I am honored to have the opportunity to introduce today's speaker president jean-bertrand aristide who will discuss the current situation in Haiti. The Minnesota lawyers international human rights committee has worked for several years on human issues human rights issues in Haiti including children's rights Juvenile Justice the treatment of Haitian refugees and an ins Detention Center in Florida and most recently legal representation for those fleeing persecution under the current military government. Haiti is a country that continues to be the focus of news in our hemisphere whether it is the news of an election aborted by military violence, the crushing weight of poverty that leads parents to hand over their children into domestic servitude or the faces of tens of thousands of refugees fleeing on rickety boats. We dare not ignore the events in this densely populated island nation. In February 1991 the world received some good news from Haiti. The installation of President John verse truant John Bertrand are a steed as the first freely and democratically elected president in the nation's history. Winning over 67 percent of the popular vote president RS Deeds election represented a revolution in Haiti politics. A democratic Revolution a peaceful revolution in this country long ruled by military power and Corruption. But this revolution obviously proved to be too threatening to the military Elite on September 29th. Only eight months after his inauguration a military coup overthrew. The democratically elected government of Haiti president aristide was detained and after negotiations between the military and the French Venezuelan and u.s. Ambassador's he was sent into exile. In the wake of the coup Amnesty International has documented hundreds of extrajudicial extrajudicial killings and thousands of arrests often accompanied by brutal torture. Today's news again brought word of increased violence with many new killings in Port-au-Prince by the military. In the center of this storm is jean-bertrand aristide a charismatic spokesperson for the poor and the disenfranchised. Born in 1953 in Haiti aristide received his bachelor's degree in 1976 from the University there after studying psychology and philosophy. He was ordained a salesian priest in 1980 and began to preach Liberation theology committing his ministry to the dignity and human rights of the poor in his country. ARA steeds popularity grew quickly and the military took notice his active involvement with Hades disenfranchised created increasing pressure from his order to stop preaching in favor of the poor. Aristide and his followers were the targets of several violent incidents by the military government. Finally a dozen people were killed and 70 wounded during a military Ambush while he was saying mass at Saint Jean Bosco Church on September 11th 1988. salesian authorities in Rome ordered RSD to leave the country Grassroots organizations sprung up to oppose his departure. Aristide stayed in Rome expelled him from his order one month later. I think you will find our speaker today to be a person of tremendous inner strength and dignity. He is a poet a musician a songwriter and a philosopher who speaks eight languages. Today as president. He carries the weight of his country's misery and the hope of his country's Democratic dreams on his shoulders. Please join me in welcoming president. Jean-bertrand aristide. dear Barbara and members of Minnesota international human rights committee dear friends brothers and sisters once again I want to thank you because the more we are together the more stronger we become and the more we can make the world better. 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Another meal news 0.2 Amelia in the year 2000 will have 1.3 and to 2.3 billion four people in the year in the year of 2000 will have 1.3 billion of poor people and in the year of 2025 will have 1.5 poor people. dog voila and tableau I see dramatic. Those are dramatic statistics. So seen Jose tell people to scum situation Gmod which calls us all as citizens of the world. Mircea vuckovich. Asia travel apparently made me and thank you. So since you have already worked to make the world better Marciano deep of jemand, thank you in the name of a poor people of the world. Now, we got the idea La Lumiere the suitable you looking at Haiti in light of these statistics. These are happy. Mama. Let us say quickly put the mill Isaiah. For 10,000 Haitians new novel about the medicine. We do not have to Physicians doctors. Selma up way with only one point eight put him in isolation for 10,000 Haitians. We do not have two nurses Selma a point. If only 1 Point 9. I've excelled my second 60 P2P set million the bitter with only 56 hospital for 7 million inhabitants. No novel bodily. Push-up Mill. I said we do not have to bed for five and Haitians. Selma opposite on the 1.7 puta Hello. Less than 2% of the Asian population less than 1% Let's have for themself more than 45% of the national Revenue. It's unbelievable, but it's the reality. Guess good news with sit why I die T situation German pavano Fair. What is it that we citizen of Haiti's is another world can do permitted. Mwah the fur in a lesion philosophic treasure buried allow me to make philosophical illusion quickly cut suppose a logician savant could watch Fair could be fair when the questions. What can I do? What must I do were raised by the philosopher cunt He was used to ask what I have to do. What can I do? Kierkegaard fears a Christian philosophy Jack regard fled his philosophical question Louis Alicia. Pallavi Kitty. He did not look for reality. It shocked us under gravity pulls having it was looking for a center of gravity for his life news or democrat do G. We Democrats of today we ask ourselves. What can we do what must we do so cynical and we allow shedule Authority which leads us to look for truth. He said Verity Aleppo souk. UK guard over here notice under Gravity and this truth in a position to Kierkegaard becomes our center of gravity David upon whose would be civil suit and you are our truth today. There's omitted from Kiev. Elwha lovey men and women who want to see life love abou a lava pool has a