25354: Hermantin(news)U.S. official: Troops must be proactive (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>


Posted on Fri, Jun. 10, 2005


HAITI
U.S. official: Troops must be proactive
The U.N. Mission in Haiti must be more aggressive to stop violence, a top U.S. 
official said on a visit. Many Haitians derisively call the peacekeepers `Blue 
Helmets on vacation.'
BY CHANTAL REGNAULT AND JOE MOZINGO
jmozingo@herald.com

PORT-AU-PRINCE - The State Department's top official for the Americas Thursday 
urged U.N. peacekeepers in Haiti to be more ''proactive'' in squelching ''a 
coordinated campaign of criminality''' that is undermining efforts to restore 
peace to this troubled Caribbean nation.

Speaking at the airport at the end of an overnight visit, Deputy Assistant 
Secretary of State Roger Noriega said it was critical that the 7,400-member 
U.N. Mission secure the country for elections scheduled for the fall.

''The U.N. forces are here to create a sense of order,'' Noriega said. ``That 
is not possible if they are not more proactive.

''The rights of the vast majority of the Haitian people are being violated by 
the ones who spread violence . . . It's a deadly destabilization plan,'' 
Noriega said at a news conference.

TOO PASSIVE

Noriega's comments echoed the sentiments of many Haitians who see the 
peacekeepers as too passive in the face of an onslaught of kidnappings, 
carjackings and shootouts. Many derisively call the troops ``Blue Helmets on 
vacation.''

Noriega declined to answer a question about whether Washington planned to send 
U.S. troops to Haiti to bolster the U.N. Mission, known by its French acronym 
of MINUSTAH, as some Haitian leaders have requested.

''Of course, we would never comment on security plans that we would be 
considering,'' he said, adding that the mission must take ``necessary measures 
to meet its mandate.''

The U.N. troops arrived in June 2004 -- replacing a three-month deployment of 
U.S. Marines -- to restore order following the ouster of President 
Jean-Bertrand Aristide during an armed revolt in February.

Supporters of Aristide depict the international troops as an occupying force 
doing the bidding of an anti-Aristide transitional government.

In the capital's slums, pro-Aristide gangs are fighting the U.N. peacekeepers 
with automatic and semiautomatic weapons.

ACROSS THE BOARD

But a recent report by the International Crisis Group, an independent group 
based in Brussels, says there are all types of people seeding unrest in Haiti, 
from drug traffickers and ordinary criminals to wealthy families and Aristide 
political opponents who fear his Lavalas Family Party might sweep the upcoming 
elections.

Noriega was joined at the news conference by U.S. Ambassador James B. Foley as 
well as top Canadian and French diplomats. The group said it was committed to 
holding elections on time to ensure that a new, democratic government is in 
place by February.

''We are here together to send a strong message: We want the elections to take 
place in time,'' said Denis Coderre, special advisor to Canadian Prime Minister 
Paul Martin.

Daniel Parfait, a French special envoy to Haiti, said social programs were 
desperately needed in the slums where much of the unrest is centered.

''Elections will not change everything,'' he said, ``but nothing can change 
without elections.''

Herald staff writer Joe Mozingo reported from Miami, and special correspondent 
Chantal Regnault reported from Port-au-Prince.