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<dl><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=5><br>
</font>
<dd><font size=6>So' Anne's Letter from the Petionville
Penitentiary</b></font><font size=3> <br>
<dd> <br>
</font>
<dd><font size=5>Annette Auguste -- folksinger, grassroots activist and
political prisoner -- speaks from her prison cell <br><br>
<br>
</b></font>
</dl><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Sign the petition to free
So Anne at :
<a href="http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/263040597" eudora="autourl">
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/263040597</a> <br><br>
<img src="cid:6.2.1.2.2.20050616101404.024e5cf8@mail.freedomarchives.org.2" width=426 height=287 alt="235db8fd.jpg">
<br><br>
<br>
June 15, 2005</font> -- Haiti Information Project<br><br>
Port au Prince, Haiti (HIP) - I am Annette Auguste, who has been unjustly
imprisoned <br>
and held without charges since May 10, 2004. U.S. Marines arrested me in
a violent <br>
invasion of my home causing harm to my family. <br>
<br>
To this date there is no reason for my imprisonment other than my support
for the duly <br>
elected president of Haiti, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Although Amnesty
International has been <br>
cowardly in using the term, I am among the thousands of political
prisoners rotting away in <br>
Haitian jails today. There is no other explanation for my imprisonment as
I have never been <br>
convicted of a crime or allowed my day in court to challenge any
allegations brought against me. <br><br>
</b>From my prison cell I have learned many things. I have heard that
police<br>
have been free to kill Lavalas supporters with impunity</b> on several
occasions. <br>
<br>
I have heard that the U.N. is working with these same deadly forces, on
behalf of the <br>
backward wealthy elite of our country, to justify murder of the poor in
the popular <br>
neighborhoods that continue to demand the return of President Aristide.
<br>
</b> <br>
I am told that homes are burned and people killed as the U.N. shows its
true colors <br>
in places like Bel Air and Cite Soleil. These are our hearts in the
struggle to return our president <br>
and it is not our friends who established this climate of insecurity.
<br>
<br>
What did the U.N. expect when they allowed the police to kill with
impunity? <br>
It is now certain that police are involved in the recent insecurity and
kidnappings</b>; <br>
two of them were arrested yesterday for that. When the U.N. allowed them
to get away<br>
with murder they thought they could get away with any crime imaginable.
<br>
</b> <br>
The U.N. and the same people in the Bush administration who arrested me
are<br>
responsible for this current climate of kidnappings and insecurity
by<br>
allowing the current regime to exact its revenge against Lavalas. If<br>
the police are committing these crimes today it is because the<br>
international community allowed them to do so out of a blind
vengeance<br>
against Lavalas.</b> They established a climate where a policeman who
got<br>
away with murder of Lavalas thought afterwards why couldn't he
kidnap<br>
to put money in his pocket? Nobody held him responsible so why
not?<br><br>
</b>I now hear that the defacto Justice Minister Bernard Gousse is
resigning. He is the one <br>
who represents the Group 184 and the traditional reactionary elites of
Haiti who have denied <br>
justice in Haiti. This is a false and cosmetic move meant to distract us
away from the truth. <br>
This is a move meant to clear the way for the false elections the
international community plans for Haiti. <br>
</b> <br>
If I am not freed there are political prisoners in Haiti. If former Prime
Minister <br>
Yvon Neptune and former interior minister J. Privert are not freed there
are political<br>
prisoners in Haiti. If ALL the prisoners in Haiti who have been arrested
merely for their affiliation <br>
with Lavalas are not freed there are political prisoners in Haiti. <br>
<br>
I challenge Amnesty International and other respectable human rights
organizations <br>
to begin to use the words, "political prisoners" or otherwise
explain to the world why <br>
we are still behind bars. </b>Why am I still behind bars? Explain this to
us! Let us understand <br>
your reasoning that keeps us behind bars without ever having a fair day
in court. <br><br>
The elections they are planning to cover all of the human rights abuses
they have committed <br>
against Lavalas will not pass. They want to show to the world that the
coup of Feb. 29 was <br>
justified;</b> I call upon all democracy loving Haitians to not register
for this vote. If you must<br>
accept their bribe of a new national identity card to register then take
it. But when the day <br>
comes to vote stay home. Show them that we are a proud nation that
believes in democracy. <br>
We already voted and spent our energy on a government that represented
the majority of the<br>
poor in Haiti. We will never give in to extortion and kidnapping. We will
remain strong and <br>
resolved to return the constitutional government. When it is darkest we
will shine the light</b>. <br><br>
The international community has given us no choice by their acceptance of
human rights violations <br>
by the police and their killings in the popular neighborhoods. We have no
choice but to die or not <br>
vote in the next elections. This is all they have left us. <br><br>
I wish to thank all of those who love freedom for their support of
democracy in Haiti. We shall <br>
never forget your commitment and struggle for our people. I say to you
remain strong because <br>
lies cannot erase the truth over time. I send you my love.<br><br>
Annette Auguste<br>
Penitentiary Petion-Ville<br>
Haiti<br>
June 15, 2005 <br><br>
The Haiti Information Project (HIP) is a non-profit alternative news<br>
service providing coverage and analysis of breaking developments in<br>
Haiti.<br><br>
For more information visit:<br>
<a href="http://www.teledyol.net/HIP/about.html">
http://www.teledyol.net/HIP/about.html</a><br>
Contact: <a href="mailto:HIP@teledyol.net">HIP@teledyol.net</a><br><br>
<font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Hi Friends and members of the
Coalition to Free So Anne,<br><br>
The petition demanding the release of Haitian political prisoner So Anne
will be mailed to US, Haitian, and UN authorities early next week.