good life. For them in life for this less. It has been in use in the United States have helped us to give life to Haiti through the elections. Let the criminal confesses coup d'état by criminals were to deliver the coup d'etat 023 love Epoch calculated you transept. Mmm. I've killed Life by the Creditor of the 30th of September too. Lazy for synergic Albert's energy called efforts or de la diferencia dy/dt. Outside of the borders of Haiti Condoleezza or to democracy which tended to push for the return of democracy new country Viva. La Vie will lead us to life laughs people it love Ebola situation German life for Haiti life for citizen of the world laughs upon us a parabola show life for us is not money first. Laughs beep. Oh, no said Ebola VT. It is truth laughing. He taking a country life is this truth that leads to Justice largest disk, no country or respected words. You may Justice which leads us to the respect of the human laws. Well, uh Pookie, ah, no person could be that's why we think today no por favor juvenil a democracy united we can Make a democracy come back to Haiti and she fell aggravate La Vie and in such a fashion. Bring life back. I teach at the purple no, Viola Haiti, the Haitians are nonviolent people love you, lost institutional easy institutionalized violence via to you the set Min dohee T. Always come from Minority. It's Eliza the póvoa De La Tour. D'azyr's am using the power of a money and the power of their armaments put will have e to kill life Rima up really cool data at months after the coup d'etat Looper. I see a continued idea. We are having reaction people keep on saying yes to life, you know padam pussy different control a criminal but you don't have weapons to defend themselves against the criminals. No civil suit black community International. You have a weapon UV International Community leader arm sea level on TV vac communion of a group the weapon is the will to live in community with you. So who knows some family without you we are weak to Phablet to week I've ever known some for with you. We are strong Blue Falcon has am the criminal stronger than the weapons of a criminal's senate with wha this is our faith not conviction conviction. Simple question is why this morning in the name of Haiti Jesus report a vocation. I want to answer your questions. Wow comma exploration mode economic to see how to explore its economical World repairing. Let's invest this much evil in the world. Is it as you need to prepare? Investments that will come from the United States certain map Reservoir donate last ability politic. IG, certainly after having given political stability to Haiti. So ready not to talk to you, but to talk with you on behalf of our country through the answer. I will share according to your questions. I'm really happy to see how today once again we can face that country get together ready to talk and to see how together we can make it better as we always say alone. We are weak together. We are strong all together. We are the flood we are Louisville has once again, thank you. Thank you President aristide. We have a first question here from Don Conley who's president of the American Refugee committee down. Mr. President. I would like to ask you a two or three part question on the point of Haitian refugees. The question has to do with your assessment of what number of people in your country today given the present circumstance desire to leave. The second part is what specifically would you say to the United States that it should do with regard to that population. And then a third part, which is perhaps a little more far-reaching. Assuming that you will return properly to rule the country to which you have been elected. What would you do to assure that that population would indeed desire to return to Haiti at some point in the future? Thanks. They are talking about over 34,000 political refugees fleeing political situation in Haiti. It might be more than that. but officially they said that when we were in Haiti from February 91 to September 91. We still had misery and we wanted to pass for misery to poverty. With dignity because the Haitian people voted for dignity. Freedom peace democracy and they got that. In spite of misery, they were in Haiti during those seven months. Once the coop happen, they started to leave the country. Of course because the team of thugs who Let The Coop kill more than 2,000 people they don't want to be killed. So they are fleeing political repression. They went to contain Amo some of them they went them back. They send them back to Haiti and twice there in Guantanamo even soldiers. You can realize in the news today. There is a dramatic picture. Of a woman and she doesn't want to be again in Haiti. That tell us how the Haitian people. Will not accept any more dictatorship. What I would tell United States. President Bush wants to stop refugees. We want that. the same goal he wants democracy for Haiti. We want that the same goal. Now the way to do that. different I believe. Once we have democracy back in Haiti. The Haitian people will stay in Haiti and it's the only way to have the solution. When can we have democracy back in Haiti today? Let's remember in 18 in 1986. Jean-Claude duvalier left Haiti after a phone call. Then General are we left Haiti after phone call then General now feel the same way. Why after eight months Citrus cannot leave Haiti. Serious is the general of the army. There is something wrong somewhere. How can we say those? But people are smaller than the ship's who bring petrol to Haiti and they cannot stop them. Once they would stop those ships bringing oil to Haiti. Those who let the cook would have to negotiate. How can be shoe? The future will be better in terms of your third part of the question. I think we have to have another Army. According to our constitution we need an army, even if we would live without an army only with a police force the same way we have it in Costa Rica or somewhere else. Anyway, according to our constitution. We will have to live with an army but not these are me with these team of thugs who let the cook because we say no to impunity the same way. We say no to vengeance. The country look like a