The Human Rights Review is a quarterly report issued by MICIVIH which gives an overview of the human rights performance of the Haitian police, prisons and the judiciary. It is based on the Mission's work both at headquarters and in the field in the three areas of its mandate: monitoring, institution-building and promotion. It is also published in French.

GENERAL CONTEXT

Controversies, debate, and discussions about the elections dominated this quarter, diverting attention from a deteriorating social climate characterised by numerous demonstrations, some of them quite violent. By the end of September, although 19 March 2000 was announced as the date for the first round of elections, the full electoral calendar had still not been published. The issue of the photo-ID card again drew criticism from the Fanmi Lavalas sector. A civic education campaign on elections was postponed. The Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) did, however, begin to put in place the electoral machinery, which provoked protests and acts of intimidation in certain places where the make-up of the Communal Electoral Offices (BECs) and Departmental Electoral Bureaux (BEDs) were contested.

On the night of 5 August, immediately followed the announcement of the appointment of the three-member BEDs, unidentified individuals tried to set fire to the premises of the Artibonite BED in Gonaïves. The fire was put out by a night watchman before it caused any serious damage. The BED secretary reported that shots were fired at his house the same night. An attempt was also made to set fire to the Jacmel BED on the night of 10 August. BEDs were contested in Fort Liberté, where the first BED president was replaced as he could not provide the required papers and the second challenged by popular organisations who claimed he was Duvalierist and lived in Port-au-Prince. The swearing-in of the BED was delayed by popular organisations' protest until 15 September.

The most serious electoral incidents occurred in Jérémie where tensions began to mount in mid-September as a result of calls from the regional political movement Kowodinasyon Resistans Grandans (KOREGA) for the dismissal of the BED, which it portrayed as having been imposed by the "macoute" Espace de Concertation. On 15 September, the town awoke to find tyres burning in the streets and fresh graffiti on walls attacking the BED, which was assigned 15 members of the Unité départemental du mantien de l'ordre (UDMO) for its protection. Matters came to a head on 27 September, when several hundred KOREGA supporters took part in a violent demonstration in front of the BED office. Police claimed that demonstrators threw stones, bottles and teargas, that some had firearms and that one of the KOREGA leaders assaulted an inspector. After arresting two protesters who had allegedly forced their way into the BED premises, the police broke up the demonstration by using their batons and firing shots in the air, and made another 42 arrests as they chased protesters through the town. According to the police, a woman from the town of Corail who had participated in the protest was fatally injured on the outskirts of the town when she was run over after falling from a truck she was boarding. A medical certificate also recorded her death due to injuries sustained in a traffic accident but KOREGA attributed her death to police brutality. All but two of the detainees were released from the commissariat late in the evening of 27 September, after eight hours of negotiations between KOREGA leaders and police officials. The KOREGA mayor of Jérémie announced the next day that he was closing the Town Hall to protest police brutality, and the fact that police had pursued fleeing protesters into the Town Hall building. Several other Grand'Anse mayors reportedly followed suit.

Popular organisations close to Fanmi Lavalas held protests in Gonaïves, Saint-Marc, Petite-Rivière de l'Artibonite and Grande Saline in the last week of September to protest the newly-announced composition of the BECs. The protesters claimed that three quarters of the Artibonite BEC members came from the Espace de Concertation. A member of the popular organization Bale Wouze was arrested during a demonstration outside the Saint-Marc BEC on 29 September, as a result of which further protests were held to denounce his arrest. Certain news media also reported that there was an attempt to set fire to the Saint-Marc BEC on the night of 26 September which was followed by a pro-BEC demonstration the next day.

In addition to protests surrounding the elections, social unrest on other issues, though often generally localised, became more widespread in September. A spate of strikes and work stoppages also began, particularly in the departments of the North and North East (medical staff, customs workers, local government workers, firemen). In Port-au-Prince, there were strikes by doctors, support staff and nurses at the capital's general hospital in August and September. Teachers were also threatening to go on strike at the start of the school year in early October because of unmet promises made earlier by the authorities.