We are doing one final push to get signatures. So far we have 640
individual signatures (from 27 countries, and 37 US States) and 68
organizational signatures. Please encourage members of your groups
and others to sign this petition before next week. It has now been
over 13 months that So Anne has remained incarcerated without charges,
please help us to pressure the authorities to free So Anne.<br><br>
The petition can be found at:<br>
<a href="http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/263040597">
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/263040597</a> <br>
and the original alert is pasted below.<br><br>
Thank you so much for your hard work and solidarity!<br>
Peace, Sasha<br><br>
The countries represented on the petition so far are:<br>
</font>Korea<br>
Ecuador<br>
United States<br>
Canada<br>
Haiti<br>
Philippines<br>
Turkey<br>
Denmark<br>
Sri Lanka<br>
Australia<br>
South Africa<br>
Japan<br>
Portugal<br>
Switzerland<br>
Netherlands<br>
Argentina<br>
Belize<br>
Great Britain<br>
Trinidad<br>
Sweden<br>
Grenada<br>
Italy<br>
Saint Lucia<br>
Spain<br>
Czechoslovakia<br>
Norway<br>
Ireland<br><br>
<font size=4>Please circulate this alert widely to your respective lists
<br>
</b>for more information
<a href="http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_5_5.html" eudora="autourl">
http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_5_5.html<br>
</a></font><div align="center">
<font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=4 color="#FF00FF">--- A call to
mothers and grandmothers around the world ---<br>
Help free political prisoner Annette Auguste, So Anne, illegally
imprisoned since Mother's Day 2004<br><br>
</font></div>
<font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Annette Auguste, known as So
Anne</i>, is a 63 year old grandmother, popular Haitian singer, community
organizer and pro-democracy activist. Last Mother's Day weekend </font>US
Marines used plastic explosives to enter So Anne's house in Port au
Prince, Haiti. They came in the middle of the night in direct
violation of the Haitian constitution and arrested So Anne without a
warrant. </b>During the arrest they killed her two dogs and cuffed and
hooded all members of her family, including four minors under the age of
15. <br><br>
The Marine's initially claimed that they had received information that
she was stockpiling weapons in her home and collaborating with a local
mosque in a plan to attack US interests in Haiti. Since that time the
authorities managed to produce a back dated warrant based on bigoted
allegations of witchcraft, and unsubstantiated accusations that she
participated in violence at a demonstration on December 5, though many
witnesses can attest that she was in the recording studio at the
time.<br><br>
Although no weapons were found on the premises and despite the fact that
she has never been formally charged due to a lack of evidence against
her, she continues to be held at the Petionville Penitentiary. </b>Last
November Kofi Annan specifically called for justice in the case of So
Anne insisting that she either be charged and tried or released. To
date his words have not been heeded by the US installed government, nor
has Annan backed up his demands with concrete action. <br><br>
The truth is that So Anne, like hundreds of others, is imprisoned because
of her continued calls for a return to constitutional authority, her
outspoken criticism of the US-backed interim government, and her powerful
organizing potential. </b>So Anne's arrest came just months after the
US-sponsored overthrow of Haiti's democratically elected government amid
a wave of politically motivated arrests. <br><br>
During the past year Haiti's prisons have been filled to
overflowing. Human rights groups estimate that in the National
Penitentiary alone there are 1054 prisoners and only 9 have been tried
and convicted. Haiti's justice system has been hijacked by an interim
government intent on silencing dissent and there is no semblance of due
process for those identified as Aristide supporters. <br><br>
Here is an except from a letter that So Anne wrote soon after her
arrest:<br><br>
<font size=3 color="#FF00FF">From my cell I am given hope by the many
