U.S. Accused of Training Haitian Rebels in Dominican Republic
Conference attracts record press turn-out and prominent leaders of the Dominican liberation struggleMarch 30, 2004--The United States Government armed and trained the “rebels” that ousted Haiti’s democratically elected President, according to reports issued in the Dominican Republic on Monday to a packed room of close to 100 journalists gathered in the Renaissance Jaragua Hotel in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The preliminary findings came from the Haiti Commission of Inquiry, which was formed in 1991, after the first coup against President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in Haiti, by former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark. The report states “two hundred U.S. Special Forces soldiers came to the Dominican Republic as part of ‘Operation Jaded Task,’ with special authorization from President Hipólito Mejia. We have received many reports that this operation was used to train Haitian rebels. We have received many consistent reports of Haitian rebel training centers at or near Dominican military facilities. We have received many consistent reports of guns transported from the Dominican Republic to Haiti, some across the land border, and others shipped by sea.”
Father Luis Barrios, attorney Brian Concannon, Teresa Gutierrez of the International Action Center, journalist Kim Ives of Haiti Progrés and the Haiti Support Network, and former Special Forces soldier Stan Goff, presented the preliminary findings of their investigation. Their report contradicted the claims of the U.S. and Dominican Republic’s governments.
Teresa Gutierrez said, “The purpose of this particular delegation has been to investigate when, where, why, and how the leaders of the so-called rebel forces were able to train and arm themselves in the Dominican Republic? We also want to understand how the rebel forces were shielded from arrest, despite being convicted in Haiti and other countries.”
Rev. Barrios said at a press conference Monday that the commission had a “numerous reports” proving that U.S. Special Forces trained Haitian rebels in the Dominican Republic.
Kim Ives reported on the devastation caused by the coup, saying, “In the course of our investigation here, we met with many Haitians who were forced to flee Haiti following the coup d’état of February 29. Their testimony gave very concrete names and faces to the stories of violence which we have heard that the so-called rebels, trained and assembled in the Dominican Republic, have carried out in Haiti over the past month. We were also touched by the tears of refugees who told us of how they are apprehensive over the fate of their loved ones left behind in Haiti.”
Stan Goff concluded, “the latest coup d’etat in Haiti was a particularly shameless exercise of U.S. imperial impunity. It is important to remember that this was also an attack on the sovereignty of every nation in the region, and especially that of the Dominican Republic.” He went on to explain that the U.S. exercises “control of the direction of Dominican political and economic development,” citing as evidence recent restructuring forced on the Dominican Republic by the U.S.-dominated International Monetary Fund.
Some members of the Commission had previously interviewed President Aristide in the Central African Republic, where they were able to confirm that he had not resigned, but had been kidnapped by the U.S. Government. The findings of the delegation to the Central African Republic and the Dominican Republic will be presented at a public meeting on April 7, at Whitman Hall at Brooklyn College. Congress members Maxine Waters and Major Owens, former Attorney General Ramsey Clark, Haitian Labor Organizer Ray Laforest, and others will also speak at the meeting, which will feature a recorded message from President Aristide.
Tickets for the April 7th Rally are available at the International Action Center - 39 W. 14th St., #206, between 5th and 6th Ave., in Manhattan- call 212-633-6646 or the Haiti Support Network, 1398 Flatbush Ave., near Flatbush and Nostrand Junction in Brooklyn - take the #2 train to Flatbush - call 718-434-8100
Purchase tickets in at advance for $10 or you can buy bulk tickets for $7 each for 10 or more. Student tickets are $7. (Tickets are also available at the office. Tickets at the door will be $15.)
The press conference and the visit of the Haiti Commission to the Dominican Republic sparked intense debate in the Dominican press on the role of the Dominican government in the Feb. 29th coup and ignited interest for an independent investigation.
Prominent leaders of the Dominican liberation struggle such as Father Rogelio Cruz attended the Commission’s press conference and expressed strong support for the Commission’s work.
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