Some of the protests and unrest may have been politically motivated (particularly regarding control of key posts in state institutions). Others clearly resulted from frustrations at the lack of state action to provide proper facilities locally. Violent protests with burning barricades and stone-throwing were organised by a variety of popular organisations and other groups in Port-au-Prince. These included local residents in Cazeau protesting at the state's failure to repair roads in the area, residents of the airport area protesting at the failure of the authorities to remove four bodies from the site of an accident 24 hours after it had occurred, street traders protesting the appointment of a new director of the Marché Hippolyte. Residents of Bel Air protested the closure of an educational centre, and Fanmi Lavalas supporters protested the killing of a police officer and also the rumoured dismissal of the director of the state telephone company (Téléco). Police handling of the protests - some of which lasted several days - was generally restrained with few arrests reported in spite of the violence of some of the protestors. As a result, those responsible for the violence enjoyed almost total impunity. However, CIMO was accused by some of heavy-handed measures to restore order during the three days of violent protests outside Téléco. One person who was shot claimed police fired into the crowd but so far MICIVIH has not located any witnesses to confirm this allegation. At least four people were injured with stones, including the Port-au-Prince police commissioner, during the disturbance.

Acts of intimidation were again reported in the capital, including an explosive device thrown at the Chamber of Commerce on 4 September, shortly after it had issued a statement protesting at continuing insecurity. The following day, shots were fired at a vehicle belonging to the head of the Organisation du Peuple en Lutte (OPL) but driven at the time by the OPL spokesperson Sauveur Etienne. Though the attack took place in an area notorious for frequent incidents of armed crime, a political motive was not ruled out. In what were also seen as probable acts of intimidation, shots were reportedly fired outside the house of CEP member Emmanuel Charles on the night of 24 August, and outside the home of the CEP's vice-president, Débussy Damier, on 10 September. No new threats against human rights organisations were reported to MICIVIH during this quarter.

MICIVIH's activities were circumscribed throughout this period by its reduced presence in the field with the closure of five regional offices. Offices remained open in Port-au-Prince, Les Cayes, Gonaïves and Cap Haïtien. Port-au-Prince observers also covered the department of the South-East and the lower Plateau Central (Mirebalais); those in Les Cayes covered the Grand'Anse, observers in Gonaives covered the North-West in addition to the Artibonite, and observers in Cap Haïtien covered the North-East and the Upper Plateau Central. Fewer resources had an impact on the extent of MICIVIH's programme of human rights promotion and advocacy activities. Nevertheless, the Mission covered all three areas of its mandate.

POLICE

Internal shortcomings and external pressures continued to take a toll on the institutional development of the HNP. There was, however, a significant drop in the number of serious human rights violations and some signal success in fighting crime and drug trafficking during the period under review.

In many police stations, police officers expressed concerns and demotivation because of lack of public support, severe logistical constraints, lack of management support for rank and file police and the spate of killings of police agents. Allegations of police involvement in drug-trafficking continued to dog the force. A police commissioner and at least nine other police officers were jailed for drug trafficking during this quarter. In addition, three police commissioners and an inspector were suspended on 17 September after being found outside of their jurisdictions in a Plaine du Nord hotel at the time of a police raid during which a quantity of cocaine was found. Thirteen other police commissioners threatened to resign if the four were charged. The offices of Radio Vision 2000, which was the first to report that the four had been arrested, were shot at after allegedly receiving two threatening phone calls within 30 minutes of issuing the report.

A short-lived work stoppage by police in the Plateau Central did not spread to the rest of the country but drew attention to long-standing police grievances about working conditions. The recently announced increase in salaries for judicial officials was also a contributory factor. Efforts to improve the working environment continued: several new sous-commissariats were opened - e.g. Cité Soleil, Delmas, Martissant and La Colline. Other police stations such as Ennery, Aquin and Saint Louis du Sud were given new premises or were refurbished. The widespread problem of lack of resources was partially addressed. After many months without any form of transport, motorcycles were distributed to certain police stations in the Grand'Anse, South East and Centre. In addition, a salary increase was announced, to be implemented at the end of September. However, the 12-hour shift continues to be a bone of contention.

