An NCHR representative wrote:Since 1 March NCHR has been solicited by a significant number of individuals associated with the Lavalas, who have now become the object of violence and retaliation.
As always, NCHR listens and documents their cases and intervenes when and where possible.
A recent case example - In the afternoon of Saturday, 20 March 2004, a team of police officers from the Cafétéria Police Station (Port-au-Prince) arrested five (5) young men from the area of La Saline (Port-au-Prince):
a.. Jean Wesly Etienne (17 years old)
b.. Emmanuel Deronville (20 years old)
c.. Monel Pierre (22 years old)
d.. Pierre Dorcéan (23 years old)
e.. Abel Cher-enfant (24 years old)
The bodies of
these men were found in three (3) different locations in the city on Sunday morning, 21 March, bound with gunshot wounds to the head. These young men all had Lavalas ties and all worked as "security guards" for a La Saline market area.
The five (5) Haitian police officers accused of arresting and executing these young men are as follows:
a.. Dauphin Michelange Gesner, Municipal Police Commissioner
b.. Maxime Louissaint, Police Inspector
c.. Elien Jeudy, Officer level 4
d.. Francknel Belleau, Officer level 4
e.. Jean Claude Lajeune, Officer level 4
According to the parents and family members of the victims, these officers formed a zero tolerance group known as "5 pou lanfè" (loosely translated to be "5 bullets to take you to hell") under the command of Lavalas henchman Jean Claude Jean Baptiste.
Thus this looks to be an intra-Lavalas incident.
Following a complaint filed by the family at the General Direction of the PNH, these five (5) o
fficers were suspended and placed in isolation at the Delmas 33 police precinct while an investigation into the matter gets underway.
NCHR visited the officers on Tuesday, 23 March and listened to family members' account of the situation at the NCHR office on the same day. NCHR is assisting the families of the five (5) young victims at the level of the PNH and judiciary, as well as providing financial assistance for funeral preparations.
With regards to specific dates:
11 March - from 29 February to 11 March, groups of Lavalas supporters were taking to the streets visibly wielding their weapons. Additionally, Lavalas demonstrators failed to notify/inform the police as to their plans to demonstrate. So, on 11 March when Lavalas supporters took to the streets, clearly armed, the PNH took precautions and dispersed the demonstrators with tear gas. As the Lavalas demonstrators dispersed, they (the demonstrators themselves) began shooting at bystanders and smashing car window. There
were never any claims that the PNH shot at the Lavalas demonstrators and NCHR has never received any victims claiming that they were shot during this time.
12 March - NCHR heard that there were some people killed by the Marines in Belair. However, where are the victims' families? NCHR has searched for information as to the victims of these alleged killings but to no avail.
Not only have victims not sought out NCHR, they have not made declarations to the local press. Having said this, I do not doubt that there were some killed during this raid.
But there is no evidence of this as of yet.
14 March - this is news to me!
In general, during the past three (3) years, victims of human rights abuses - committed at the hands of Lavalas, Opposition, the police etc) - have sought out human rights organizations and the press to denounce what has happened to them. Why now, if this is really going on to the extent that the rumours say, is no one coming forward? We are wel
l connected in terms of information gathering and thus far have not been able to turn up any information related to the rumours!
NCHR's doors are open to all victims of abuse and we are clear about this. The fundamental rights of all must be respected and protected and we will continue to fight for this!
NCHR's position on the international forces: the fact that Haiti once again is occupied by international forces - most of all in the year of our 200th anniversary of independence - is an embarrassment. Yet, this is the logical conclusion to three (3) years of terrible management and corruption on the part of the Lavalas regime. For three (3) years, the Lavalas government destroyed key state institutions such as the police and the judiciary, rendering them powerless and ineffective. They supported violence and gang activity which resulted in gross human rights violations. Today, the PNH force consists of not much more than 1,500 officers! In the face of the violence and the gangs and
proliferation of weapons that has taken place over the past years this force is in no position to deal with the situation.
When the international forces carry out missions and operations, they must be done in cooperation with the PNH - obviously issues of culture and language play a large role in this. And these forces must ensure that they respect the fundamental rights of Haitian citizens.
Here is the link for more details:
http://www.medialternatif.org/alterpres ... ticle=1276NCHR is also pushing for authorities to arrest those members of the Liberation Front who are implicated in human rights violations - such as Louis Jodel Chamblain (FRAPH) and Jean Tatoune (Raboteau Massacre).