Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 30 Issue 41 (Monday, October 17, 1994)

[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 30, Number 41 (Monday, October 17, 1994)]
[Pages 2012-2021]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Letter to Congressional Leaders on Haiti

October 13, 1994

Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)

1. In December 1990, the Haitian people elected Jean-Bertrand
Aristide as their President by an overwhelming margin in a free and fair
election. The United States praised Haiti's success in peacefully
implementing its democratic constitutional system and provided
significant political and economic support to the new government. The
Haitian military abruptly interrupted the consolidation of Haiti's new
democracy when, in September 1991, it illegally and violently ousted
President Aristide from office and drove him into exile.
2. The United States, on its own and together with the Organization
of American States (OAS), immediately imposed sanctions against the
illegal regime. The United States also actively supported the efforts of
the OAS and the United Nations to restore democracy to Haiti and to
bring about President Aristide's return by facilitating negotiations
between the Haitian parties. The United States and the international
community also offered material assistance within the context of an
eventual negotiated settlement of the Haitian crisis to support the
return to democracy, build constitutional structures, and foster
economic well-being.
As a result of continuing military intransigence in the face of
these efforts and of worsening human rights abuses in Haiti, the
conclusion was reached that no political settlement of the Haitian
crisis was possible as long as the three principal military leaders
remained in power. Therefore, beginning in early May 1994, a series of
steps were taken to intensify the pressure of sanctions on the military
leaders and their associates in order to bring the three leaders to step
down. With U.S. leadership, the U.N. Security Council on May 6, 1994,
enacted Resolution 917, imposing comprehensive trade sanctions and other
measures on Haiti. This was followed by a succession of unilateral
United States sanctions--banning scheduled air service and financial
transactions to or from Haiti or between Haiti and third countries
through the United States and blocking the assets in the United States
or under United States control of Haitians resident in Haiti.
Additionally, under authorities not related to the IEEPA, all visas that
had been issued to Haitians at Port-au-Prince or Curacao before May 11,
1994, were revoked. Several other countries took similar actions.
The continued resistance of the illegal regime to the efforts of the
international community also prompted the United States to augment
embargo enforcement. The United States and other countries entered into
a cooperative endeavor with the Dominican Republic to monitor that
country's enforcement of sanctions along its land border with Haiti and
in its coastal waters.
As the reporting period progressed, it became apparent that the
Haitian military leaders, even under the pressure of intense worldwide
sanctions, were determined to cling to power and to block the
restoration of democracy and return of President Aristide. Internal
repression continued to worsen, exemplified by the expulsion in July of
the U.N./OAS-sponsored International Civilian Mission (ICM) human rights
observers. As a result of this deterioration and the threat it posed to
peace and security in the region,

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the U.N. Security Council enacted Resolution 940 on July 31, 1994,
authorizing the use of all necessary means to bring about the departure
of the military leadership and the return of the legitimate authorities
including President Aristide. In the succeeding weeks, the international
community under U.S. leadership assembled a multinational coalition
force to carry out this mandate.
On September 18, 1994, I directed the deployment of U.S. Armed
Forces to Haiti to remove the military leaders and restore democracy.
However, I remained deeply committed to achieving our goals peacefully
if possible. Therefore, on the previous day I had sent former President
Jimmy Carter, Senator Sam Nunn and retired General Colin Powell to Haiti
on a final diplomatic mission. The combination of an imminent military
operation and determined diplomacy led to an agreement on September 18,
that portends the early achievement of our and the international
community's goals in Haiti. The military leaders have relinquished power
and the legitimate authorities will be restored by October 15 at the
latest. As a result of the agreement reached in Port-au-Prince on
September 18 U.S. forces in the vanguard of the multinational coalition
force drawn from 26 countries began a peaceful deployment to Haiti on
September 19.
In a spirit of reconciliation and reconstruction, President Aristide
called on September 25 for the immediate easing of sanctions to further
the mission of the coalition forces and begin without delay the work of
rebuilding. In response to this request, on September 26, in an address
before the United Nations General Assembly, I announced my intention to
suspend all unilateral sanctions against Haiti except those that affect
the military leaders and their immediate supporters and families. I also
directed that steps be taken in accordance with Resolutions 917 and 940
to permit supplies and services to flow to Haiti to restore health care,
water and electrical services, provide construction materials for
humanitarian programs, and allow the shipment of communications,
agricultural, and educational materials.