Routine visits were made by observers to 72 police stations and sub-police stations during this period. Some police stations, particularly those in towns where MICIVIH's regional offices are based, were visited on a regular basis. The stations visited were:

Port-de-Paix, Jean Rabel (North-West); Cap Haïtien (Arsenal, Airport, Barrière Bouteille, Pont Neuf ), Limonade, Plaisance, Pilate, Saint Raphaël, Grande Rivière du Nord, Limbé (North); Fort Liberté, Ouanaminthe, Terrier Rouge, Trou du Nord, Capotille (North-East); Gonaïves, Gros Morne, Anse Rouge, Terre Neuve, Petite Rivière de l'Artibonite, Desdunes, Marchand Dessalines, Ennery, Marmelade, Verrettes, Desarmes, La Chapelle, L'Estère, Pont Sondé, Saint Marc, Freycineau, Montrouis (Artibonite); Hinche, Mirebalais (Centre); Pointe à Raquette, Anse à Galets (Ile de la Gonâve), Port-au-Prince central, Cafétéria, Antigang, Carrefour, Saint Charles, Gressier, Martissant, Cornillon, Thomazeau, Cazeau, Cité Soleil (2 stations), Delmas, Pétionville, Kenscoff, Arcahaie, Cabaret, Bon Repos, Croix des Bouquets, Léogâne, Petit Goâve (West); Jacmel (South-East); Les Cayes, Cavaillon, Saint Louis du Sud, Camp Perrin, Arniquet, Torbeck, Port-Salut, Port-à-Piment, Tiburon (South); Jérémie, Beaumont (Grand'Anse)

Killings of police

Six police agents were killed in Port-au-Prince (three of them in the last week of September) and one in Belladère during this quarter, making a total of 14 since the beginning of April and 17 since the beginning of the year. These figures compare with 14 for the whole of 1998, and 21 in 1997. All but one of the 17 killed this year were off-duty at the time, though at least two were on their way to work. Three agents have been killed at Portail Léogâne bus station in Port-au-Prince, the latest victim being Edgar Chéry, who was shot dead on 24 September and his service weapon, radio and wallet stolen. While robbery was the motive in some cases, a few were killed as a result of personal disputes, and several may have been gang or drug-related. The fact that police agents carry their weapons while off-duty appears to have made them a target.

Police and respect for human rights

The unprecedented spate of disappearances, summary executions and other types of killings attributed to police agents between mid-April and early June diminished sharply following the arrest of some of those implicated in the Carrefour-Feuilles killings (see Human Rights Review, April-June 1999). These arrests may have had a deterrent effect. It should be noted also that one of the police officers arrested was also alleged to be involved in an armed brigade de vigilance implicated in 16 killings and four disappearances in Port-au-Prince in the second quarter. Four new killings by police were reported during this period, one in Morne à Cabrit (during an attack by armed robbers on a tap tap) and three in Port-au-Prince. In one of the latter cases, a police agent shot dead a woman in Delmas when he fired his gun reportedly to break up an argument between the victim and another woman.

Though it is not possible to give detailed statistics, information collected during visits to police stations show that the patterns of ill-treatment previously reported continued in some places. Beatings and other forms of ill-treatment were attributed to agents assigned to the folowing stations: Saint Marc (1), Gros Morne (1), Les Cayes (1), Belle Anse (South-East) (4), Port-au-Prince (2), Pétionville (7), Delmas (1), Croix des Bouquets (4), Cafétéria (1), Cité Soleil (12), Cabaret (1), Cap Haïtien (30), Hinche (1). In Port-au-Prince, 25 out of 28 detainees who alleged ill-treatment had signs of ill-treatment when interviewed by MICIVIH. The high number of detainees who have marks of ill-treatment suggests that most police are sure that they will not be punished. This perception is reinforced by the fact that no disciplinary action has been taken against repeat offenders brought to the attention of police authorities. Some particularly brutal methods were reported during this period - there were several allegations of cigarette lighter burns, electric shocks, semi-strangulation and/or hooding, in Pétionville, Cité Soleil and Cafétéria police stations.

