Disappearance In Haiti

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32028, 1 July 1969, Page 20

Disappearance In Haiti

(N Z. Press Assn. —Copyright? ; PORT-AU-PRINCE 1 (Haiti). . In a land where the J bizarre has long been i commonplace, few Haiti- ' ans find the present ! tense political climate notable, reports the New York Times News Ser- 1 vice. i I Many people vanish here i In the best of times, visitors < are told. Because of malnutrition, ' disease and political condi- ' tions, most of the people of Haiti, the hemisphere’s poorest country, have a tenuous hold on life. The latest series of disappearances began on May 8, when President Francois Duvalier, who is commonly known as “Papa Doc," was stricken by an undisclosed affliction. In the weeks that followed, while Government officials offered few clues on whether the 62-year-old President was dead or alive, scores of Haitians vanished. Many of these were last seen entering a small building near the capital’s water-f-ont—Fort Dimanche (Sunday). a political prison, which, like other gaols in Haiti, is named after a day of the week. Badly Decomposed On June 2, “Le Noveau Monde,” a semi-official newspaper run by a Frenchman, Mr Rene de Catalogue, reported that 22 Communist leaders had been killed In a suburban hideout Those who saw the bodies the next day said privately that 20 of them were badly decomposed and were -the remains of those who had vanished into Fort Dimanche. AU the dead were exhibited at the prison. It is quite usual in Haiti,, observers say. for enemies of; the regime to be accused of; being Communists. “Papa Doc thinks this makes it easier for Washington to swallow the mess,” one diplomat explained. I

The deaths evoked a res-| ponse from a group of i Haitian exiles in Florida on 1 June 4. With an American I crew flying an old four- 1 engined aircraft, six exites ! flew low over the city, firing < machine guns and dropping < a dozen 40-gallon drums of 1 inflammable material. < Exploded in Slum 1 One drum fell between the ! Presidential Palace and the ! army barracks behind it, 1 causing no damage. Some 1 drums fell into the sea. One exploded in a particularly j wretched slum near the 1 Notre Dame Cathedral, kill- I ing the six-month-old daugh- 1 ter of a gardener for the 1 United States Ambassador (Mr Claude Ross). An undisclosed number of people were also killed or wounded ; in the ensuing panic. One effect of the raid was , that censorship of press, ’■eports was tightened, and Mr de Catalogne spent a busy period helping foreign ; newsmen stay out of gaol. Another effect was that President Duvalier spoke ; pubHcly for the first time since his illness. In a 12minute address on June 5, , he blamed Cuban Communists for the raid and asked for United States military aid Regime Odious All United States direct aid to Haiti was ended in 1962 by President Kennedy, who found the Haitian regime odious. The cut-off has embittered even the elements most ooposed to the Government. They say that Washington is actually punishing the most wretched people in this hemisphere. However, Washington has been giving a small but growing amount of food, medicines and other materials through the Organisation of American States and the United Nations. Such aid has had a profound imnact on this land of i four million people with a ; per-capita income of SU.S.4O '.a year. Although the aid groups working in Haiti are reluctant to mention figures, i they emphasise that the help - by-passes the Government and Igoes directly to the people.

' A side effect has been a rather orderly economic programme and budget developed by the Government to husband its gross income of some SU.S.4Om a year, mostly from custom taxes. Partly because of a growing tourist flow. Haiti has an enviable record of monetary, soundness and prompt payment of her debts, although her currency—the gourde (five to the dollar)— is unacceptable in foreign markets. The aid groups operate quietly, mainly in-rural areas because the 400,000 destitute people of Port-au-Prince, the capital, are considered better off by comparison. Wage of 75c An increasing number of industries are springing up in Haiti. Taking advantage of the going wage of 75c a day, manufacturers are producing underwear, baseballs, footwear and other export items, using completely imported materials. The more progressive manufacturers, many of them from Puerto Rico, pay SU.S.2 a day. The impact has been keenly felt by the economy, particularly because many of these employers use women, who are generally the breadwinners in Haiti. The manufacturers are impressed by the charm and dexterity of Haitians. In spite of its poverty, Haiti is free of street crime and drug addiction. The people boast that in spite of the disappearances, the average person can walk about day or night without fear of violence.