Regulations to accomplish those objectives were published in the
Federal Register on October 5. In addition, the U.N. Security Council on
September 29 enacted Resolution 944 directing that all U.N. sanctions be
terminated the day after President Aristide returns to Haiti. Finally,
the national emergency with respect to Haiti was extended on September
30, 1994, to allow the continued enforcement of those sanctions that are
to remain in force until the restoration of democracy to Haiti is
completed as will be signified by President Aristide's return to his
country.
3. This report is submitted to the Congress pursuant to 50 U.S.C.
1641(c) and 1703(c). It is not a report on all U.S. activities with
respect to Haiti, but discusses only those Administration actions and
expenses since my last report (April 25, 1994), that are directly
related to the national emergency with respect to Haiti declared in
Executive Order No. 12775, as implemented pursuant to that order and
Executive Orders Nos. 12779, 12853, 12872, 12914, 12917, 12920, and
12922.
4. Economic sanctions against the de facto regime in Haiti were
first imposed in October 1991. On October 4, 1991, in Executive Order
No. 12775, President Bush declared a national emergency to deal with the
threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the
United States caused by events that had occurred in Haiti to disrupt the
legitimate exercise of power by the democratically-elected government of
that country (56 Fed. Reg. 50641). In that order, the President ordered
the immediate blocking of all property and interests in property of the
Government of Haiti (including the Banque de la Republique d'Haiti) then
or thereafter located in the United States or within the possession or
control of a U.S. person, including its overseas branches. The Executive
order also prohibited any direct or indirect payments or transfers to
the de facto regime in Haiti of funds or other financial or investment
assets or credits by any U.S. person, including its overseas branches,
or by any entity organized under the laws of Haiti and owned or
controlled by a U.S. person.
Subsequently, on October 28, 1991, President Bush issued Executive
Order No. 12779, adding trade sanctions against Haiti to the sanctions
imposed on October 4 (56

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Fed. Reg. 55975). This order prohibited exportation from the United
States of goods, technology, and services and importation into the
United States of Haitian-origin goods and services, after November 5,
1991, with certain limited exceptions. The order exempted trade in
publications and other informational materials from the import, export,
and payment prohibitions and permitted the exportation to Haiti of
donations to relieve human suffering as well as commercial sales of five
food commodities: rice, beans, sugar, wheat flour and cooking oil. In
order to permit the return to the United States of goods being prepared
for U.S. customers by Haiti's substantial ``assembly sector,'' the order
also permitted, through December 5, 1991, the importation into the
United States of goods assembled or processed in Haiti that contained
parts or materials previously exported to Haiti from the United States.
On February 5, 1992, it was announced that specific licenses could be
applied for on a case-by-case basis by U.S. persons wishing to resume a
pre-embargo import/export relationship with the assembly sector in
Haiti.
5. On June 30, 1993, I issued Executive Order No. 12853 that
expanded the blocking of assets of the de facto regime to include assets
of Haitian nationals identified by the Secretary of the Treasury as
providing substantial financial or material contributions to the regime,
or doing substantial business with the regime. That Executive order also
implemented U.N. Security Council Resolution (UNSC Resolution) 841 of
June 16, 1993, by prohibiting the sale or supply by U.S. persons or from
the United States, or using U.S.-registered vessels or aircraft, or
petroleum or petroleum products or arms and related materials of all
types to any person or entity in Haiti, or for the purpose of any
business carried on in or operated from Haiti, or promoting or
calculated to promote such sale or supply. Carriage of such goods to
Haiti on U.S.-registered vessels was prohibited, as was any transaction
for the evasion or avoidance of, or attempt to evade or avoid, any
prohibition in the order.
6. As reported earlier, apparent steady progress toward achieving
the firm goal of restoring democracy in Haiti permitted the United
States and the world community to suspend economic sanctions against
Haiti in August 1993. With strong support from the United States, the
U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 861 on August 27, 1993,
suspending the petroleum, arms, and financial sanctions imposed under
UNSC Resolution 841. On the same day, the Secretary General of the OAS
announced that the OAS was urging member states to suspend their trade
embargoes. In concert with these U.N. and OAS actions, U.S. trade and
financial restrictions against Haiti were suspended, effective at 9:35
a.m. e.d.t., on August 31, 1993.
