US urged to disarm rebels, hold key leaders (AI and HRW)

[Say_What]

A human rights worker in Haiti who had to flee yesterday said that if something is not done that " they are going to be killing democracy supporters".

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WASHINGTON -- Human rights groups urged the US-led peacekeepers in Haiti to immediately disarm rebel and militia groups and arrest key rebel leaders as concerns rose that democracy activists and government officials are in growing danger from former soldiers -- some of whose commanders are convicted murderers -- who have filled the power vacuum in Port-au-Prince.

Amnesty International called on the United States, France, and Canada, which began dispatching troops to Haiti on Sunday, to disarm both rebel forces and militias loyal to former president Jean Bertrand-Aristide, and to take into custody at least two rebel leaders who face jail terms for human rights offenses in the early 1990s.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch, citing the deteriorating political situation, accused the United States of violating international law by repatriating more than 1,000 asylum seekers in recent weeks "to a place where their lives or freedom are endangered."

A growing chorus of aid workers, Haiti specialists, and rights activists said yesterday that the current situation -- with former army commanders and other armed rebels roaming the capital -- threatens both the democratic opposition and human rights workers who in the past sought to bring to justice some of the very individuals who are now quickly becoming power brokers.

<http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2004/03/03/us_urged_to_disarm_rebels_hold_key_leaders/>