Word: haitian
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...thousands of Haitians who flocked to Port-au-Prince airport last Monday afternoon had come to cheer, applaud or just stare at the newly arrived U.S. troops. Once there, they could not resist the exhilarating urge to shout their joy at the imminent return of the man whose name could not be spoken and whose picture could not be displayed for the past three years. "Vive Titid!" they cried, invoking their affectionate sobriquet for exiled President Jean- Bertrand Aristide. "Down with Cedras!" Suddenly, two Haitian army officers appeared, dragging a skinny young man who was moaning pitifully. His face...
Unsure of what to do, a small group of American soldiers, who had landed only hours before, stood aside to let the trio pass. Once inside the terminal, the Haitian officers began methodically beating their silent and defenseless prisoner. Listening to the sickening thud of fists on flesh, one of the U.S. soldiers turned his face away and exclaimed, "They're really messing him up. And we can't do anything...
...next day. Hampered by strict rules of nonengagement, hundreds of American soldiers found themselves watching helplessly as Haiti's blue-uniformed police and khaki-clad army troops waded into the capital's crowds, swinging metal nightsticks and indiscriminately firing tear-gas canisters. In front of the harbor, the Haitian authorities conducted brief sorties, beating anyone who fell or faltered. They broke up a demonstration by hurtling through the middle of the crowd in a van. One police officer attacked bystanders with a yard-long crowbar, using the tool's hook to gouge the flesh of his targets. Another slammed...
...Haitians, such abuses under the nose of the Americans who had come to rescue them were a shocking dose of the treatment they have endured ever since the 1991 coup forced Aristide from power. As the U.S. soldiers watched and did nothing, Haitian onlookers became increasingly perplexed and hostile. "I know you guys are working hard," shouted one man to troops sitting on a wall. "But people here are suffering." The inaction only heightened the suspicion of collusion. "How could the United States be so stupid?" another demanded. "For months you call these men thugs, murderers, thieves and drug dealers...
Among the Haitian military men who have been brusquely muscled to the sidelines, many now bear the added insult of sharing their accommodations with U.S. soldiers. On Friday, while Haitian troopers played dominoes on one end of their balcony at the capital's general quarters, G.I.s on the other end snoozed in the afternoon heat. "How do I feel?" asked a member of the Haitian high command. "That's a delicate question." He glanced away for a long time, then simply looked back at his guest. The silence underscored his humiliation...