Our work to reach a solution to the Haitian crisis through the
Governors Island Agreement was seriously threatened by accelerating
violence in Haiti sponsored or tolerated by the de facto regime. The
violence culminated on October 11, 1993, with the obstruction by armed
``attaches'' supported by the Haitian military and police of the
deployment of U.S. military trainers and engineers sent to Haiti as part
of the United Nations Mission in Haiti. The Haitian military's decision
to dishonor its commitments made in the Governors Island Agreement was
apparent. On October 13, 1993, the U.N. Security Council issued
Resolution 873, which terminated the suspension of sanctions effective
at 11:59 p.m. e.d.t., October 18, 1993.
As a result, effective at 11:59 p.m. e.d.t., October 18, 1993, the
Department of the Treasury revoked the suspension of those trade and
financial sanctions that had been suspended, so that the full scope of
prior prohibitions was reinstated (58 Fed. Reg. 54024, October 19,
1993). The reinstated sanctions in the Haitian Transactions Regulations,
31 C.F.R. Part 580 (the HTR), prohibited most unlicensed trade with
Haiti, and blocked the assets of the de facto regime in Haiti, and of
the Government of Haiti. Restrictions on the entry into U.S. ports of
vessels whose Haitian calls would violate U.S. or OAS sanctions had they
been made by U.S. persons were also reinstated.
Also effective at 11:59 p.m., October 18, 1993, I issued Executive
Order No. 12872 (58 Fed. Reg. 54029), authorizing the Department of the
Treasury to block assets of persons who have: (1) contributed to the
obstruction of UNSC Resolutions 841 and 873, the Governors Island
Agreement, or the ac-

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tivities of the U.N. Mission in Haiti; (2) perpetuated or contributed to
the violence in Haiti; or (3) materially or financially supported either
the obstruction or the violence referred to above. This authority was in
addition to the blocking authority provided for in the original
sanctions and in Executive Order No. 12853 of June 30, 1993, and ensured
adequate authority to reach assets subject to U.S. jurisdiction of
military and police officials, civilian ``attaches'' and their financial
patrons meeting these criteria. A list of 41 such individuals was
published on November 1, 1993, by the Office of Foreign Assets Control
of the Department of the Treasury (FAC) (58 Fed. Reg. 58480).
On October 18, 1993, I ordered the deployment of six U.S. Navy
vessels off Haiti's shores. To improve compliance with the ban on
petroleum and munitions shipments to Haiti contained in UNSC Resolutions
841 and 873, the United States succeeded in securing the passage of UNSC
Resolution 875. UNSC Resolution 875 called upon the United Nations
Member States, acting with national or through regional agencies or
arrangements, to halt inbound maritime shipping for Haiti in order to
inspect and verify that the Haiti-bound cargo does not contain UNSC
prohibited petroleum or arms. A multinational Maritime Interdiction
Force, including elements of the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard, was
established.
7. The declaration of the national emergency on October 4, 1991, was
made pursuant to the authority vested in the President by the
Constitution and laws of the United States, including the International
Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the
National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) and section 301 of
title 3 of the United States Code. The emergency declaration was
reported to the Congress on October 4, 1991, pursuant to section 204(b)
of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1703 (b)). The additional sanctions set forth in
Executive Orders Nos. 12779, 12853, and 12872 were imposed pursuant to
the authority vested in the President by the Constitution and laws of
the United States, including the statutes cited above, as well as the
United Nations Participation Act, 22 U.S.C. 287c, and represent the
response by the United States to the U.N. Security Council and OAS
directives and recommendations discussed above.
8. Since my report of April 25, 1994, in order to implement UNSC
Resolution 917 of May 6, and to take additional steps with respect to
the actions and policies of the de facto regime in Haiti, I issued
Executive Order No. 12914, dated May 7, 1994. Effective at 11:59 p.m.
e.d.t., on May 8, 1994, the order blocks all funds and financial
resources of three categories of individuals that are or hereafter come
within the possession or control of U.S. persons, including their
overseas branches. These groups include (a) all officers of the Haitian
military, including the police, and their immediate families; (b) the
major participants in the coup d'etat in Haiti of 1991 and in the
illegal governments since the coup d'etat and their immediate families;
and (c) those employed by or acting on behalf of the Haitian military,
and their immediate families. The Executive order also bans arriving and
departing flights, and overflights stopping or originating in Haiti,
except regularly scheduled commercial passenger flights. A copy of E.O.
