INDEPTH: HAITI
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
CBC News Online | February 22, 2006
Jean-Bertrand Aristide (AP photo)
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Schooled predominately in a Catholic environment, the 50-year old former president's interest in the liberal arts led him to post-graduate studies in psychology and theology in Haiti, and to Rome and Israel where he studied biblical theology for two years.
In 1983, Aristide was ordained and appointed curate of a small parish outside Port-au-Prince. His religiosity soon developed some strong political language and he found himself litigating on behalf of his poor parishioners.
A progressive Catholic and outspoken critic of Haiti's ruler, Jean-Claude Duvalier, Aristide used his radio sermons to mobilize Haiti's predominately poor population against the Duvalier government and the military governments that followed.
In 1986, Aristide founded a home for street children called The Family is life.
It's believed Aristide survived nine attempts on his life, one occurring in 1988 while he was giving mass. He survived but dozens of churchgoers were killed. Aristide was later expelled from the Salesian order for mixing politics with religion.
HAITIAN CONSTITUTION AND PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSION
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The Haitian constitution was ratified in 1987 by a referendum. It was abolished in 1988 after a military coup, but was readopted in 1990 after civilian rule was restored.
Article 149 of the constitution states that "Should the office of the President of the Republic become vacant for any reason, the President of the Supreme Court of the Republic… shall be invested temporarily with the duties of the President."
The same article also calls for an election "at least 45 and no more than 90 days after the vacancy occurs."
However, Article 148 gives executive authority to the country's head of government, now Prime Minister Yvon Neptune, "if the President finds it temporarily impossible to discharge his duties."
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In 1990, Aristide launched a successful six-week campaign to become president of Haiti; he won with 67 per cent of the vote.
His publicly proclaimed that his reform government would abide by the principles of participation, transparency and justice. This would involve cleansing the civil service of corrupt officials, fighting drug trafficking, and bringing programs to the people.
On Sept. 30,1991, Aristide was forced into exile, first to Venezuela and then to Washington, D.C., by a military takeover of the country.
Peasant organizations, some journalists, students and political activists continued to support Aristide, who was recognized by many countries as Haiti's legitimate president.
During his time in exile, Aristide took time to write Aristide: An Autobiography and Theology and Politics.
After three years of lobbying the international community to restore democracy to Haiti, Aristide returned to the country on Oct. 15,1994.
One of the first things he did upon his re-entry was to dismantle the Haitian military and to create a civilian police force.
Aristide did not run for a new presidential term in 1995 because of constitutional restraints, which brought his handpicked successor René Preval to power as Haiti's president for the next five years.
In January 1996 Aristide married Mildred Trouillot. They have two daughters.
Out of power, Aristide established the Aristide Foundation for Democracy, which aims to bring food, jobs, health care, education, justice and peace to Haiti's large population.
In 2000 Aristide was re-elected president with 92 per cent of the vote following a campaign that was so marked by violence and intimidation that opposition candidates boycotted the election.
In his bid for re-election, Aristide promised to create 500,000 jobs for people mired in crushing poverty. He promised the U.S. he would implement democratic reforms and improve protection of human rights.
In December 2001 Aristide survived an attempted coup that left five people dead.
A 2003 Amnesty International report accuses Aristide supporters of numerous human rights abuses, many incidences of police corruption, violence against journalists and attacks on free speech.
In January 2004, on the bicentennial of Haiti's independence from France, the opposition called for Aristide's resignation, accusing him of corruption. Violent protests erupted on the streets and rebel forces began to take over parts of the country.
Aristide asked for international help but was eventually convinced by U.S. and French officials to resign his presidency, saying it was time to open a new chapter in Haiti's history. He fled to safety in the Central African Republic as rebels approached the capital and its suburbs on March 1, 2004, and a UN-approved international force entered Haiti to deal with the violence.
He went to Jamaica in March 2004 to be reunited with his family in a secure, government-owned villa.
On May 31, 2004, Aristide left Jamaica for asylum in South Africa, insisting he was still Haiti's legitimate leader and promising to return one day. South African President Thabo Mbeki and other African officials met Aristide on his arrival in Johannesburg, a gesture usually reserved for acting heads of state.
Following the confirmation of René Préval as Haiti's president-elect on Feb. 16, 2006, Aristide announces that he is ready to return to Haiti, but that it's up to Préval to determine when the time is right. Aristide hand-picked Préval as his successor in the mid-1990s, when Haiti's constitution prevented him from seeking another term.
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