The Hindu : U.S. denies Aristide's `coup' charge

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 03, 2004

International

International

U.S. denies Aristide's `coup' charge

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, MARCH 2. The Bush administration has denied that the leader of Haiti, Jean Bertrand Aristide, was driven out of power by the United States or that he had been `kidnapped' and taken out of the country.

Allegations of a `coup' came from Mr. Aristide in telephone calls to news organisations and members of Congress. The White House dismissed the allegations as "complete nonsense".

"The allegations that somehow we kidnapped former President Aristide are baseless, absurd," said the Secretary of State, Colin Powell. "He was not kidnapped. We did not force him onto the airplane. He went onto the airplane willingly. And that is the truth."

What this Republican administration would acknowledge is that it had been made clear to Mr. Aristide that Washington could not protect him if he clung to power and that safe passage could be given if he leaves the country by dawn on Sunday.

The administration, which is already feeling the heat from the Democrats who say that Washington did too little too late, outlined the sequence leading to the departure of Mr. Aristide. And one of the things pointed out is that Mr. Aristide himself had decided to resign and that it was his bodyguards that escorted him to the airport.

The final blunt message from the White House came on Saturday evening; and according to media reports Mr. Aristide had even written his letter of resignation — in Creole — on Saturday. In fact, an official has been quoted in The New York Times as saying that when the U.S. Ambassador to Haiti, James Foley, asked Mr. Aristide to send him an E-mail last week, the response was that the computer had already been packed.

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