No. 12914 (59 Fed. Reg. 24339, May 10, 1994), is attached for reference.
9. Subsequently, on May 21, 1994, in implementation of UNSC
Resolution 917 of May 6, and in order to further strengthen sanctions in
response to the actions and policies of the de facto regime in Haiti, I
issued Executive Order No. 12917. Effective at 11:59 p.m. e.d.t., on May
21, 1994, the order prohibits (1) the importation into the United States
of any goods originating in Haiti or services performed in Haiti, that
are exported from Haiti after May 21, 1994, or any activity by any U.S.
persons or in the United States that promotes, or is intended to
promote, such importation; (2) any activity by U.S. persons or in the
United States that promotes the exportation or transshipment of any
goods originating in Haiti that are exported from Haiti after May 21,
1994; (3) any dealing by U.S. persons or in the United States, or using
U.S.-registered vessels or aircraft, of any goods originating in Haiti
that are exported from Haiti after May 21, 1994; and (4) the sale,
supply, or exportation by U.S. persons or from the United States, or
using U.S.-registered vessels or aircraft, of

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any goods, regardless of origin, to Haiti, or for the purpose of any
business carried on in or operated from Haiti, or any activity by U.S.
persons or in the United States that promotes such sale, supply, or
exportation.
Exemptions from the foregoing prohibitions include: (1)
informational materials, such as books and other publications, needed
for the free flow of information; (2) the sale, supply, or exportation
of medicines and medical supplies, as authorized by the Secretary of the
Treasury, and rice, beans, sugar, wheat flour, cooking oil, corn, corn
flour, milk and edible tallow, provided that neither the de facto regime
in Haiti nor any person designated by the Secretary of the Treasury as a
blocked individual or entity of Haiti is a direct or indirect party to
the transaction; and (3) transactions specifically licensed or otherwise
authorized by FAC. A copy of E.O. No. 12917 (59 Fed. Reg. 26925, May 24,
1994) is attached for reference.
10. Again, on June 10, 1994, in order to take additional steps with
respect to the actions and policies of the de facto regime in Haiti, I
issued Executive Order No. 12920. Effective at 11:59 p.m. e.d.t., on
June 10, 1994, the order prohibits, first, any payment or transfer of
funds or other financial or investment assets or credits to Haiti from
or through the United States, or to or through the United States from
Haiti, with the following exceptions: (1) payments and transfers for the
conduct of activities in Haiti of the United States Government, the
United Nations, the OAS, or foreign diplomatic missions; (2) payments
and transfers between the United States and Haiti for the conduct of
activities in Haiti of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) engaged in
the provision in Haiti of essential humanitarian assistance as
authorized by the Secretary of the Treasury; (3) payments and transfers
from a U.S. person to any close relative of the remitter or of the
remitter's spouse who is resident in Haiti, provided that such payments
do not exceed $50.00 per month to any one household, and that neither
the de facto regime in Haiti nor any person designated by the Secretary
of the Treasury as a blocked individual or entity of Haiti is a
beneficiary of the remittance; (4) reasonable amounts of funds carried
by travelers to or from Haiti to cover their travel-related expenses;
and (5) payments and transfers incidental to shipments to Haiti of food,
medicine, medical supplies, and informational materials exempt from the
export prohibitions of this order. The order also prohibits the sale,
supply, or exportation by U.S. persons or from the United States, or
using U.S.-registered vessels or aircraft, of any goods, technology, or
services, regardless of origin, to Haiti, or for the purpose of any
business carried on in or operated from Haiti, or any activity by U.S.
persons in the United States that promotes such sale, supply, or
exportation. Exportations of the following types are exempt from the
foregoing provision: (1) informational materials, such as books and
other publications needed for the free flow of information; (2)
medicines and medical supplies, as authorized by the Secretary of the
Treasury, and rice, beans, sugar, wheat flour, cooking oil, corn, corn
flour, milk, and edible tallow, provided that neither the de facto
regime in Haiti nor any person designated by the Secretary of the
Treasury as a blocked individual or entity of Haiti is a direct or
indirect party to the transaction; and (3) donations of food, medicine,
and medical supplies intended to relieve human suffering. A copy of E.O.
