Reactions to the return of Baby Doc

[Sidney]

Notorious for his brutal regime, the ousted former dictator of Haiti, 59-year old Jean Claude Duvalier (Baby Doc) returned to Haiti yesterday traveling on a Haitian diplomatic passport. He is accused of widespread corruption, repression and human rights abuses since he inherited government from his father and ruled Haiti from 1971-1986 prior to having been ousted in a coup. He has since resided in France and arrived on an Air France flight after 25 years abroad.

Listin Diario interviewed two Dominican former ministers of foreign relations for their comments. Victor Gomez Berges (Joaquin Balaguer administration) speculated "all indicates that he was brought there by the US, by the US government, seeking to establish a strong regime, capable of putting order in the neighboring republic. He felt this is a message that President Rene Preval will not stay on beyond 7 February. He doubted that ousted former President Jean Bertrand Aristide would be allowed to return. "Duvalier is more inclined towards the US, more pro-US than Aristide, and the Americans are trying to find a way to organize Haiti with a strong government," he speculated. He said the DR would benefit from a government that could control the situation in Haiti.

Former Minister Hugo Tolentino Dipp (Hipolito Mejia administration) said the situation is strange in that a former dictator is being welcomed as some kind of divine envoy. "I wonder how Justice, government and how the situation will be. One cannot know if this will contribute to the creation of more problems," he wondered.

Meanwhile, the return of Baby Doc has boosted international coverage on Haiti, with dozens of journalists expected to arrive to cover the return and possible reasons.

[questner]

How about a pretext of using zee DOC to get a US mandate over Haiti?

[DMV]

WOW, I guess that money that's coming in is a incentive to come back. There's isn't an uproar of his return?

[Mr Hillbilly]

When I was in Santiago a guy that was staying at hotel was head of movement to make the DR and Haiti US territories.

[Jimmydr]

When I was in Santiago a guy that was staying at hotel was head of movement to make the DR and Haiti US territories.

We Americans would have to vote on that and I would say, it would never happen.

[Mr Hillbilly]

We Americans would have to vote on that and I would say, it would never happen.

No clue he wanted to chat-- I didn't

[tomgueguen]

Seems that everyday Haïti goes farther in the worst.

How can we imagine that this guy who killed thousand of people is allowed to put one foot on the ground without being immediatly arrested?

It's not very different of ****** found alive and returning to Germany!!!

That's crazy! How can he travels with a diplomatic Haitian passport???

[Bhutto,BhuttoGolly]

Seems that everyday Haïti goes farther in the worst.

How can we imagine that this guy who killed thousand of people is allowed to put one foot on the ground without being immediatly arrested?

It's not very different of ****** found alive and returning to Germany!!!

That's crazy! How can he travels with a diplomatic Haitian passport???

******? you mean, He who cannot be named?!?

[MrHappy]

My jaw dropped when I heard the news. It took everyone by surprise.

I'm guessing he'll get arrested. The only supporters you see on the news are folks that weren't even born yet when he left. How they can claim things were better back then truly demonstrates how ignorant some folks can be.

[Klockman]

Thanks for posting this, I've spent much of the past hour reading up on Baby Doc and his father. I agree that it would seem strange that he wasn't immediately arrested especially after they announced he was constitutionally free to return but would face a trial if he did so.

I'll be following this story closely

[tomgueguen]

******? you mean, He who cannot be named?!?

I was surprised to see that some names cannot be named.

If so, Baby Doc should not be named.

I am sure that if Trujillo could came back to DR there will be some folks to greet him and many more than we can imagine!!!

[weyland]

I was surprised to see that some names cannot be named.

If so, Baby Doc should not be named.

I am sure that if Trujillo could came back to DR there will be some folks to greet him and many more than we can imagine!!!

Almost by accident, there were good aspects to Trujillo's rule which you don't find with the Duvaliers. Trujillo grabbed enormous chunks of the Dominican economy, farms and businesses, and ran them as his private property. It was therefore in his own interest that he did not run them into the ground. The Duvaliers, on the other hand, bled the country and sent the proceeds abroad without re-investing anything in the country.

Trujillo does still have a lot of support among the older poor. Their lot has not improved since his day and looking back from a distance they remember things as being better than they actually were. Certainly the gap between rich and poor is greater now than then.

[knotty]

My jaw dropped when I heard the news. It took everyone by surprise.

I'm guessing he'll get arrested. The only supporters you see on the news are folks that weren't even born yet when he left. How they can claim things were better back then truly demonstrates how ignorant some folks can be.

Haiti prosecutor charges "Baby Doc" with graft, theft


PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) – A Haitian prosecutor on Tuesday formally charged former dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier with corruption, theft, misappropriation of funds and other alleged crimes committed during his 1971-1986 rule.
"His fate is now in the hands of the investigating judge. We have brought charges against him," Port-au-Prince Chief Prosecutor Aristidas Auguste told Reuters.
The charges must now be investigated by the judge who will decide whether a judicial case should go ahead.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110118/...haiti_duvalier