scoone
02-17-2004, 05:59 AM
GONAIVES, Haiti -- Haitian President Jean-Bertand Aristide has appealed for international help as rebels widened their grip on the country after seizing the key central town of Hinche.
Radio reports said about 50 rebels raided a police station in Hinche, killing the police chief and his bodyguard, before taking control of the town of 50,000 on Monday.
The rebels -- who are demanding the resignation of Aristide -- now control the main roads north of the capital and have cut off northern Haiti as they close in on the capital Port-au-Prince.
Fuel, medical aid and food shipments have also been blocked from the northern part of the country.
With civil unrest spreading throughout the Caribbean nation of 8 million, Aristide appealed for outside assistance help to end the 11-day-old uprising.
"Blood has flowed in Hinche," Aristide told reporters late Monday, saying he had asked for assistance from the Organization of American States.
"It may be that the police cannot cope with this kind of attack."
U.S. authorities believe the rebel group is a combination of ex-paramilitary troops and former supporters of Aristide.
Aristide is accused of using police and armed militants to stifle dissent and allowing corrupt officials to benefit while Haitians suffer worsening poverty.
Though the president has resisted growing pressure from opposition lawmakers and the rebel groups, he failed to outline strategies to halt the revolt and refused to talk about whether he has asked for military assistance.
Instead, in a press conference on Monday, Aristide said he was intending to use peaceful means and called for humanitarian relief to be allowed to get into places lacking food and medicine.
"A group of terrorists are breaking democratic order," he said. "We have the responsibility to use the law and dialogue to take a peaceful way."
Aristide added that the international community needed to do more to restore peace and order as local police may be unable to deal with the rebel attacks on their own.
Discontent in Haiti has been brewing since Aristide's party swept flawed elections in 2000 and international donors froze millions of dollars of assets.
Opposition lawmakers say they refuse to participate in new elections unless the president steps down, while the rebels maintain they will lay down their arms only when Aristide is ousted.
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/americas/02/17/haiti.revolt/index.html
Radio reports said about 50 rebels raided a police station in Hinche, killing the police chief and his bodyguard, before taking control of the town of 50,000 on Monday.
The rebels -- who are demanding the resignation of Aristide -- now control the main roads north of the capital and have cut off northern Haiti as they close in on the capital Port-au-Prince.
Fuel, medical aid and food shipments have also been blocked from the northern part of the country.
With civil unrest spreading throughout the Caribbean nation of 8 million, Aristide appealed for outside assistance help to end the 11-day-old uprising.
"Blood has flowed in Hinche," Aristide told reporters late Monday, saying he had asked for assistance from the Organization of American States.
"It may be that the police cannot cope with this kind of attack."
U.S. authorities believe the rebel group is a combination of ex-paramilitary troops and former supporters of Aristide.
Aristide is accused of using police and armed militants to stifle dissent and allowing corrupt officials to benefit while Haitians suffer worsening poverty.
Though the president has resisted growing pressure from opposition lawmakers and the rebel groups, he failed to outline strategies to halt the revolt and refused to talk about whether he has asked for military assistance.
Instead, in a press conference on Monday, Aristide said he was intending to use peaceful means and called for humanitarian relief to be allowed to get into places lacking food and medicine.
"A group of terrorists are breaking democratic order," he said. "We have the responsibility to use the law and dialogue to take a peaceful way."
Aristide added that the international community needed to do more to restore peace and order as local police may be unable to deal with the rebel attacks on their own.
Discontent in Haiti has been brewing since Aristide's party swept flawed elections in 2000 and international donors froze millions of dollars of assets.
Opposition lawmakers say they refuse to participate in new elections unless the president steps down, while the rebels maintain they will lay down their arms only when Aristide is ousted.
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/americas/02/17/haiti.revolt/index.html