No. 12920 (59 Fed. Reg. 30501, June 14, 1994), is attached for
reference.
11. Once again, on June 21, 1994, in order to take additional steps
with respect to the actions and policies of the de facto regime in
Haiti, I issued Executive Order No. 12922. Effective at 10:09 p.m.
e.d.t., on June 21, 1994, the order blocks all property and interests in
property that are or come within the United States or within the
possession or control of U.S. persons, including their overseas
branches, of (1) any Haitian national resident in Haiti; or (2) any
other person subject to the blocking provisions of Executive Order Nos.
12775, 12779, 12853, 12872, or 12914 and Haitian citizens who are
members of the immediate family of any such person, as identified by the
Secretary of the Treasury. This provision does not apply to property of
nongovernmental organizations engaged in the provision of essential
humanitarian assistance in Haiti or in the conduct of refugee and
migration operations in Haiti, as identified by the Secretary of the
Treasury. Pay-

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ments and transfers previously authorized by Executive Order No. 12920,
of June 10, 1994, may continue to be made in a manner directed by the
Secretary of the Treasury. A copy of Executive Order No. 12922 (59 Fed.
Reg. 32645, June 23, 1994), is attached for reference.
12. A policy statement, effective January 31, 1994 (59 Fed. Reg.
8134, February 18, 1994), was published to extend until March 31, 1994,
the expiration date for all current assembly sector licenses issued by
FAC pursuant to the HTR, and a second policy notice, effective March 29,
1994, was published on April 1, 1994 (59 Fed. Reg. 15342), extending
these licenses through May 31, 1994. These licenses provided an
exception to the comprehensive U.S. trade embargo on Haiti under which
the ``assembly sector'' continued to receive parts and supplies from,
and supply finished products to, persons in the United States.
Assembly sector trade with the United States accounted for a
significant portion of Haiti's imports, and a substantial majority of
its exports, prior to the institution of the OAS-requested embargo in
November 1991. Although initially suspended due to the embargo, assembly
sector imports from and exports to the United States were allowed to
resume on a case-by-case basis beginning in February 1992 in order to
keep poorer segments of the Haitian population employed and to reduce
their incentive to attempt illegal and dangerous migration by sea to the
United States and other countries. However, the continuing uncertainties
of the Haitian situation led to a sharp decline in assembly sector
activity, with such employment estimated by the spring of 1994 to be no
more than 10 percent of pre-embargo levels.
As noted above and as mandated by UNSC Resolution 917, Executive
Order No. 12917 further restricted imports from and exports to Haiti
after May 21, 1994. Consequently, all FAC licenses for importation into
the United States from the Haitian assembly sector were withdrawn
effective May 22, 1994. The FAC is continuing, in close coordination
with the Department of State, to evaluate license applications from U.S.
companies seeking to repatriate capital equipment, parts, and components
previously exported for use in assembly sector activities.
Following the successful deployment to Haiti of U.S. forces serving
as the vanguard of the multinational coalition force, and as promised in
my September 26 address before the United Nations General Assembly,
amendments to the HTR were published on October 5, 1994, suspending,
effective 10:28 a.m. on October 5, 1994, the sanctions that the United
States had imposed on Haiti unilaterally, with the exceptions noted
below. Section 580.211 of the HTR, which was added to the HTR in June
1992 to deny entry into U.S. ports to vessels engaged in certain trade
transactions with Haiti, was removed. A new section, 580.518, was added
to license generally the export from the United States to Haiti of all
food and food products.
Section 580.519 was added to the HTR to remove the prohibition
(which I had imposed in Executive Order No. 12920 on June 14) on
payments or transfers of funds or other financial or investment assets
to Haiti from or through the United States, or to or through the United
States from Haiti. Section 580.520 was added to unblock the property and
interests in the United States of Haitian nationals resident in Haiti,
which I had blocked in Executive Order No. 12922 on June 23; however,
section 580.520 provides that the property and interests in property of
certain persons, listed in the revised ``Appendix A'' to the HTR, will
remain blocked until further notice. The HTR were also amended by the
addition of section 580.521 to permit the specific licensing of exports
to Haiti of fuel and equipment for electric power generation,
telecommunications materials, media and educational supplies,
agricultural supplies, and construction and transportation supplies for
humanitarian purposes. Section 580.522 was added to authorize the case-
by-case licensing of charter flights between the United States and Haiti
for use by humanitarian relief agencies to transport needed personnel
and supplies, or for journalists covering events in Haiti. The HTR were
also amended to provide, in new section 580.523, a general license
authorizing the export to Haiti from the United States of equipment
needed for reporting and broadcasting from Haiti and for documentary
film making

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in Haiti, provided that such equipment is removed from Haiti when the
reporting, broadcasting, or filming has been completed.
