News Home Page Costa Rica Latin America Sections Special Reports Travel/Tourism Real Estate Business Health The Internet Letters Opinion Colu millionists Leisure EroTica Entertainment The Take! Learn Spanish Photos Editorial Letters Opinion Columnists Public Forum Who We Are About Us Contact Us Advertise with us Subscribe to our Newsletter Links Page     LATIN AMERICA - Sunday 09 January 2005 < Back   Send this Page To a Friend Caribbean Community not to re-admit Haiti until after elections Haiti will not be allowed back into the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) until the country hold elections in December this year and democracy is restored, Jamaican Foreign Minister Keith Knight said Friday. "When democracy returns to Haiti, then that nation will be admitted again in the CARICOM. But there are things that have to occur before Haitian leaders appear in the bodies of the Caribbean Community," Knight said, according to reports from Georgetown, capital of Guyana. Despite petitions by Washington, which backs the transitional government of Haiti, CARICOM barred Haiti from attending its assemblies and councils, saying ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide was forced into exile in February 2003 and the current government's legitimacy is in question. But Knight said voting can not guarantee Haiti's re-entry into the regional body. "Democracy goes beyond elections. It has to do with how people are able to participate in power, and we would not want to see discriminating practices in Haiti," he said. CARICOM members are discontent with the transitional government headed by Prime Minister Gerard Latortue who "resorted to arbitrary practices" and failed to curb political violence and bring stability to the country, the Jamaican Foreign Minister said. "We are waiting to see if the democratic process is to arrive soon, and we remain concerned over the humanitarian situation in Haiti," Knight said. Latortue accused Guyana, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines of preventing Haiti from returning to CARICOM, but Knight insisted all members of the organization have consensus on the issue. Bands of rebels and former soldiers launched a three-week rebellion in February that ended with Aristide's ouster. A US-led peacekeeping force came to restore peace in Haiti, which was replaced in June by a 3,000-member United Nations (UN) force led by Brazil. However, the rebels and former soldiers have refused to disarm and some of them attempted to perform unauthorized law enforcement functions. Violence persisted in the poorest country in the Caribbeans. In November, the UN extended its mission until June this year and called for a national dialogue and reconciliation process among Haitian groups. It also expressed concerns over the arbitrary detentions of some Haitians by the government. Created in 1973, CARICOM groups Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Surinam, and Trinidad and Tobago.     Come Fly With Us! Let the power of advertising work for you.  Click here! 8 illegal combatants killed in fight in Colombia Eight members of illegal armed groups have been killed in fighting with government troops, the Colombian army said Saturday. As part of Operation Sagaz, the army killed three guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia in La Muerte, in the rural area of the northern province of Sucre, the army said in a statement. In the eastern province of Casanare, three paramilitaries were killed in clashes with government troops. In another military action, two guerrillas of the National Liberation Army were killed in San Fernando Alto, in the province of Magdalena, said the statement. The army "spotted and destroyed in a controlled way seven explosive devices" in Arauca and Norte de Santander provinces.

Today's Stories: Caribbean Community not to re-admit Haiti until after elections 8 illegal combatants killed in fight in Colombia