    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1994, Book II)]
    [September 17, 1994]
    [Pages 1567-1568]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1567]]

    The President's Radio Address
    September 17, 1994

        Good morning. The night before last, I spoke with you about why
    America's interests compel us to help restore democratic government in
    Haiti.
        For 3 years, the United Nations, the Caribbean community, and the
    Organization of American States have pursued every diplomatic avenue
    possible. But the dictators rejected all of our efforts, and their reign
    of terror, a campaign of murder, rape, and mutilation, gets worse with
    every passing day. Now we must act.
        Our reasons are clear: to stop the horrific atrocities that threaten
    thousands of men, women, and children in Haiti, here in our own
    neighborhood; to affirm our determination that we keep our commitments
    and we expect others to keep their commitments to us; to avert the flow
    of thousands of more refugees and to secure our borders; and to preserve
    the stability of democracy in our hemisphere.
        Today I'd like to speak with you about the steps we are now taking
    to ensure that these brutal dictators leave and leave now. The
    preparations of the extraordinary international coalition we have
    assembled are proceeding without delay. Even as I speak with you, our
    Armed Forces, in coordination with personnel from 24 other nations from
    all around the world, are poised to end the reign of terror that has
    plagued Haiti since the military coup 3 years ago. I have great pride
    and confidence in our troops. Our leaders have prepared their mission
    very, very carefully, and our forces are clearly the finest in the
    world.
        At the same time, it is the responsibility of any American President
    to pursue every possible alternative to the use of force in order to
    avoid bloodshed and the loss of American lives. That is why this
    morning, at my request, President Carter, former Chairman of the Joint
    Chiefs of Staff General Colin Powell, and chairman of the Senate Armed
    Services Committee Senator Sam Nunn left for Haiti. Their mission is to
    make one last best effort to provide a peaceful, orderly transfer of
    power, to minimize the loss of life, and to maximize the chances of
    security for all Haitians and, of course, for our own troops in the
    coalition force.
        On Thursday night, I stated that the Cedras regime's time is up.
    Their time is up. The remaining question is not whether they will leave
    but how they will leave. They can go peacefully and increase the chances
    for a peaceful future and a more stable future for Haiti in the near
    term, not only for all those whose democracy they stole but for
    themselves as well. They can do that, or they will be removed by force.
        Yesterday leaders of the international coalition gathered at the
    White House. They come not only from our hemisphere and from our
    neighborhood here in the Caribbean but also from Europe, Asia, Africa,
    and the Middle East, from countries as diverse as Israel and Poland,
    Belgium and Bangladesh, countries with problems of their own, economic
    problems, political problems, even security problems. But each and every
    one of them believes it's important enough for them to come here to
    participate, to stand united with us in insisting that the dictators who
    terrorize Haiti must be removed and that the democratically elected
    government must be returned to power now.
        As Prime Minister Owen Arthur of Barbados stated so eloquently
    yesterday, ``The Haitian people have wished for democracy. They have
    suffered for it. They have voted for it. And now they are dying for
    it.''
        The goals of the international coalition are clear and limited. Once
    the military regime is removed from power, the coalition will help the
    democratic government establish basic security. It will begin the
    process of placing the Haitian police under civilian control and monitor
    them to help ensure that they respect human rights. Then, in months, not
    years, the coalition will pass the baton on to the United Nations. The
    U.N. mission in Haiti will take over and continue to professionalize
    Haiti's police and military. It will leave Haiti no later than 18 months
    from now, after elections are held and a new government takes office.
        Over time, the coalition countries as well as the international
    financial institutions will provide Haiti with economic, humanitarian,
    and technical assistance that the country needs to stay on the
    democratic track, to put people back to work, and to begin the work of
    progress.

    [[Page 1568]]

    They can get assistance from other countries, but we all know that in
    the end the job of rebuilding Haiti belongs to the Haitian people.
        Yesterday at the White House, President Aristide took a long step
    toward the job of rebuilding, in the spirit of reconciliation. He put it
    very well when he said, ``We say and we will be saying again and again,
    no to vengeance and no to retaliation; let us embrace peace.'' President
    Aristide also reiterated his pledge to transfer power peacefully to a
    duly elected successor. He said that in the formative years of any
    democracy, the most important election is not the first one but the
    second. That's a sentiment that should become a staple of civics books
    in our country and throughout the world.
        My fellow Americans, at this very hour, we are taking important
    steps in the journey back to democracy in Haiti. We still hope to end
    this journey peacefully. But let me say one last time: The cause is
    right, the mission is achievable and limited, and we will succeed. The
    dictators must leave.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Oval Office at the
    White House.