voices being raised against the injustice the people of Haiti are being
forced to suffer today. I am grateful to Congresswoman Maxine Waters and
countless others who have stood up in solidarity with the Haitian people,
in order to stop the bloodletting and help the outside world to know the
truth and reality we are faced with today.<br><br>
I send you all my love and gratitude for remaining strong in separating
the lies from the truth in Haiti's current situation. I send you all my
blessings as a free Haitian woman fighting for the rights of the
impoverished majority in my homeland.<br><br>
They may imprison my body but they will never imprison the truth I know
in my soul. I will continue to fight for justice and truth in Haiti until
I draw my last breath.<br><br>
- Annette Auguste, Petionville Penitentiary, Port au Prince Haiti May 23,
2004<br><br>
</i></font>The poor communities that So Anne worked with prior to her
arrest have not forgotten her courageous activism nor has one year in
prison dampened her commitment to social justice. So Anne holds regular
literacy classes in the prison, continuing her efforts to improve the
lives of those around her. And on the outside, her friends and supporters
continue to mobilize weekly for her release. On Saturday April 30,
despite tremendous repression, thousands of people marched to So Anne's
house demanding the release of all political prisoners. <br><br>
So Anne is beloved a mother and grandmother, not only to her family but
to many poor communities in Port au Prince. <br><br>
</b>Please join the Haiti Action Committee, the Institute for Justice and
Democracy in Haiti, and other labor, religious, and women's organizations
(see endorsements below) in calling for the immediate release of So Anne
and all prisoners in Haiti held solely for their political beliefs.
<br><br>
For more information on So Anne's case and the ongoing human rights
crisis in Haiti please visit the websites for the Haiti Action Committee
(<a href="http://www.haitiaction.net/">www.haitiaction.net</a>) and the
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
(<a href="http://www.ijdh.org/">www.ijdh.org</a>).
<font size=3 color="#FF00FF">If your organization is interested in
becoming part of the Coalition to Free So Anne please send an email to
sash@stanford.edu. <br><br>
</font>To take action on So Anne's behalf please sign the online petition
and call, email, write or fax the following contacts:<br><br>
Online petition:<br><br>
</b><a href="http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/263040597">
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/263040597</a> <br><br>
** please note the petition is currently addressed to Colin Powell,
Secretary of State. The petition was started in August and I am
currently unable to change the target online. We do plan to
redirect the petition to Condoleeza Rice and the Haitian
Government<br><br>
US contact: <br>
</b>Ambassador Anne Patterson<br>
Head of the US delegation on the recent UN Security Council mission to
Haiti<br><br>
US Mission to the United Nations, 8th Floor<br>
140 E. 45th Street<br>
NY, NY 10017<br>
Fax: 212-415-4053 <br><br>
* Or you can reach Ambassador Patterson by phone or email via the US
Mission, NGO Liaison, Peggy Kerry<br>
kerryp@state.gov<br>
phone: 212 415 4054<br>
<br>
Haitian Government contact:</b> <br>
Mme Adeline Magloire Chancy <br>
Minister for Women's Rights <br>
phone: 011-509-249-5912<br><br>
Alternatively, and perhaps more successfully given the difficulties with
phone communication in Haiti you can direct your phone calls, letters and
email to the Haitian Embassy in Washington, DC<br>
Ambassador Raymond Joseph<br><br>
Embassy of the Republic of Haiti<br>
2311 Massachusetts Ave, N.W.<br>
Washington, D.C. 20008<br>
phone: 202-332-4090<br>
fax: 202-745-7215<br>
embassy@haiti.org<br><br>
MINUSTAH (UN) contacts: </b>please send emails </b>to all of the
following addresses <br><br>
</b>Gender issues: Nadine Puechguirbal
(<a href="mailto:puechguirbal@un.org">puechguirbal@un.org</a> )<br>
Human rights: Mahamane Cissé-Gouro
(<a href="mailto:cisse-gouro@un.org">cisse-gouro@un.org</a>) <br>
<x-tab> </x-tab><x-tab>
</x-tab>Thierry Fagart
(<a href="mailto:fagart@un.org">fagart@un.org</a> ) fax:
509-244-9366/7<br><br>
