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Dear Friends,<br>
<br>
HAC is pleased to announce the publication of<i><u> We Will Not Forget:
The Achievements of Lavalas in Haiti</u></i> on this first anniversary of
the U.S.-led coup in Haiti. The full version is available on-line
at
<a href="http://www.haitiaciton.net/"><b><i>www.haitiaciton.net</a></i></b>.
We also have beautiful, hard-copy pamphlets available for purchase.
(See order information below.) Please help us distribute this
booklet widely -- it's important that as many people read this booklet as
possible.<br>
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<br>
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<br>
Feb. 28, 2005<br>
Contact: Laura Flynn 612-202-0356<br>
Robert Roth 415 297-7869.<br><br>
New Pamphlet Explains Why Haitians Still Call for Aristideís
Return<br><br>
While a US-led disinformation campaign has sought to demonize
Haiti's<br>
elected president, a pamphlet released today shows that, despite
huge<br>
impediments, President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and his Lavalas
movement<br>
were able to build schools, increase literacy, fight AIDS, increase
the<br>
minimum wage and more, before being forced from power by the United<br>
States.<br><br>
A year after the Feb. 29, 2004 coup, the Haitian people continue to<br>
demand the restoration of democracy. Braving police gunfire,
wholesale<br>
arrests and beatings, they are taking to the streets holding up
their<br>
five fingers, signifying their determination that Aristide complete
his<br>
five-year term. This past weekend in Cap Haitien thousands of
people<br>
demonstrated to protest the coup. In Port-au-Prince the
police<br>
unleashed a wave of terror in the poorest neighborhoods, which left<br>
scores of people dead. Despite the violence, pro-democracy
organizers<br>
have vowed to take to the streets again today to mark the anniversary.
<br><br>
Why do Haitians insist on Aristide's return? Why have they
been so<br>
resolute in their opposition to the coup and the subsequent
U.S./U.N.<br>
occupation? Answering these questions requires a close look at
Haitiís<br>
democracy dividend, the result of nine years of constitutional,
elected<br>
government.<br><br>
We Will Not Forget: The Achievements of Lavalas in Haiti, a<br>
meticulously-researched 16-page pamphlet from the Haiti Action<br>
Committee, highlights the most significant Lavalas accomplishments
in<br>
healthcare, education, and economic justice. According to We Will
Not<br>
Forget authors Laura Flynn and Robert Roth, the Aristide government
was<br>
able to solidify these gains, despite the fact that the
international<br>
community embargoed economic aid to Haiti from 2000-2003.<br><br>
"Lavalas was bringing health and education - breaking down
Haiti's<br>
socio-economic exclusion of the majority. We weren't there yet, but<br>
these accomplishments represented a huge step forward in
guaranteeing<br>
the full participation of the poor majority in the social, economic
and<br>
political life of the nation." said Pierre Labossiere, of the
Haiti<br>
Action Committee. <br><br>
Since last Februaryís coup, most of these advances have been<br>
reversed.<br><br>
We Will Not Forget provides a context for understanding the social
and<br>
economic dynamics behind the coup d'etat, demonstrating that
Aristide<br>
was overthrown not because he failed to change Haiti, but precisely<br>
because profound transformation was underway.<br><br>
We Will Not Forget is being published on the anniversary of the<br>
overthrow of Aristide. It underscores the stark reality that the
U.S.<br>
(with Canada and France) substituted a popular democracy that was<br>
making substantial gains, for the chaotic, violent, corrupt,<br>
U.S.-appointed government in Haiti today.<br><br>
The pamphlet is a project of the Haiti Action Committee. Print
copies<br>
are available for $2 per copy ($1 for orders of 25 or more)
including<br>
shipping at HAC, PO Box 2218, Berkeley, CA 94702; the full text can
be<br>
downloaded at
<a href="http://www.haitiaction.net/" eudora="autourl">www.HaitiAction.net<br><br>
</a>Laura Flynn and Robert Roth are available for interviews.<br><br>
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<font size=3 color="#FF0000">The Freedom Archives<br>
522 Valencia Street<br>
San Francisco, CA 94110<br>
(415) 863-9977<br>
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