broken glasses. We have to put all the sectors together in unity. And to do that we cannot do it with those Thugs who let the cook because what they want is to have all the power for himself food drugs trafficking. All the corruption to give money back to them not the law not the Constitution and we want an army with love with the Constitution who accept Unity of all the nation. That's why we say no to impunity. No to Vengeance. We say we cannot bless impunity. That's immoral. Yes to Justice. No to Vengeance. We are show the same way before election people were afraid about what would happen in Haiti in case we would win. In fact, we told them Haitian people are nonviolent. We will win you will see peace in the country. In fact, we celebrate a wedding between the Haitian people and the Army on that day. We took office and we spent seven months in peace. It was the first time in our history. We could have peace security for Rich for poo for military for civil the same way today. We will go back to that beautiful time peace security for military civil rich and poor building unity. And that way those pieces will get together to have the nation we're talking about. Thank you President aristide. We have a question now from John climber. Mr. President just a follow-up to the refugee problem in the boat people problem. If you could help me with a shorter term Focus we're faced right now with people that are fleeing the country on boats and our response at this point is to turn the boats around or heard the people together and push them back. Could you just help me with what what should be an appropriate response or what are our range of options as we're trying to deal with the with the problem? I was in Venezuela when we receive around 100 refugees from Haiti in Venezuela Even I was there with them. They said we will not stay in Venezuela. We left Haiti because you wanted to reach United States would prefer to go back to Haiti instead of staying in Venezuela those refugees who were also in some other countries for instance under s Brazil. Belize they said the same we left Haiti because you wanted to go to United States. Now we cannot reach United States will prefer to go back to Haiti because in their mind United States, it's a kind of paradise. It's a kind of country where once you get there. You have something better until they see how is the reality here? They will have in the mind that kind of sky that kind of paradise. That's why I think the solution will not. Do look where we can put them. They will still feel feel missing the paradise. They will still try to live Haiti. The solution from my point of view is to put pressure on those who let the cook and that way to have democracy back in Haiti. And the same way I explain it. It's possible today to have democracy back in Haiti's a question of knowing whether or not they want that because if they want that they will do that 37 countries together United States in Haiti in all together. How can we say we are too weak to stop one criminals after eight months. How can we say it's impossible to stop ships bringing oil? Once those who Let The Coop realize there is no more ships with oil they would start to negotiate because what happened in Los Angeles can happen in Haiti. They know that and we don't want that because we are for non-violent resistance not for any kind of violent resistance. And unfortunately the way we see the reality what happened in Los Angeles can happen as soon as possible in Haiti. That's why we believe the more we can talk with people to put pressures on those who have big responsibility. To stop ships bringing oil or to bring back democracy the more we can give the best answer to the refugees. Thank you President aristide. We have a next question from Richard green who's the director of educational Affairs at Honeywell, Nick. Mr. President how effective is the educational system in the current situation? And what is the level of attendance at secondary schools and institutions of higher education in Haiti I explained how we have 85% illiterate. It's because what we had as politic in the past was a kind of politic to make sure the poor would women pull and that way they could use them exploit them. So no school for poor. and according to our constitution we have to move to a campaign of the literacy and combined alphabetization. literacy campaign we have chess. A few people who had the chance to go to school, but most of them those 15% are ready to help those 85% for instance in the school. The student were asking for that campaign and ready even to stop going to school for one year and doing something for their fellow countrymen. Let's move member a very good fact and historical one not because we want to reproduce what we saw there because we are Haiti and they are who they are just to make sure it's possible in terms of Education. in Nicaragua They prepare a company and in six months, they could pass from 52% illiterate to 12% illiterate. That was possible why we cannot do something for Haiti not in terms of reproducing what they have in Nicaragua. No, Nicaragua is Nicaragua Haiti is Haiti. Nicaragua did his Revolution through weapons. We did our political revolution through elections without weapons and will continue without weapons. This is the way we choose but that way has to bring us to another country where we will not have 85% illiterate in 1992 where we can have people going to school. This is indispensable for education. Thank you. We have a question now from Don buck. Mr. President is one of the causes of Haiti's poverty population growth. Yes and know if I can answer that way. We have 27,000 square kilometers for 7 million Haitian. in the world each time we have 100 boys we have 105 girls but unfortunately The boys died much more than bit more before than the girls. That's why we still see even if we control the birth. We will not have in the world what we can have in Haiti because in Haiti boys or girls they die quickly for the world 14 millions of kids before having five years before being five years old died every year so you can imagine for Haiti how he thinks they died because they died. We don't have so many Haitian the