The resurgence in the number of reported cases of ill-treatment in Cap Haïtien is particularly disturbing and reflects the heavy-handed policies (gros poignet) of the Municipal Commissioner. Several of the victims towards the end of the month were so badly ill-treated that they had to be taken to hospital by police. The police commissioner reportedly put in place two new special night patrol units which were cited as being responsible for ill-treating 13 of the 30 victims, many of whom had signs of injury when interviewed by MICIVIH. A senior police official acknowledged that the units, which are responsible only to the commissioner, use more brutal methods than others. At least five detainees said they were kicked and beaten when arrested during a 30 August police operation led by the commissioner and involving members of one of the units. Three street children were among the victims of abuse. In another case, involving two brothers, their sister and mother, reportedly ill-treated on 17 September, the agent identified as being responsible had been named in a series of cases presented by MICIVIH to the Inspection Générale in mid-1998. The victims filed a complaint before the Parquet. On 21 September, MICIVIH's Cap Haïtien regional office presented an aide-mémoire to the Departmental Director summarising cases of ill-treatment investigated since August and is awaiting the outcome of investigations which the director said would be carried out.

Allegations of ill-treatment by the police, January -September 1999 (with 1998 figures in parentheses)
Department	Jan.	Feb.	March	April	May	June	July	Aug	Sept	Total
West	4 (10)	8 (5)	11(17)	6 (4)	10(7)	6 (16)	7 (8)	10 (24)	11 (18)	73 (109)
North-West	0 (0)	1 (0)	2 (0)	0 (0)	1 (0)	0 (0)	0(2)	0(0)	0 (0)	4 (2)
North	3 (3)	13 (0)	5 (4)	2 (3)	2 (8)	0 (0)	0 (5)	18 (4)	12 (12)	55 (39)
North-East	1 (0)	1 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (3)	0 (0)	0 (6)	2 (9)
Artibonite	0 (16)	0 (14)	12 (7)	9 (1)	12 (16)	5 (2)	1 (0)	1 (13)	0 (5)	40 (74)
Centre	4 (3)	12 (24)	2 (2)	3 (1)	1 (0)	2 (1)	1 (1)	1 (0)	4 (2)	30 (34)
South-East	9 (0)	1 (1)	0 (3)	0 (0)	2 (0)	0 (1)	4 (1)	0 (0)	0 (0)	16 (6)
South	0 (1)	4 (2)	2 (10)	5 (1)	1 (8)	0 (7)	0 (7)	1 (4)	0 (3)	13 (43)
Grand'Anse	3 (1)	3 (3)	2 (5)	1 (1)	0 (0)	0 (2)	0 (1)	0 (1)	0 (1)	9 (15)
Total	24 (34)	43 (49)	36 (48)	26(11)	29 (39)	13(29)	13 (28)	31 (46)	27 (47)	242 (331)

Since the end of June, when five regional offices were closed, MICIVIH has only been able to monitor some police stations sporadically, so these figures are not necessarily complete.

In Hinche, a judicial official acknowledged that police reinforcements had "committed acts of barbarity" on a woman who got into a fight with a police agent and justice of the peace who went to search her home. She claimed that she was beaten and kicked until she fell unconscious, and subsequently spent two days in hospital. The judicial official refused to investigate her claims, however, on the grounds that she had attacked a judge in the course of his work.

On a more encouraging note, reports of beatings in the Artibonite, and in Gonaïves in particular, dropped dramatically since the arrival of the new Departmental Director in mid-July (see HRR, April-June for assessment of previous quarter). In the course of visits to 17 police stations during this quarter, only one allegation of ill-treatment in police custody was reported. Following allegations of a case of ill-treatment which reportedly occurred during a police operation in a private house, the departmental director carried out an investigation and suspended the police agent responsible for twenty days. In addition, conditions in the garde à vue in Gonaïves, which for sometime had been filthy and malodorous, improved considerably. Improvements in the treatment of detainees were also noted in Saint Marc following the appointment of a new commissioner.

