[A-List] Haiti: US Military's Deadly *Rules Of Engagement*

[Rick Rozoff]

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=20941


[Note: US 'rules of engagement' appear to differ from
those of other ostensibly 'civilized' nations in that
the former clearly specify that the chief operational
objective of troops abroad - in putative peacekeeping
and other 'humanitarian' missions - is to protect
themselves, *pre-emptively* by choice.
Hence the rules of engagement mentioned in this very
source, the US armed forces daily Stars and Stripes,
almost a year ago on the eve of the invasion of Iraq
for an American unit in Kuwait: "Kill anything that
moves."
A caveat for advocates of 'good' military
interventions.]
 



Stars And Stripes
March 10, 2004


General says disarming Haitians is now officially part
of Marines' mission 
By Lisa Burgess


-Marines have been told to disarm any Haitian found
bearing a weapon “unless he has a valid permit,” Army
Gen. James Hill, commander of U.S. Southern Command,
told Pentagon reporters Wednesday.
-“Haiti has been a nation of violence for many, many
years. There are a lot of guns.” [As opposed to its
Northern neighbor and current occupier, for example?]
-“[W]e always understood” that Marines would be
allowed to take away weapons if the they felt
threatened, Hill said. “This is not an expansion of
the [Rules Of Engagement],” Hill said. “It’s a
clarification.”
-There are now 516 French soldiers, 328 Chileans, and
55 Canadians working alongside the Marines, Hill said.
Canada is preparing to send an additional 400 troops
this week, he said.
-Since Sunday, Marines have killed at least four
Haitians, including a driver who sped up while
approaching a checkpoint.... 





ARLINGTON, Va. — Disarming Haitians is now officially
part of the military’s mission in Haiti, according to
the general in charge of the “Multinational Interim
Force” that includes 1,600 U.S. Marines.

Marines have been told to disarm any Haitian found
bearing a weapon “unless he has a valid permit,” Army
Gen. James Hill, commander of U.S. Southern Command,
told Pentagon reporters Wednesday.

“As Marines move through Port-au-Prince and they
encounter any armed Haitian, they are to take that
weapon,” unless the Haitian is authorized to carry it,
Hill said.

Marines will also seize any weapons caches uncovered
in the course of their patrols or revealed by
tipsters, Hill said.

Stopping looters, meanwhile, is not part of the Haiti
coalition’s mission, Pentagon spokesman Larry Di Rita
told Pentagon reporters.

Hill did not underestimate the difficulty of removing
weapons from armed factions for whom guns are the only
power they may wield in the impoverished Haiti.

“This is a difficult task,” Hill said. “Haiti has been
a nation of violence for many, many years. There are a
lot of guns.”

Nevertheless, disarming is now “a written part” of the
official “rules of engagement” that spell out
precisely what servicemembers may and may not do while
deployed to Haiti, Hill said.

However, “we always understood” that Marines would be
allowed to take away weapons if the they felt
threatened, Hill said. “This is not an expansion of
the [Rules Of Engagement],” Hill said. “It’s a
clarification.”

Hill said he made the decision to write disarming
Haitians into the ROE after visiting Port-au-Prince,
Haiti’s capital, last week.

There, Hill met with Haitian officials including
outgoing Prime Minister Yvon Neptune and Leon Charles,
Haiti’s newly named chief of police.

There are now 516 French soldiers, 328 Chileans, and
55 Canadians working alongside the Marines, Hill said.
Canada is preparing to send an additional 400 troops
this week, he said.

On Wednesday, as coalition troops continued their
struggle to regain control of the lawless Caribbean
nation, U.S. Marines killed two Haitians who allegedly
opened fire near the outgoing prime minister’s private
residence.

The shooting, which was reported by the Associated
Press, was the third fatal encounter in the past three
days by peacekeepers fighting to regain control.

Former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled Feb. 29
amid a bloody rebellion that left more than 300 dead
and U.S. and French pressure to step down. The once
[sic] popular slum priest, elected on promises to
champion the poor, lost support as Haitians accused
his government of corruption and attacks against his
political opponents.

Since Sunday, Marines have killed at least four
Haitians, including a driver who sped up while
approaching a checkpoint and a gunman who opened fire
on an anti-Aristide demonstration.

The latest fatalities, which occurred late Tuesday in
an Aristide stronghold, demonstrate the difficulties
peacekeepers face as they try to disarm rebel groups
and Aristide militants.

Hill called the Haitian loss of life, “regrettable.”

Haiti’s new prime minister, Gerard Latortue, was
scheduled to arrive later Wednesday from Miami. He
will begin the arduous task of trying to build a
transitional government under a U.S.-backed plan and
set up new elections.

The Associated Press contributed to this story from
Port-au-Prince.


 


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