Shadowy help for Haiti opposition

From Prof Jeffrey Sachs.

Sir, The letter from the International Republican Institute (March 11) is absurd on the face of it, denying "any material assistance to any organisation or political party" in Haiti while simultaneously providing "training and technical assistance" for Haiti's "democratic opposition". The IRI's acknowledged support for "opinion polling, message development, campaign strategy and coalition building" sets off alarm bells when one understands that this same unelected "democratic opposition" blocked, with apparent US government encouragement, every compromise with President Jean- Bertrand Aristide, right up to the "veto" last month of the compromise plan put forward by the Caribbean's democratic leadership and accepted by Mr Aristide. If this is what the US government teaches as democracy, it is a scandalous failure.

Much more worrying, the evidence is growing that the Bush administration knowingly and wilfully toppled Mr Aristide by freezing aid, encouraging opposition stonewalling, removing the president from Haiti against his will and perhaps even surreptitiously providing arms to the rebels.

Jeffrey Sachs, Director, Earth Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, US