Each of the new sections added to the HTR provides that no
transaction authorized thereunder may result in a payment or transfer
to, from or through a person listed in the revised ``Appendix A'' to the
HTR. In the revised ``Appendix A'' are set forth, in section I, the
names of individuals who, until further notice, will remain ``Blocked
Individuals of Haiti,'' and in section II, entities of the de facto
regime in Haiti whose assets will remain blocked.
On September 29, I directed the Secretary of Transportation to issue
the necessary directives to terminate the ban on regularly-scheduled air
passenger service between the United States and Haiti that had been
imposed on June 24.
The HTR will be further amended upon the return of President
Aristide to Haiti to provide that, in accordance with U.N. Resolution
944 of September 29, 1994, on the day following his return, the U.S.
sanctions imposed pursuant to U.N. Resolutions 841, 873, and 917 will be
terminated. At that time, I will also direct the Secretary of
Transportation to rescind the ban on all other air transportation (all
cargo and charter) between the United States and Haiti that I imposed on
May 7, 1994.
13. Humanitarian Shipments. Executive Order No. 12917 revoked an
earlier exception to the export ban permitting the exportation to Haiti
of ``donated articles to relieve human suffering.'' A substantial amount
of humanitarian aid, such as clothing or shoes, had previously been
shipped to Haiti pursuant to this exception. The exception of donated
foodstuffs was not affected. However, the Executive order provides an
exemption from its trade prohibitions for the sale, supply, or
exportation of certain basic commodities essential to humanitarian
assistance programs serving Haiti's urban and rural poor, i.e.,
medicines and medical supplies and certain nutritional staples of the
Haitian diet, as well as for informational materials. The FAC developed
procedures to facilitate U.N. Sanctions Committee approval for
humanitarian shipments to Haiti that do not fall within the narrowly-
defined U.N. exemption categories. Specific authorizations have also
been issued on a case-by-case basis for commercial deliveries to certain
``blocked individuals of Haiti,'' in order to allow the continued supply
in Haiti of essential foodstuffs, while retaining the ability to closely
monitor such transactions. Food supplies and prices are being monitored
for profiteering by Haitian food importers. Between issuance of
Executive Order No. 12917 on May 21, and September 1, 1994, FAC issued
94 specific licenses for such humanitarian exports.
Humanitarian Services. Executive Order No. 12920 exempts from its
financial prohibitions payments and transfers between the United States
and Haiti in support of the conduct of activities in Haiti of NGOs
engaged in the provision in Haiti of essential humanitarian assistance.
The FAC immediately issued a specific license to the U.S. Agency for
International Development (AID), permitting it to continue uninterrupted
its essential services in Haiti. Subsequently, based on recommendations
by AID and the State Department, FAC developed a system of registration
for NGOs engaged in relief efforts such as the delivery of food,
medicine and medical supplies, as well as refugee and migration
operations, to assure that approved payment orders are neither rejected
nor blocked by U.S. banks in implementing the financial prohibitions of
recent Executive orders. Since June 10, FAC has registered 156 NGOs, of
which 16 have been issued specific licenses authorizing provision of
their services in Haiti. One application has been denied. Others are
under review by the Department of State and AID.
Air Transportation Services. Executive Order No. 12914, effective
11:59 p.m. e.d.t., May 8, 1994, banned arriving and departing flights
and overflights stopping or originating in Haiti, except regularly
scheduled commercial passenger flights. On June 10, an order was issued
by the President to the Secretary of Transportation that terminated,
effective June 24, 1994, regularly scheduled air service between the
United States and Haiti by U.S. and Haitian carriers.
