Miami Herald, Nov. 16, 2005 -- Rights group says civilians killed
Human rights activists filed a petition before the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights accusing
peacekeepers of killing civilians in Haiti.
BY PABLO BACHELET
WASHINGTON - A group of lawyers and human rights
activists filed petitions before the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights Tuesday accusing Brazilian
peacekeepers in Haiti of killing civilians and the
U.S. government of arming security forces who abuse
human rights.
The group also alleges that U.N. troops under
Brazilian command have ''directly participated in
civilian killings'' or provided ''crucial logistical
support'' to Haitian security forces involved in
massacres.
The petitions accuse Brazilian troops of killing at
least seven civilians in a shootout on June 29 in the
Bel Air district of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
The group also accuses Washington of supplying weapons
to the Haitian National Police, whose members have
been accused of participating in several massacres.
The allegations are based on eyewitness reports and
partially corroborated by video evidence shot after
the killings, according to the petitioners.
U.N. troops were either directly involved in civilian
deaths in six other neighborhoods or failed to protect
innocent civilians as they were being targeted by
Haitian security forces, according to the petitions.
U.N. commanders vehemently deny they are targeting
civilians. Clashes between peacekeepers and armed
groups of Haitians increased this year as U.N. units
tried to move into Port-au-Prince slums largely
controlled by supporters of ousted President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
The petitioners include the National Lawyer's Guild,
which promotes human rights, and the leftwing Global
Exchange as well as several attorneys.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, a part
of the Organization of American States, can ask member
states to pay reparations and refer cases to the
Inter-American court in Costa Rica.
Human rights activists filed a petition before the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights accusing
peacekeepers of killing civilians in Haiti.
BY PABLO BACHELET
WASHINGTON - A group of lawyers and human rights
activists filed petitions before the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights Tuesday accusing Brazilian
peacekeepers in Haiti of killing civilians and the
U.S. government of arming security forces who abuse
human rights.
The group also alleges that U.N. troops under
Brazilian command have ''directly participated in
civilian killings'' or provided ''crucial logistical
support'' to Haitian security forces involved in
massacres.
The petitions accuse Brazilian troops of killing at
least seven civilians in a shootout on June 29 in the
Bel Air district of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
The group also accuses Washington of supplying weapons
to the Haitian National Police, whose members have
been accused of participating in several massacres.
The allegations are based on eyewitness reports and
partially corroborated by video evidence shot after
the killings, according to the petitioners.
U.N. troops were either directly involved in civilian
deaths in six other neighborhoods or failed to protect
innocent civilians as they were being targeted by
Haitian security forces, according to the petitions.
U.N. commanders vehemently deny they are targeting
civilians. Clashes between peacekeepers and armed
groups of Haitians increased this year as U.N. units
tried to move into Port-au-Prince slums largely
controlled by supporters of ousted President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
The petitioners include the National Lawyer's Guild,
which promotes human rights, and the leftwing Global
Exchange as well as several attorneys.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, a part
of the Organization of American States, can ask member
states to pay reparations and refer cases to the
Inter-American court in Costa Rica.