AHP News - March 21, 2006 - English translation (Unofficial)

The director general of the Haitian police denounces corruption festering in the Haitian judicial system and accuses the judiciary of practicing a double standard 

Port-au-Prince, March 21, 2006 (AHP)- The director general of the Haitian National Police (PNH), Mario Andrésol, on Tuesday again denounced the corruption infecting the Haitian judicial system.  

According to Mr.  Andrésol, it is unacceptable that police officers would be freed in a manner that is not provided for under Haitian law after having been arrested based on accusations of responsibility for reprehensible crimes.   

A group of six police officers, including two senior officials (Carlo Lochard and Renan Etienne) accused of involvement in an August 2004 massacre in Port-au-Prince which left more than 10 people dead, were released at the beginning of this month.  

"This type of arbitrary decision constitutes a grave danger and creates a command problem within the police force," said  Mario Andrésol. 

It is not appropriate to speak of justice, he said, explaining that these types of situations inevitably create frustrations among both the police and the families of the victims of injustice.  

Mario Andrésol also criticized the attitude of the interim authorities who are practicing a double standard, he said, and who are demonstrating a very high level of favoritism by being lenient toward people who are accused of documented crimes while the authorities have been holding former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune in prison for nearly two years.  

Yvon Neptune has been incarcerated since June 2004 based on an accusation that he had given the order to perpetrate an alleged massacre in a Saint-Marc hamlet named La Scierie.

Two organizations opposed to Mr. Neptune's government (NCHR/Haiti and RAMICOSM) that pushed for his arrest have never been able to substantiate their accusations or prove that such a massacre was ever committed.  

Before the head of the police spoke out, another senior official, Michael Lysius, central director of the judicial police (DCPJ), denounced a current practice within the judicial system of freeing criminals and bandits upon payment of large sums of money.  

A commission formed by the Minister of Justice to shed light on this matter created more confusion by washing its hands of its own responsibility and sending the ball into the court of the head of the judicial police.  

The PNH director general considered that the officials of the DCPJ followed appropriate administrative guidelines with regard to the report sent to the office of the PNH director general.  

According to Mr. Andrésol,  the DCPJ did not accuse any judge by name in its internal report.

 The police director said he is determined to encourage these police officers in their mission of justice and deplored the fact that there are too many corrupt judges in the Haitian judicial system.  

On the eve of the installation of the new government, each sector is looking after its petty interests, said Andrésol, affirming that the judiciary, the police and the civil service each have their own gang.  

"And if nothing is done to destroy these gangs, the country will collapse," he warned.  

AHP  March 21, 2006 1:40 PM