[R-G] Fwd: Press release: Kevin Pina in Canada

[Anthony Fenton]

Broken Promises and Failed Policies in Haiti,
Say Local Solidarity Activists


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 21, 2009

British Columbians concerned with the crushing poverty in Haiti will  
have a chance to learn more about the situation in that country later  
this week. Filmmaker and journalist Kevin Pina will talk at public  
meetings in Victoria, Vancouver and Delta about the current situation  
in Haiti.

He will show dramatic footage in his new film, Haiti: We Must Kill the  
Bandits. The film raises serious questions about the failure of the  
large, United Nations-sponsored foreign police and military presence  
Haiti to bring any measure of progress.

“The foreign powers that assisted in the overthrow of President  
Aristide’s government in February 2004 have had five years to show the  
Haitian people a commitment to improve conditions in the country. This  
was their promise in 2004 and it has been proven to be a deception,”  
says Roger Annis, a member of Haiti Solidarity BC inVancouver.

Members of Haiti Solidarity BC say that every social and economic  
indicator in Haiti has been in decline since 2004. That's the year  
when Haiti's elected government and president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide,  
were overthrown by right wing paramilitaries backed by Canada, the  
United States and France.

Kevin Pina, who resided in Haiti during the 1990's and 2000's, was an  
eyewitness to the coup d'etat against Aristide on February 29, 2004  
and stayed on to document the chaotic, two-year regime of human rights  
violations that was appointed by the UN and other foreign powers  
following Aristide's overthrow. This unelected government received the  
first visit ever by a Canadian Prime Minister to Haiti, Paul Martin in  
November 2004

The Canadian government says it is spending $110 million per year on  
aid in Haiti. Much of this is directed at the ministry of justice and  
the training of police. Yet, the Canadian police contingent, headed by  
the RCMP, that has been training the Haitian National Police for the  
past four and a half years has recently been declared a  
failure(National Post, January 10, 2009). The Canadian government has  
issued a $15 million tender for someone else to take over the job.

"The RCMP’s failure is indicative of Canada’s overall failure in  
Haiti,” says Stuart Hammond of Haiti Solidarity BC. “Canada has  
violated the sovereignty of Haiti and refused to recognize the  
desperate need of its poorest people, who overwhelmingly supported  
Aristide’s policies of healthcare, literacy, and higher wages. Canada  
has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into Haiti with nothing to  
show for it.”

In mid-February, Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council, another  
institution funded by Canadian aid dollars, barred all 17 candidates  
of the Fanmi Lavalas party of the ousted President Aristide from  
running in forthcoming elections for Haiti’s Senate.

Kevin Pina will speak and present his film at a public event at the  
University of Victoria on Saturday, February 28 at 7:30 pm. He will  
appear in Vancouver on Sunday, March 1 at 2 pm at Harbour Center (515  
W. Hastings St). At 5:30 pm, he will appear at a fundraising benefit  
for schools and medical agencies in Haiti being held at the  
DeltaBaptist Church in Tsawwassen. For information on these events,  
for a statement by the Canada Haiti Action Network, and for more  
background news, go tohttp://canadahaitiaction.ca/. To arrange for an  
interview with Kevin Pina,  please contact the numbers below.

Contact:
Roger Annis, 778 858 5179
Stuart Hammond, 604 338 2558