5,000 take streets as Haitian people resist UN occupation

The word that best fits the mass resistance in Haiti to the UN/U.S. occupation of that country is heroic.

New York, July 16.

A sea of people from Cité Soleil came out into the streets July 9 for the funeral of Emmanuel "Dread" Wilme. Three days earlier, tanks from the United Nations occupation force had rolled into their community before sunrise and, with the support of at least one helicopter, killed Wilme, his wife and a child because Dread Wilme was a leader of Lavalas in Cité Soleil.

One resident of Cité Soleil explained the reasons for the UN massacre to the newspaper Haïtí-Progrès. "The foreigner assaulted the Cité to kill Aristide supporters. They can't kill us all. Even if they managed to, our children would take over the resistance. They killed Dread Wilme but we are still here to continue his struggle."

Haitians rally July 16 in New York against massacre.

Dread Wilme opposed the coup that Washington organized, financed and implemented 18 months ago in Haiti. Wilme and his supporters--most of this extremely poor community--demanded the physical return of the democratically elected president of Haiti, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, along with justice and democracy.

According to estimates from a Labor/Human Rights Delegation that was in Port-au-Prince when this UN massacre took place, at least 23 people were killed. George Honorat, a journalist with Haïtí-Progrès in Port-au-Prince, says the UN killed 80 to 100 people.

Seth Donnelly of the Labor/Human Rights Delegation was present at Wilme's funeral. Donnelly said, "Speakers expressed respect for Wilme as someone who embodied the hopes of the community, someone who attempted to stand up for and protect his community. They vowed to continue the struggle for the rights of the poor in Haiti to health care, education and democracy. In this spirit, they also vowed to fight for the return of President Aristide."

He continued, "One young female speaker stirred the crowd with her words affirming the dignity of the people of Cité Soleil and their right to be treated as human beings."

Twice rumors spread through the crowd at the funeral that UN tanks were coming back with their heavy machine guns. People fled, even though young men with rifles were present to provide security.

Lavalas supporters called a demonstration July 14 in Cité Soleil to protest this massacre. Around one or two in the morning UN forces,  known by the acronym MINUSTAH, attacked again, killing three children in their homes. They also blew off the steel door of a local church. According to Honorat, they "certainly attacked the people to intimidate them in order [to get them] not to participate in the demonstrations."

Honorat continued, "But the people threw bottles and rocks at the MINUSTAH so they had to drive back and the people cut the roads so the tanks could not enter Cité Soleil." Later 5,000 people came out and a peaceful rally was held from 10:30 to 12:30 at night.

Subhead: Protest at UN headquarters

Another protest was held July 16 in front of the United Nations building in New York. There were chants, speeches, some music and signs, some graphically showing the deaths and disfigurement produced by UN troops. Protesters demanded that MINUSTAH be withdrawn and that the United States and France stop propping up the coup in Haiti and allow Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the democratically elected president, to return.

A Brazilian general heads the military part of MINUSTAH and Brazil has the largest contingent of troops. Representatives of Japan, Germany and India, as well as Brazil, are maneuvering to gain a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

Some Brazilian trade unions have called for demonstrations July 21 to protest Brazilian participation in the occupation of Haiti. Support demonstrations in front of Brazilian consulates are planned in San Francisco, Montreal, New York and Miami. These protests will point out that these massacres of Haitian people are "made in the USA" and the UN forces are a proxy force doing the dirty work for the U.S. government and their partners in crime.

Some right-wing commentators in the United States have belittled the demonstrations, saying that "only" thousands of Haitians have gone into the streets to demand Aristide's return. Of course, they don't point out that anyone who demonstrates for Aristide or against the current, de facto government in Haiti risks their life. Haitian cops break up demonstrations by killing participants.

But the de facto government has called for elections in October and November and now has been registering voters. Less than 5 percent of the eligible voters have signed up and it is expected that, at most, another 5 percent will sign up before registration closes in September.

The Haitian people are boycotting this election as a sham, a "selection" that can only pretend to be democratic.

The slogan Haitians adopted in their revolution against the French slaveowners two centuries ago was "Liberty or death." The protesting masses in Haiti have again put that slogan into practice and are putting tremendous pressure on their bourgeoisie and the UN/U.S. occupation of their country.