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February 23, 2004
Haitian Uprising Update

Insurgents Take 2nd City

Rebels seized control of Cap Haitien, Haiti's second-largest city, on Sunday, meeting little resistance as hundreds of residents cheered, burned the police station, plundered food from port warehouses and looted the airport, which was quickly closed. Police officers and armed supporters of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled.
"I think that in less than 15 days we will control all of Haiti," a rebel leader, Guy Philippe, was quoted as saying.
Philippe, the leader of the assault on Cap-Haitien, received military training in the United States before joining the Haitian National Police, a 5,000-member force established to replace the army after Aristide's return. The police force has dwindled to roughly 3,000 officers, not nearly enough to move against rebels now entrenched in Haiti's fourth-largest city, Gonaives, or in Cap-Haitien and the strategic central plateau that is a prime supply corridor to the Dominican Republic.

UPI offers an analysis

A recent history

AP

Sources close to the government said several Cabinet ministers in Port-au-Prince were asking friends for places to hide should the capital be attacked by anti-government protesters........ The takeover of Cap-Haitien by about 200 fighters was the most significant advance by Aristide's opponents since the uprising began Feb 5. At least 15 people died in Sunday's fighting.

(cross posted at The Temporal Globe)

Posted by Robert Mayer at February 23, 2004 10:18 AM | TrackBack
Comments

It would be difficult to be open-minded here, without being accused of racism.
I say we temporarily waive the Monroe Doctrine and let the French Waste some time down there.
A Political crisis in Haiti comes around as often as the Olympics.

Posted by: Redneck Texan at February 23, 2004 10:41 PM

The French should not be allowed to operate in America's backyard -- unless it is in one of their protectorates, Martinique and Guadeloupe, which Haiti is not.

They already have a false sense of themselves as a power to rival the US, no need to let them act out that fantasy so close to the U.S. They cannot be trusted.

Posted by: Helen at February 24, 2004 03:36 PM

I agree Helen, The French Cant be Trusted. But they are no threat to the US either. ( I wish they were.)
They acted like they were concerned about Haiti, so let them attempt to fix this recurring and inevitably fail.
I'm tired of it always being our problem to restore Democracy there.
No matter who prevails this time, in the near future a new rebel force will aspire for power.
This time America doesn't have the resources to spare.

Posted by: Redneck Texan at February 24, 2004 03:55 PM

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