Inhumane and negligent treatment of detainees also included leaving them without proper medical care. In September, four detainees, one shot and wounded by Cité Soleil police on 24 September and three shot by Carrefour police on 6 September were given access to professional medical attention once but then kept for long periods in holding cells without access to follow up treatment, for example cleaning and redressing of wounds. They were all still in custody at the end of September. Alerted by Carrefour UN civilian police officers (CIVPOL) to the serious condition of another detainee, who suffered internal injuries in a car accident in which his passenger was killed, MICIVIH facilitated his transfer to the National Penitentiary infirmary after assisting police to obtain a detention order. The detainee had been in police custody for ten days before the transfer because a judge who ordered his detention then departed on vacation. In Cap Haïtien, police took a detainee to hospital after he had been violently beaten by a crowd on 20 September but he was returned without treatment because of a hospital strike. Police left the detainee bleeding profusely in a cell, and mocked and insulted him in front of observers, who eventually persuaded them to provide water to wipe the blood from the detainee's face.

Police custody conditions

As indicated, police custody conditions improved in Gonaïves, and also in some of the newly refurbished police stations. Cells were also reportedly clean and in good condition in several other stations in the Artibonite, and in many stations in the department of the South, for example. The exception in the latter department was Les Cayes, where the cells continued to be extremely filthy. A Jamaican detainee had to be kept in the corridor because the unhealthy cell conditions were affecting his asthmatic condition. In several other places, conditions of detention deteriorated during this period suggesting increasing laxity in supervision and deteriorating police work ethic. Some of these attitudes appear to be related to a belief that criminal suspects do not deserve to be treated humanely. When MICIVIH observers visited Port-de-Paix on 6 September, they found that 12 men and three women were being held in one cell, with only limited access to latrines. Several had been held for well over 48 hours without seeing a judge. Sanitary conditions in the Jacmel detention cells also deteriorated in September. On 27 August, MICIVIH wrote to the Director of the HNP raising concerns about the fact that 37 males, including five convicted prisoners and several charged with serious crimes, were being held in one dark and stuffy cell with virtually no ventilation in Croix des Bouquets police station. A bucket served as a toilet, making the conditions even more intolerable. Apart from the newest arrivals, all the detainees complained of health problems, particularly headaches, stomach and skin problems, which could be attributed at least in part to their detention conditions. However, in the course of the following weeks, the number of detainees was reduced drastically, with police officers making greater efforts to take those arrested before the courts.

In Saint-Michel de l'Attalaye (Artibonite), where HNP have been absent since the police station was ransacked and torched in November 1998, judicial and municipal officials have been holding detainees in insanitary conditions in the Town Hall toilet. When MICIVIH visited on 1 July, four men and two male minors were detained in the toilet, which measures 1m x 3m. They had been held there for between one and eight days, without access to water and relied on their families to bring them food. One had been kept handcuffed since his arrest 24 hours earlier. A woman was being detained in the corridor outside. No record was being kept of these detentions. The local authorities said they regretted the conditions in which detainees were held and that they wanted the police to return to Saint-Michel, as had been promised. Judicial officials said those accused of minor offences such as voies de fait were held for several days until a settlement was reached with the plaintiff, while those charged with more serious offences were taken to the Gonaïves commissariat by the court bailiff in public transport if the money for the fare could be raised. Police authorities in Gonaïves, who expressed their concern, told MICIVIH that they had no vehicles available to fetch detainees from Saint-Michel. On 18 August, Gonaïves HNP officials accompanied MICIVIH to Saint-Michel where they explained to the Town Hall security agents who make the arrests that they must adhere to certain standards of detention and that, in particular, the holding area should be kept clean and the detainees could not be left handcuffed. They told an informal gathering of residents that police intended to redeploy there before the elections. The lack of a police presence in rural areas and increasing fears of crime had led locally elected officials to assume police responsibilities, an unavoidable but disturbing trend.