Specific licenses have been issued to authorize air ambulance
services for medical evacuation flights to and from Haiti. Licenses have
also been issued to authorize certain

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cargo flights for the delivery of humanitarian shipments, including food
and medicine, by registered NGOs, as well as passenger service for NGO
personnel and a congressional delegation wishing to assist in food
distribution. The FAC also has licensed a U.S. air carrier to continue
paying its Haitian employees in Port-au-Prince. In addition to providing
support for the airline's Haitian employees and their families, the
license aimed to position the airline to resume service speedily in the
event of an emergency or when sanctions were lifted. Effective on the
date of the rescission of the June 10, 1994, unilateral ban on scheduled
air service between the United States and Haiti, carriers are authorized
to resume such in coordination with the commander of the Multinational
Force who controls the Haitian airports.
More than 35 requests have been received from news organizations for
specific licenses to charter flights to Haiti in connection with
newsgathering activities, ranging from personnel rotation and equipment
transportation to proposals from nationally known television anchors to
conduct interviews. Licensees include major U.S. and foreign networks.
Blocked Haitian-Owned Vessels. Several dozen Haitian-owned vessels
in the United States were blocked by Executive Order No. 12922 on June
21, 1994. Nearly all such vessels were old, small-capacity vessels (many
wood-hulled) that formerly loaded and discharged cargoes along the
narrow Miami River. These vessels that had previously delivered the bulk
of humanitarian assistance shipments to Haiti, were moored at the
facilities of their U.S. agents and presented a serious hazard to
navigation (particularly with the onset of the hurricane season),
clogging the channel and occupying needed docking space. Most Haitian-
owners were unable to finance the costs of a long-term lay-up. Some 170
crew members, who were confined to the vessels, were faced with
diminishing provisions and maintenance supplies, and dependency upon
donations from the local community.
Specific licenses have been issued to U.S. agents for the blocked
vessels to authorize the provisioning, maintenance and repairs necessary
to ensure seaworthiness to facilitate the lawful return of crew members
to their home countries. No debits of U.S.-blocked funds were authorized
by such licenses. The FAC has also issued licenses effectively
unblocking the Haitian vessels by authorizing them to engage in trade
transactions consistent with sanctions, particularly the carriage of
authorized humanitarian supplies to Haiti. In some cases, where
appropriate, the vessels were licensed to depart the United States but
not return for the duration of the sanctions.
14. Following the issuance of the blocking order in Executive Order
No. 12922 on June 21, more than 1,200 Haitian accounts were blocked
totaling in excess of $79.1 million as of August 30, 1994. This success
was due, in part, to FAC notices about the new Executive orders posted
to banks through the Federal Reserve, the New York Clearing House, the
Council on International Banking and the International Banking
Operations Association in Miami. Notices also were posted to other
electronic bulletin boards such as the Federal Bulletin Board of the
United States Government Printing Office and the Economic Bulletin Board
of the Department of Commerce. These notices were passed on to family
remittance forwarders by banking oversight authorities in New York and
Florida. The FAC launched an aggressive compliance initiative to
identify family remittance forwarders in the Miami area who route funds
to Haiti. This review revealed that one of the largest companies in
south Florida handling remittances to Haiti (previously valued at about
$500,000 per month) is owned and controlled by a Haitian national
resident in Haiti. The company's accounts, with combined balances of
more than $1 million, were blocked and other enforcement actions
involving them were undertaken.
15. Continued close coordination between FAC special agents and the
U.S. Customs Service in Miami has resulted in the interception of
substantial quantities of checks and currency transported from and to
Haiti through the United States, as well as the seizure of merchandise
valued at $1.5 million. Numerous other enforcement matters are under
active investigation.
During the reporting period, the multinational Maritime Interdiction
Force (MIF),

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which contains elements of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard, continued
to patrol offshore Haiti and to conduct ship boardings, inspections of
cargoes bound for Haiti, identification of suspected violators and
referrals for investigation. The MIF boardings resulted in numerous
vessel diversions to non-Haitian ports after MIF boarding parties
determined that cargo was not fully accessible for inspection or that
vessels were attempting to enter Haiti with cargo prohibited by UNSC
resolutions and U.S. sanctions. The FAC acted on MIF boarding reports by
subsequently denying entry into the United States of several vessels
that had attempted to violate the sanctions. With assumption of control
of Haitian ports by the Multinational Force following its September 19
deployment to Haiti, enforcement of the maritime sanctions in the ports
became possible. The MIF operations therefore were terminated on
September 28, 1994.
