[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 10 (Wednesday, January 18, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1021-S1022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                                 HAITI

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I want to report today on a visit I made to 
Haiti 2 weeks ago. It was a very brief visit, but I came away from it 
profoundly moved.
  I saw people, lots of people. Haiti, one of our closest neighbors, is 
crowded to bursting with people. It has the highest population density 
in the Western Hemisphere.
  And most of these people are poor, incredibly poor. Haiti's 
unemployment rate must be 50 percent. The people have no jobs, so they 
jam the streets. They are struggling to survive on a few cents a day. 
In the vast Cite Soleil slum, they line up to get water from truck-
supplied tanks--if and when the truck comes to deliver the water. 
Garbage and sewage are everywhere. Disease, including AIDS, is a 
pervasive threat.
  And yet, Mr. President, in the midst of all this suffering, I found 
people anxious to shake my hand, to smile, and to say ``thank you.'' 
Thank you? Why would they thank me, a foreigner surrounded by soldiers 
and policemen?
  Mr. President, they were thanking me because I am an American. They 
were thanking me because we, the American people, have given them the 
thing that is even more valuable than food to eat.
  Mr. President, we have given the Haitian people security. For the 
first time in 3 years, the Haitian people do not have to cower in 
corners fearing that they will be assaulted by thugs or dragged off to 
be tortured. For the first time in 3 years, they are free to go into 
the streets, laugh, dance, celebrate freedom. For the first time in 3 
years, they are free to go and tear down with their bare hands those 
yellow buildings--one of which I visited--from which they used to hear 
the screams of people being tortured.
  And why are they free? Because there are soldiers of the U.S. Army 
10th Mountain Division patroling the streets of Port-au-Prince and Cap 
Haitien. There are units of the United States Special Forces patroling 
the streets of towns and villages throughout the interior of Haiti. The 
Haitian soldiers and police who used to terrorize them are being weeded 
out. And there are international police monitors from countries like 
Bangladesh and Argentina and Jordan as well as the United States spread 
across the country to work with and monitor the actions of Haitian 
police and make sure that people no longer have to fear for their basic 
security and rights.
  Mr. President, last fall, I, along with many of my colleagues here, 
agonized over sending troops to Haiti. We wanted to help them escape 
from the hell that Raoul Cedras and his cronies had created for them. 
After all, if we would not defend human rights right next door, where 
would we defend them? But it was not clear what would happen, and we 
all appreciated that there were risks.
  Last Thursday, we received a jolting confirmation of the risk. We 
learned of the death of Sfc. Gregory Cardott. I want to salute Sergeant 
Cardott. He died in the finest tradition of the men and women of our 
Armed Forces, doing his duty, serving his country, contributing to 
making the world a better place for all of us to live. I want to 
express deep condolences and respect to 
[[Page S1022]] his wife Darlene and their two daughters, Elise and 
Erica.
  At the same time that we mourn Sergeant
   Cardott, however, Mr. President, I believe we need to honor his 
memory by recognizing that he died in a good cause. We are doing good 
in Haiti. We are improving people's lives.