Or send letters to any MINUSTAH contacts at:<br><br>
MINUSTAH<br>
385, Ave. John Brown<br>
Bourdon<br>
Boîte Postale 557<br>
Port-au-Prince<br><br>
You can also support So Anne's legal defense fund by purchasing a copy of
her newest CD</b> at</b>
<a href="http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_5_5.html" eudora="autourl">
http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_5_5.html<br><br>
</a><font size=5>REZISTANS: Haitian Songs of Resistance<br><br>
</font><font size=4>Coalition to Free So Anne:</b></font><font size=3>
<br><br>
1. Haiti Action Committee, CA<br><br>
2. Institute for Justice and Democracy in
Haiti, OR <br><br>
3. Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network, CT
<br><br>
4. Marin Interfaith Taskforce on the
Americas, CA <br><br>
5. Code Pink Women for Peace Hayward,
CA<br><br>
6. SF Women in Black, CA<br><br>
7. Haiti Justice Committee, MN<br><br>
8. Malcolm X Grassroots Movement,
CA<br><br>
9. Peninsula Peace and Justice Center,
CA<br><br>
10. Jewish Voice for Peace, CA<br><br>
11. Justice for Palestinians, CA<br><br>
12. Sacramento Coalition for Democracy in Haiti, CA<br><br>
13. Fondasyon Mapou, D.C.<br><br>
14. East Bay Sanctuary Covenant Haiti Committee, CA<br><br>
15. International Socialist Organization, CA<br><br>
16. Campus Peace Action California State University Sacramento,
CA<br><br>
17. St. Joan of Arc Haiti Committee, MN<br><br>
18. Peace No War Network<br><br>
19. Progressive Democrats of America Sacramento Chapter,
CA<br><br>
20. San Francisco Bayview Newspaper, CA<br><br>
21. Vancouver Latin America-Caribbean Solidarity Committee,
Canada<br><br>
22. Haiti Solidarity, B.C, Canada<br><br>
23. Interfaith Women for Peace, CA<br><br>
24. Fanm Lakay, NY<br><br>
25. Konbit Ayisian Kakola, NY<br><br>
26. Veye Yo, FL<br><br>
27. Fanm Veye Yo, FL<br><br>
28. SEIU 715 African American Caucus, CA<br><br>
29. Lake County Amnesty International, CA<br><br>
30. Welfare Poets, NY<br><br>
31. Out of Control Lesbian Committee to Support Political
Prisoners, CA<br><br>
32. Cape Codders for Peace and Justice, MA<br><br>
33. April6Vt Citizens Lobby, VT<br><br>
34. Nicaragua Center for Community Action, CA<br><br>
35. Ecumenical Program on Central America and the
Caribbean<br><br>
36. Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, DC<br><br>
37. Haiti Solidarity Committee, FL <br><br>
38. Quixote Center/Haiti Reborn, MD<br><br>
39. Santa Cruz Bolivarian Circle, CA<br><br>
40. Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 3903 - International
Solidarity <br>
Working Group, Canada<br><br>
41. UCSC Cuba Study Group, CA<br><br>
42. Global Womens Strike, International<br><br>
43. Code Pink Bay Area, CA<br><br>
44. Code Pink Portland, OR<br><br>
45. Turnwind Peace and Justice, AZ<br><br>
46. Gabriela Network Bay Area, CA<br><br>
47. Comité québécois pour la reconnaissance des droits des
travailleurs haïtiens en République dominicaine, Canada<br><br>
48. Global Exchange<br><br>
49. CESAPI Coalition in Solidarity with the People of Iraq,
Canada<br><br>
50. ActionLA Americas Watch, CA<br><br>
51. Haiti Support Network (HSN), NY<br><br>
52. South Bay Labor for Peace and Justice, CA <br><br>
53. San Franciscans for Our City's Health, CA<br><br>
54. Gwoup pou defans de pwizonye politik, Haiti<br><br>
55. Womens Fightback Network<br><br>
56. International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia
Abu-Jamal<br><br>
57. No One is Illegal Vancouver, Canada <br><br>
58. Portland Peaceful Response Coalition, OR<br><br>
59. East Timor Action Network- Madison, WI<br><br>
60. Women for Peace-Madison, WI<br><br>
61. TransAfrica Forum, International<br><br>
62. Faculty For Peace and Justice, CSUS<br><br>
63. Mourning Mothers, CA<br><br>
64. Grandmothers For Peace, International<br><br>
65. KAKOLA, NY<br><br>
66. National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America
(N'COBRA), CA<br><br>
67. Foundations for Our Nu Afrikan Millennium (FONAMI), CA<br><br>
68. African Initiative of American Friends Service Committee
(AFSC), Pacific Mountain Region<br><br>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<br><br>
</font><x-sigsep><p></x-sigsep>
<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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