Haiti names new Prime Minister?

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According to the BBC (3/10/04), Gerald Latortue has been named the new Prime Minister of Haiti "by a council of leading Haitians" (New Haitian prime minister named). There is no mention made of who these "leading Haitians" are, but one must wonder when Colin Powell announces that the US Is Looking for New Prime Minister for Haiti (AFP 3/09/04).

The United States is working to find a replacement for Haitian Prime Minister Yvon Neptune, US Secretary of State Colin Powell acknowledged late Monday.

"We are working hard with the new council of eminent persons that has been created to come up with a new prime minister," Powell told Fox News Channel. (AFP)

This smells to me. Especially since Powell released the statement to Fox News which was so willing to propagandize for the Bush administration to rally for the invasion of Iraq.

Another interesting quote from the AFP article:

On Monday, Powell expressed regret that Aristide had "squandered the opportunity that was given to him by the presence of American troops and by the international community that stuck with it for years."

"But this time, I hope we can come out with a better political arrangement," he said.

Who, pray tell is "WE?" The Haitians or the US? Did Aristide prove to not be the biddable puppet the US desired? Is it any wonder that both Afghanistan and Iraq are nervous about the role of the US in selecting their leaders and governments?

Posted by rowan at March 9, 2004 07:34 PM | TrackBack | Printable Version | [eMail this article!] |