  Everyone I spoke to in Haiti confirmed it:
  President Aristide asked me specifically to convey to you and my 
other fellow Senators the gratitude of the Haitian people for the 
American intervention.
  A Vermont soldier told me ``I'm proud of what we are doing in Haiti. 
These people were desperate and we have given them hope.''
  Most eloquent of all, in Cite Soleil, I saw a little boy, barefoot 
and in rags, pick up a shiny Swiss Army knife that Ray Kelly, the 
American chief of the International Police Monitors, had dropped. I 
expected him to run away with it. What did he do? He started shouting 
and running around among the policemen searching for the one who had 
dropped it, and returned it to Ray. What a wonderful affirmation of the 
goodwill that our troops are earning for the United States in Haiti.
  And, Mr. President, I believe that our intervention in Haiti has the 
potential to yield dividends elsewhere as well. By reinstalling a 
democratically elected President, Haiti has moved us one step closer to 
a goal that we just recently have come very close to achieving: a 
Western Hemisphere that is fully democratic. Unfortunately, though, 
democracy remains fragile in a number of our Latin American neighbors. 
Many people throughout Latin America, both advocates of democracy and 
its enemies, are watching Haiti for signals as to the resolve of the 
United States and our partners in the Organization of American States. 
By defending democracy in Haiti, I believe that the United States and 
its international partners are reinforcing democracy throughout the 
hemisphere.
  Mr. President, we have the makings of a success here, but the job is 
not done. Haiti has a long way to go yet to entrench the rule of law, 
ensure respect for democracy and human rights, and embark on 
sustainable economic development.
  The security situation, while quite good compared to what we had 
feared at the outset, remains tenuous. Many of the perpetrators of 
repression remain free, not only because identification and 
apprehension is not always easy but also because Haiti's judicial 
system is in such a shambles that it is not capable of trying those 
accused of crimes. Particularly in the more remote towns and villages 
of the country where the multinational force is unable to maintain a 
constant presence, some of the old repressive elements continue to 
wield influence.
  Since the multinational force is not large enough to eliminate this 
threat completely, the Haitians are placing a high priority on 
continuation of the international security presence until they can 
field a reliable, reformed police force of their own. Virtually 
everyone, both Haitian and American, with whom I spoke in Haiti 
expressed fear that withdrawal of that presence before the Haitian 
Government has had time to train its police force would result in 
reassertion of control by the antidemocratic elements. President 
Aristide asked me to convey to my fellow Senators his appeal that the 
U.S. Congress not require such a withdrawal.
  In addition to security, Mr. President, I am deeply concerned about 
the state of the Haitian judicial system. It does no good to arrest 
those suspected of crimes if you do not have judges and prosecutors to 
try them, courts in which to try them, and jails in which to put them 
if they
 are convicted. Haiti at the moment has none of these. People have to 
be trained. Facilities have to be built and equipped. I am pleased that 
USAID is in the process of launching a comprehensive effort to fill 
these gaps. We are hoping that the Canadians and the French and other 
donors will also join in. I also hope that President Aristide and his 
government will take all steps necessary to ensure that this vital 
effort yield results rapidly.

  At the same time that I support assistance to Haiti, however, Mr. 
President, I believe we also need to set realistic limits on that aid. 
We need to forewarn the Haitians and our partners in the international 
donor community that we will not put American troops at risk for very 
long, that our pockets are shrinking, not expanding, and that there is 
much that Haiti needs that we will not be able to do. I disagree 
strongly with those of my colleagues who have suggested that Haiti is a 
hopeless cause and that trying to help it at all is a waste of money 
and time. We can make a difference and we are making a difference, and 
I believe we would be representing the American people poorly if we 
suspended that effort now and gave up the progress that we have made. 
But we do need to prioritize. We cannot do it all.
  Mr. President, the United States will in the course of the next 3 
months hand over responsibility for maintaining security in Haiti to 
the U.N. Mission in Haiti [UNMIH]. Consistent with our leadership role, 
an American will command UNMIH and the United States will provide half 
of its troops, but the United Nations will fund it. This will reduce 
substantially the ongoing risk and cost of the Haiti effort to the 
United States and its troops. In addition, the administration assures 
me that they are working closely with the Haitian Government to ensure 
that training of the new Haitian police force will proceed rapidly so 
that UNMIH itself can be terminated. This will eliminate the largest 
element in the Haiti assistance program.
  Mr. President, let me summarize the conclusions that I have drawn 
from my trip to Haiti. There are three:
  First, the American intervention in Haiti has been successful in 
providing security and thus hope to the Haitian people, and we would be 
doing Sergeant Cardott and the other troops who risked their lives in 
that effort an enormous disservice to terminate our effort now. 
Participation in UNMIH is a good way to maintain the effort while 
reducing the cost.
  Second, we cannot solve all of Haiti's problems, but there are some 
that can only be solved with United States leadership. Specifically, 
only we can lead a U.N. effort to maintain security in Haiti until the 
Haitian Government fields a retrained police force of its own. We must 
also lead the effort to train that new police force. Finally, we must 
lead the effort to create a judicial system capable of defending 
democracy and human rights in Haiti.
  Third, we must make clear to the Haitians and our partners in the 
assistance effort that United States participation is going to decline 
rapidly over time and that the Haitians must equip themselves as 
quickly as possible to take responsibility for their own affairs.
  In conclusion, Mr. President, I want once again to salute the men and 
women of our Armed Forces serving in Haiti. They are doing a great job 
for their country. In Haiti 2 weeks ago, thanks to them, I felt very 
proud to be an American.


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