way we could have that but because Haitian say we need children. They have a lot of children and they will continue having a lot of children. Now the answer for us as Government. It's not to impose a birth control to them it to pass through education. Once they have school, they talk about that they will be aware and in terms of morality, they will choose even birth control not as something we would impose to them but as something they can them from themselves, which so the poverty comes not from the number of Haitian we have first from those who are president or or the government or who are leading the army. Usually what we had Chiefs people as president government chief of the army using the power to become richer using the corruption in the administration to keep money for themselves instead of doing what they have to do according to love so that poverty is worst than the number of Haitian blessed God. We are moving to another kind of government to another kind of army where we respect love where we respect human rights where we can do what our constitution asked us to do for instance a campaign of early literacy to make sure people will know about how many children they can have and how to control birth Thank you. You're listening to jean-bertrand aristide Exile president of Haiti speaking to the Minnesota meeting on the station's of Minnesota Public Radio. We have a next question here from Bob Froakie. Mr. President I don't intend this to be an unfriendly question. But I suspect that many people in this room read the William raspberry article in yesterday's paper. He's a respected columnist for the Washington Post. I would say that column was unfriendly and specifically he questioned your human rights during your term of office. He claimed that it was not what it should be. Would you comment please? Yes. It gives to us the possibility to show whether or not we are democratic. When we cannot accept the opposition to say what they want, even when they lie is not democratically. So in terms of democracy, I accept to listen to them even when I know they are lying in terms of psychology. Daisy trap they accuse you and that way you can lose time trying to defend yourself instead of using that time to see what is going on. In terms of politics. Let's remember those who had the same weapons in their hands in September 11 88 when I was celebrating Mass. They came to the church kill more than 50 people burn the church even it was on Sunday, even we were praying even it was in front of all. If they could do that that time, how can we believe they cannot do something else on September 30 when they kill one man. Unfortunately, save your clothes in order to present themselves to the International Community saying look at what happened. They killed that man. And with the Army we come to put order. That's why they did that the same way on September 11 88 they could do what they did the way I explain. So we believe we have just to compare what we have doing our seven months of democracy from February 91 to September 91 with what they have as detective ship from The Coop to today having more than two thousand people kill having children killed having so many people fleeing political repression having no freedom for depressed because they don't want people to know what is going on. So that Rai will answer to them we say well You kill people and you lie to try to hide what you did and we will not lose time defending ourselves with words. We just invite people to compare what we had and what you are doing. Thank you President aristide. We have a question now from Stephanie Carney. Mr. President I've often been I've often been curious about what motivates a hero and I don't very often have a chance to ask a question. But when it really gets hard when the struggle becomes almost too much for you to bear from what source do you draw your strength? Thanks. I will try to answer in English. But I know in French that will come out is first I believe in God and I don't try to meet God in the sky. I try to meet him in you when I love God and I realize I love you. Every people even said was even all those were trying to kill me. No problem for me to have love in my heart for them. There is no place for hate. So because I feel I meet God in men and women and I feel I am in love still in love with Humanity that love Feed me that love make me strong that love make me happy to live that way giving my life for people the same way Jesus did that and of course love is Justice God is love God is Justice when we say, we will not bless impunity. It's because we believe in that God who is Justice not because we hate people now they are kind of danger they kill so many people so we have True Justice to neutralize them in order to make sure they will not repeat what they are doing since 200 years passing from Kotaku killing people using drug trafficking. So Justice must be done through love and also I think When we Face the world when we remember the reality of the world. I find Willie courage from that reality. The more is bad. The more I feel stronger to do something to make it better. And because I know I'm not the only one because I know they are people they are a lot of people here according to what I know. They are doing the same work and form that work. I find courage to go further and it's a kind of transcendence for me when I say Transcendence is because I don't believe we are our body without being our spirit because our spirit is the spirit of Justice they can kill our body but they will never be able to kill our spirit the same way. They killed the body of Jesus but not his spirit because spirit is Justice love freedom and sharing that with you like that. I saw our friend Bob coming to tell me it's Time it's over. And I will tell her thanks once again because she gave me a lot of strange Courage, by the way. She is doing he her job with all the other lies against the Liars giving truth. So once again, thank you to you and you can be sure one day because of you and the orders we will be in Haiti to welcome you there and you will be happy and proud to see what you are doing. You will have it in your hands in Haiti. Thanks a lot.