Haiti's former soldiers demand reinstatement of army

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Haiti's former soldiers demand reinstatement of army

Up to 3,000 rogue soldiers challenge authority of government and
UN troops by staging parades and seizing abandoned bases

Michael Norby and Brian Fitzpatrick in Port-au-Prince
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 1 May 2012 13.12 BST

UN and Haitian government officials are scrambling to find a peaceful way to disarm a rogue group of former soldiers demanding the immediate return of the Haitian armed forces, 17 years after the country's notoriously brutal army was disbanded.

A brazen group of ex-soldiers, some of whom are remnants of dictatorships which used the army to terrorise the people, is attempting to force the president, Michel Martelly, to enact campaign promises to reinstate the army.

The group is thought to number between 2,500 and 3,000 and has set 18 May as a deadline.

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Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/01/haiti-soldiers-demand-reinstatement-army

[saras]

1. Why peaceful? Have they no police?

If ever there were a legitimate job for drone missiles, as long as we're chucking them around the planet, this is it.

[bemildred]

2. Yep, all together in one place, having a parade, it's an opportunity not to be missed. nt