Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain
HAITI:U.N. Awaiting Formal Request for Probe
Thalif Deen
The United Nations says it is willing to investigate the ouster of Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide last month, provided the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) makes a formal request -- a move that U.S. and French officials are actively discouraging, say diplomats.
UNITED NATIONS, Mar 10 (IPS) - The United Nations says it is willing to investigate the ouster of Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide last month, provided the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) makes a formal request -- a move that U.S. and French officials are actively discouraging, say diplomats here.
The 15-member CARICOM, of which Haiti is a full-fledged member, last week publicly called for a U.N. probe into what Aristide says was his "kidnapping" by U.S. forces. But it has stopped short of making a formal demand to the world body.
''The CARICOM call for a U.N. investigation was in their statement,'' U.N. Spokesman Fred Eckhard said Wednesday, ''but it has not been communicated to us formally. Once that happens, we will react.''
According to diplomatic sources here, who did not want to be quoted or identified, both the United States and France, two permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, have pressed Caribbean officials to desist from formally requesting a U.N. probe or bringing the issue before the Council.
