Party of Haiti's poor in turmoil

PORT-AU-PRINCE -- Three months after armed rebels sent President Jean-Bertrand Aristide into exile, the political movement he led has fallen into disarray, raising fears that Haiti's vast poor majority will lose its voice in government.

Even as Aristide insists that he is the country's rightful president and vows to return, his Lavalas Family party is divided over what to do next: move on without him; boycott promised elections; accept any blame for the violence and corruption that gripped the country in recent years.

How Lavalas responds in upcoming months will play a key role in guiding the fate of democracy here, and perhaps test Washington's willingness to help a nation still staggering after the February revolt.

''Lavalas has been the only political entity that has represented the traditionally excluded,'' said Robert Maguire, a Haiti expert at Trinity College in Washington. ``It's the only voice of the poor. And right now, it's in disarray.''

For most of Haiti's troubled history, rule flowed from the top down. From bougainvillea-draped villas high in the hills to cardboard slums below; from a light-skinned elite that controlled the wealth to peasants who had as little wealth as any in the world.

While the dynamic shifted from time to time, it didn't flip end to end until priests in the slums began to preach justice for the poor in the 1980s. The liberation theology soon morphed into a broad democratic movement that propelled Aristide, a former priest, into the presidency.

The movement was called Lavalas -- the Creole word for cleansing floods -- because it swept away the last vestiges of the 29-year Duvalier dynasty.

A decade later, in 2000, Aristide established the Lavalas Family party. But soon after, many of his early colleagues in the struggle for democracy began to distance themselves from a regime they saw as increasingly corrupt and autocratic.

''Lavalas Family was essentially a platform built around one man,'' said Michele Montas, an early Lavalas leader and widow of Jean Dominique, a radio journalist who railed against injustice and was assassinated in 2000.

So far, no one has emerged from the political vacuum that followed Aristide's departure on Feb. 29.

Many Lavalas leaders have gone into hiding or exile. Rebels still control northern Haiti. The U.S.-backed interim government lacks authority outside the capital. And Lavalas has not agreed to participate in an electoral council, casting doubt about the legitimacy of the election set for 2005.

PRIVATE MEETINGS

Much of the discussion about Haiti's future is taking place here in the capital, called derisively in the provinces ''The Republic of Port-au-Prince'' for its perceived disconnection with the rest of Haiti. And only in this political bubble, where the U.S. Marines and multinational troops set up operations, do remaining Lavalas activists feel safe to meet.

The meetings are not public, but a clear line of disagreement is emerging from them.

Hard-line Aristide loyalists -- many in exile in Miami and New York, and in regular phone contact with the former president -- insist that he runs the party whether he is abroad or not. Reformers who stayed in Haiti say Lavalas needs to move on and let new leaders rise in his wake.

''We need to do a lot of self-criticism because Lavalas has done a lot of bad things,'' said Lesley Voltaire, a former minister under Aristide. ``We have to correct things.''

Perhaps the biggest obstacle: Many Haitians blame Lavalas for the terror inflicted in recent years by armed Aristide loyalists known as chimres.

Voltaire said the party must go back to the inclusive ideals of the early Lavalas movement. Whether it does that or not, he said, the poor will find someone to represent them.

Maryse Narcisse disagrees. As one of only seven people with permission to speak officially for the Lavalas Family party, she insists that the United States kidnapped Aristide and that the party must abide by its own constitution, which names him as the official leader.

She denies allegations that Aristide's government profited from drug trafficking or that Aristide armed chimres with automatic weapons.

''What's important is that Lavalas and Aristide are victims of a disinformation campaign,'' she said. ``There is nothing that proves the chimres are Lavalas.''

Where the two factions in the party agree is this: They will have a tough time getting their message out. They say their members are attacked by vigilantes and unduly arrested by the interim government, with help from the multinational forces.

A recent Amnesty International report confirmed that members of Lavalas, as well as other Haitians, face continuing human rights violations.

RAID BY MARINES

On May 10, U.S. Marines raided the home of Annette Auguste, a popular folk singer and Lavalas activist. They killed a dog and arrested 12 people, but ultimately let everyone except Auguste go. Marine Lt. Col. Dave Lapan said she is accused of plotting attacks against the multinational forces.

A week later, U.S. Marines helped Haitian national police break up a Lavalas rally in the neighborhood of Bel Air, saying the group did not have a permit. The Marines later learned that the protesters had applied for a permit, but that it never ''reached the highest levels of Haitian national police,'' Lapan said. At least one man was killed during the demonstration.

''They are choking us so we can't speak!'' shouted a furious Hector Vincent, 41, shortly after the shooting.

Political opponents of Aristide dismiss the claim as hyperbole. They say Lavalas' own record is the only thing holding it back.

''I don't see Lavalas re-emerging to represent the poor,'' said Andy Apaid Jr., a factory owner and leader of the opposition movement. ``The facts -- the accumulation of wealth, the corruption -- are going to surface.''

He said it would take time to create a sense of ''social cohesion'' after Aristide created enmity between classes.

''We just came out of a hurricane,'' Apaid said. ``It's very early now to see which parties will show a social inclination and represent the poor.''

But many are dubious. The political opposition to Lavalas is strongly tied to the elite that maintained a repressive class system for two centuries. And many see the rebels as a reincarnation of an army that reigned terror throughout the country for generations until Aristide disbanded it in 1995.

Fueling the suspicion of an elite takeover: The price of rice -- the main staple of the Haitian diet -- has doubled since Aristide left, making life miserable for much of the country. ''The people who sell the rice are the people who kicked Aristide out,'' said Berthony F.A. Mercier, 50, who paints signs in Port-au-Prince.

Others wonder why the multinational forces in Haiti have tried to disarm the chimres in slums like Cité Soleil and not the rebels who openly brandish weapons in major cities like Gonaives, Cap Haitien and Hinche.

Within the Lavalas party, some see at least one benefit in all the grief caused by Aristide's departure: A new generation of leaders can now emerge. In the past, Aristide picked the senators, ministers and other party officials.

That is partially why, said Yves Cristalin, a young Lavalas member who was president of the Chamber of Deputies, there is such a leadership vacuum in the country now.

But Cristalin says his party will ultimately prevail.

''Lavalas is the poor,'' he said. ``Lavalas is not Aristide only. The fight for the poor will continue.''

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