16. Since my report of April 25, 1994, in consultation with the
Department of State and other Federal agencies, FAC has issued General
Notices No. 5, No. 6, No. 7, No. 8, No. 9, and No. 10, ``Notification of
Blocked Individuals and Blocked Entities of Haiti.'' The Notices (issued
June 2, June 17, June 22 (two Notices, August 2, and September 14, 1994,
respectively) identify a total of 372 additional individuals and 94
companies and banks determined by the Department of the Treasury to be
Blocked Individuals and Blocked Entities of Haiti. These are persons (1)
who seized power illegally from the democratically-elected government of
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide on September 30, 1991, or who have
since the effective date of Executive Order No. 12775, acted or
purported to act directly or indirectly on behalf of, or under the
asserted authority of, such persons or of any agencies,
instrumentalities or entities of the de facto regime in Haiti or any
extra-constitutional successor thereto; (2) are the immediate family
members of an individual who is (a) an officer of the Haitian military,
including the police, (b) a major participant in the coup d'etat in
Haiti of 1991 or in the illegal governments since the coup d'etat, (c)
employed by or acting on behalf of the Haitian military, or (d) a
Haitian national resident in Haiti; or persons subject to the blocking
provisions of Executive Orders No. 12775, No. 12779, No. 12853, No.
12872, or No. 12914, or a Haitian citizen who is member of the immediate
family of such person. United States persons are prohibited from
engaging in transactions with these entities and individuals and with
all officers of the Haitian military unless the transactions are
licensed by FAC. All assets owned or controlled by these parties that
are or come within the United States or that are or come within the
possession or control of U.S. persons, including their overseas
branches, are blocked. United States persons are not prohibited,
however, from paying funds owed to these entities or individuals into
blocked Government of Haiti Account No. 021083909 at the Federal Reserve
Bank of New York, or, pursuant to specific licenses issued by FAC, into
blocked accounts held in the names of the blocked parties in domestic
U.S. financial institutions. Copies of General Notices No. 5 - No. 10
are attached for reference.
On August 18, 1994, in consultation with the Department of State and
other Federal agencies, FAC identified three additional entities of
Haiti, whose property and interests in property are now blocked pursuant
to Executive Order No. 12922. On the same date, FAC removed the name of
one individual from the list of Blocked Individuals of Haiti. These
actions bring the total number of entities so blocked to 128 and the
number of individuals to 916.
Since March 1994, FAC has collected 49 civil monetary penalties,
totaling in excess of $133,000 as of August 30, 1994. Penalties were
imposed pursuant to FAC enforcement investigations, U.S. Customs Service
referrals, and FAC compliance audits of reports required pursuant to
specific licenses. The enforcement investigations dealt with violations
of the HTR by vessels carrying unauthorized and nonexempt cargo to
Haiti. The Customs Service referrals all involved import and export
violations of the embargo. Compliance audits related to licenses issued
to U.S. participants in Haiti's assembly sector.
17. The expenses incurred by the Federal Government in the 6-month
period from April 4 through October 3, 1994, that are directly
attributable to the authorities con-

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ferred by the declaration of a national emergency with respect to Haiti
are estimated at about $3.7 million, most of which represent wage and
salary costs for Federal personnel. Personnel costs were largely
centered in the Department of the Treasury (particularly in FAC, the
U.S. Customs Service, and the Office of the General Counsel), the
Department of State, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Department of
Commerce.
The combination over time of mediation among the Haitian parties and
steadily intensified sanctions proved, in the end, ineffective in
budging the Haitian military leaders from their stubborn and illegal
hold on power. Only the imminent threat of force combined with
determined diplomacy was in the end successful in making it possible to
achieve our objectives and further our national interests regarding
Haiti. With the return of Haiti's democratically-elected President near,
it is my hope and expectation that those U.N. and unilateral sanctions
that remain in effect, as detailed in this report, can soon be
terminated, and that I will shortly have the privilege of sending to you
my final report, pursuant to 50 U.S.C. 1641(c) on implementation of the
national emergency regarding Haiti declared 3 years ago by the previous
Administration in Executive Order No. 12775.
Sincerely,
William J. Clinton

Note: Identical letters were sent to Thomas S. Foley, Speaker of the
House of Representatives, and Albert Gore, Jr., President of the Senate.