government of Haiti.
***************
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