January 31, 2012

Among the reactions to yesterday's declaration by a Haitian judge that former dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier should face trial for corruption charges but not for human rights abuses dating from his years as president was a statement today by the United Nations' human rights office, which said that Duvalier should be tried under international law for "torture, rape and extra-judicial killings."

Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the office of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, said that widespread human rights violations attributed to the Duvalier regime in Haiti have been well documented, and that the Haitian authorities have an "absolute obligation" to investigate those cases.

"Very serious human rights violations ... have been extensively documented to have occurred in Haiti during the regime of Duvalier," Colville said.

"It is clear under international law that there is no statute of limitations for such crimes."

Colville was referring to Haitian magistrate Carves Jean's statement yesterday that said charges of torture and murder dating from Duvalier's years of rule from 1971 to 1986 fell outside Haiti's statute of limitations, and that only allegations of the misappropriation of public funds could be pursued under Haitian law.

Duvalier, who inherited the presidency of Haiti from his father, Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier, was driven out of the country in 1986, but returned to Haiti last year after 25 years of exile in France. During his tenure as president, Duvalier relied on a notoriously brutal militia known as the Tontons Macoutes to maintain his grip on the country.

Human rights groups were quick to condemn the judge's decision, saying that Duvalier should not be allowed to get away with murder. "Those who were tortured under Duvalier, those whose families were killed or simply disappeared, deserve better than this," said Reed Brody of Human Rights Watch.

Duvalier's return to Haiti, which came a year after the devastating earthquake that destroyed parts of the country, caught many by surprise. The former dictator said that he had arrived to help with reconstruction efforts, though it may also have been an effort to secure access to nearly $4-million that had been frozen in a Swiss bank account. He was arrested on charges of corruption, but his movements in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince have not so far been restricted.

Current Haitian President Michel Martelly has not defined a clear position on the charges facing his predecessor. His government includes a number of officials from the Duvalier era, and last week his office was forced to deny rumours that he was planning to pardon the ex-dictator. "A Duvalier pardon is not part of the agenda," said Martelly adviser Damian Merlo.

Here is a report from Associated Press of the dictator's return to Haiti last year:

In 1985, Amnesty International released a video documenting some the human rights abuses it was reporting under Duvalier's rule at the time:

Sources:

Reuters

UPI

CBS

BBC

CNN

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