By Michael F. Flach
Herald Staff Writer
(From the issue of 2/26/04)

A group from St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Arlington, led by Father Gerry Creedon, pastor, recently returned from visiting its sister parishes in Haiti as escalating violence swept through the country and placed it on the brink of civil war.

"We are on the verge of civil war and anarchy reigns over the island," said Auxiliary Bishop Pierre-Andre Dumas of Port-au-Prince. In the 1990s Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide "incarnated all of the hopes of the population which longed for peace and a better life," the bishop said, but now the president, a former Salesian priest, "represents the apple of discord for the nation."

The Arlington group was visiting its sister parishes in Cavaillon and GrosMarin, located about three hours outside Port-au-Prince, to review its needs and consider future projects.

St. Charles Borromeo Parish, with the help of St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Falls Church, has helped build a secondary school and two elementary schools in the region. Over 200 local families sponsor a Haitian child’s education as well as a nutrition program.

"Our team visited a mill and bakery," said Father Creedon. "I was very proud of the fact that we were able to assist them in getting their mill back in operation since my father was a miller back in County Cork (Ireland) and I know how central a mill can be to a rural community."

Father Creedon said his team was impressed by the liturgies and faith of the Haitian people. "Faith sustains people in their communities and is tangible in their full-throated singing and graceful dances," he said.

Father Creedon’s team encountered some tense situations during their visit. One involved a protest at the local police station that was occupied by paramilitary forces opposing Aristide. Gun shots were fired at regular intervals, he said.

A blockade on the road to the airport in Port-au-Prince was erected the night before the group was scheduled to leave and again two days later. "Mercifully we were able to pass freely," Father Creedon said. "We had no difficulty getting back."

But another group they met from Pennsylvania was not as fortunate. They were visiting a parish near Gonaïves, Haiti’s fourth largest city, which is completely controlled by insurgents. They encountered numerous roadblocks as they attempted to get to the airport and even saw signs of massacres in the countryside.

The Pentagon announced Feb. 23 that it will send a team of 50 U.S. troops to Haiti in response to a security request from the U.S. Ambassador to Haiti. The troops will be sent to the embassy in Port-au-Prince to secure the compound as rebels continue to make advances in that country. The team of 50 U.S. Marines, trained in counterterrorism, would add to the Marine security detachment based at the embassy. 

The State Department ordered the departure of all family members and non-emergency personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince last weekend. "We decided it is essential to take out nonessential personnel until the situation is more stable," a senior State Department official said.

Father Creedon, who spent four years (1991-95) as pastor at the diocesan mission in Banica, Dominican Republic, said some people are critical of Aristide because the Haitian economy hasn’t improved dramatically during his tenure.

Catholic priests in Haiti who supported Aristide before he took power in the early 1990s are disappointed with his leadership, Father Creedon said. They claim he has lost touch culturally with the people since his marriage to a white American.

A second perspective on the situation, Father Creedon said, stems from Aristide’s opposition to the privatization or globalization of Haitian business. Some observers say that Aristide has lost favor with the U.S. State Department, which in turn has led to the loss of $400 million in developmental aid from international institutions.

"Aristide has been isolated over the past three years," Father Creedon said.

Haitian rebels who opposed Aristide and a democratic government were never fully disarmed, Father Creedon said. Thus, these paramilitary groups have crossed back into Haiti from the Dominican Republic and regained control of border towns. Haiti’s 4,000-member police force is no match for the insurgents.

While ministering in Banica in the early 1990s, Father Creedon heard reports of Aristide supporters being killed and dragged through the streets. Two hundred refugees passed through Banica and five Haitian teachers sought sanctuary in the Catholic church in Pedro Santana during that period.

"This latest round of violence likely will lead to more refugees in Banica," he said. "I hope the invasion of paramilitary and ex-army exiles in the Dominican Republic does not make a diplomatic solution untenable."