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Violence by Aristide Supporters Breaks Out for Second Day in Haitian 
Capital as Country Struggles to Recover From Storm

*By Stevenson Jacobs* Associated Press Writer
Published: Oct 1, 2004

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PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - Violence erupted again Friday in the 
Haitian capital, a day after three policemen were killed in a clash with 
protesters demanding the return of ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Demonstrators who appeared to be Aristide supporters fired in the air, 
blocked a highway with burning tires and smashed car windows in the 
Martissant neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, witnesses said.

In the sprawling seaside slum of Cite Soleil, a gunman told a reporter 
two street gangs loyal to Aristide were shooting it out, and one gang 
leader was killed overnight.

Tensions have exploded in Haiti as the country struggles to recover from 
floods caused by Tropical Storm Jeanne almost two weeks ago. The storm 
killed more than 1,550 and left 900 missing, most of them presumed dead. 
Almost all the victims were in the northwestern city of Gonaives.

The storm's aftermath has tied up some 750 of the 3,000 U.N. troops in 
Haiti.

On Thursday, demonstrators in Port-au-Prince shot and killed three 
police officers, and were believed to have kidnapped a fourth, Justice 
Minister Bernard Gousse said.

The violence erupted during a march by supporters of Aristide, now in 
exile in South Africa, to commemorate the 13th anniversary of his 1991 
ouster by Haiti's army.

Thousands of slum dwellers wound through downtown Port-au-Prince 
carrying photos of Aristide and chanting "Like it or not, Aristide will 
return!"

Some shouted "Down with Bush!" and demanded an end to "the occupation" 
and "the invasion" by foreign troops - referring to the U.S.-led force 
that followed Aristide's ouster and the U.N. peacekeepers who took over 
in June.

Protesters passed through a plaza in front of the National Palace and 
were a few blocks away when shots rang out.

Aristide has accused U.S. agents of kidnapping him when he was flown out 
of Haiti on a U.S.-chartered jet Feb. 29. The U.S. government insists 
Aristide left of his own free will.

Aristide, a former priest who promised to help the poor, became Haiti's 
first freely elected president in 1990. He was ousted within months by 
the army, restored to power by U.S. troops in 1994, then forced to step 
down by U.S. pressure and a term limit. But he was re-elected in 2000.

In February, a street gang in Gonaives known as the Cannibal Army rose 
up against Aristide, sparking a rebellion joined by soldiers from the 
army that Aristide disbanded in 1995.

U.S. troops arrived as Aristide left but did little to disarm rebels, 
who are demanding the reinstatement of the army and have friendly 
relations with the U.S.-installed interim government.

Friday's violence came as the hungry and some of the 200,000 homeless in 
Gonaives were growing impatient with the slow pace of relief efforts. 
Hungry residents have repeatedly mobbed relief trucks and looted supplies.

Many people have been attacked by armed gangs who steal the food once 
they leave the distribution points guarded by U.N. peacekeepers, said 
Elizabeth Byrs of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian 
Affairs.

World Food program spokeswoman Christiane Berthiaume said another 
problem was getting food that people do not need to cook because there 
is no running water in the city. She said they were distributing energy 
biscuits and canned fish.

The World Lutheran Foundation said it was transporting 500 buckets of 
rice, beans, spaghetti and milk power to Gonaives on Friday, along with 
buckets of water.

----

Associated Press reporters Amy Bracken in Gonaives, Regine Alexandre in 
Port-au-Prince and Michael Norton in San Juan, Puerto Rico, contributed 
to this report.

AP-ES-10