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03 March 2004

Cheney Says Aristide Made Own Choice to Resign as Haiti's President

Vice President says Aristide had "worn out welcome" in Haiti

By Eric Green
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Vice President Richard Cheney says former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigned his office of his "own free will" and left his country voluntarily.

Interviewed March 3 on the U.S. Fox News Channel cable network, Cheney rejected charges that the United States, by not interceding militarily earlier in the Haitian crisis, participated in a de-facto coup against Aristide.

"I think [that's] not a valid charge," said Cheney. "This is not the first time I've watched a Haiti crisis unfold. I think we moved very rapidly and decisively" in Haiti.

Cheney said the reality was that Aristide "had worn out his welcome" in Haiti. "He was democratically elected, but he didn't govern in a democratic manner and had reached the point where clearly the opposition groups, rebels, were increasingly successful at undermining his authority," said Cheney.

The vice president said Aristide made the choice to leave, adding that the former Haitian leader "resigned the office of his own free will" and departed Haiti with his security detail on a U.S.-charted civilian aircraft.

No U.S. armed forces were around Aristide when he left, Cheney said.

"We didn't coerce him to get on the airplane," Cheney said. "We helped facilitate his departure when he indicated he was ready to go."

Cheney said Aristide made the right decision to leave the country. It was the "right decision for the people of Haiti," said the vice president.

Cheney's remarks came amid news reports that about 500 U.S. Marines are now in place in Haiti, along with about 200 French troops. They will be joined by troops from other countries in the region, bringing total multinational troop strength in Haiti to several thousand.

The Voice of America reported that U.S. Marine Colonel David Berger said troops from France and the United States are taking up positions at what he called key "friction points" in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince to prevent violence.

The U.S. Defense Department said total U.S. troop strength in Haiti is not expected to exceed 2,000. The United Nations has authorized the deployment of a multinational force for Haiti, which is expected to grow to about five thousand troops over the next few weeks.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)