The provision of food for detainees in police custody continues to be problematic for those detainees without family living locally. Some detainees in Port-de-Paix and L'Estère said they had not eaten for several days for this reason, though in the latter case, police said they had given the detainee bread and water. In Port-de-Paix the prison normally sends meals to the garde à vue detainees but difficulties emerged because of a shortage of food stocks at the prison, a shortage of plates and the police not always notifying the prison of the exact number of detainees in custody. Food problems were reported by police and detainees in Gonaïves also, because of cutbacks in the supplies provided by the Direction de l'Administration Pénitentiaire (DAP) which are also used for detainees in the police station.

Respect for 48-hour rule

MICIVIH met with the Departmental Director of the West and also the deputy director of the Judicial Police (DCPJ) on 19 August to raise serious concerns about the widespread disregard of Port-au-Prince police stations for detainees' constitutional right to be heard by a judge within 48 hours of arrest, especially in the case of detainees facing serious criminal charges. Such problems have also been noted elsewhere, especially Jérémie and Cap Haïtien. Some detainees are held for investigation (enquêtes) into unspecified crimes for several weeks without seeing a judge on the grounds that police need the extra time to assemble evidence against them, and to make sure they stay off the streets. It is clear that detainees are also held to pressure them (through psychological and physical abuse) to give information or confess. Sometimes the detainees are released after prolonged detention in police custody without ever seeing a judge. As is often the case, the most extreme instances of prolonged garde à vue detention reported in Port-au-Prince were in cases under investigation by the judicial police (DCPJ).

Disrespect for the 48-hour rule in the metropolitan area was particularly flagrant in the Pétionville and Delmas stations. At the Pétionville station alone, some 50 cases were noted in which the detainees did not have access to a judge within the 48-hour limit during the month of September. On 27 September, for example, observers found that 27 of the 29 detainees in the Pétionville garde à vue had been held more than 48 hours without seeing a judge. Four had been held for more than a month, ten for more than two weeks and a further three for more than a week.

In Delmas, at least 20 cases were noted in September, four of whom have been held for more than a month. In August, 31 detainees were held there for more than two weeks without seeing a judge. Fourteen of the 17 detainees in the Delmas garde à vue cells on 19 August had been held longer than 48 hours without seeing a judge. When asked for an explanation, Delmas police claimed that they had twice taken detainees to the Delmas tribunal de paix only to find no judge present.

Contributing to the increase in number of detainees being held illegally in Pétionville and Delmas holding cells this month were an increase in the number of arrests, a lackadaisical attitude on the part of police investigators, a disregard for legal procedures and/or judicial orders, significant logistical constraints due to an insufficient number of vehicles and other support systems, and, in some instances, a lack of clarity and coordination with regard to the assignment of dossiers. In a clear example of the latter, Pétionville HNP told observers that dossiers for three detainees held in custody for several weeks were in the hands of the judicial police, but the judicial police director informed observers that his unit had not taken responsibility for the cases. In the case of three Delmas detainees held in police custody since mid-August, the judicial police were fully responsible for the delay in taking them before a judge. The situation is compounded by the fact that police, including senior officials, appear to be unclear about the criteria and time-frame for the transfer of a dossier to the judicial police unit. A Croix des Bouquets female detainee charged with murder was held for three months in a garde à vue cell before her dossier was actually transferred to the judicial police.

Again this quarter, no progress occurred in the metropolitan area's three cases of extremely prolonged detention in police stations. Former member of the Force Armée d'Haïti (FAd'H) Steve Conserve, arrested in May 1996 on charges of threatening state security, remained in the Port-au-Prince station, while Colombian citizen, Ricardo Gomez Cornejo, arrested in February 1999, and former Port-de-Paix judge, Luckner Pierre, arrested in October 1998, remain detained in the Pétionville station. Judicial release orders for Luckner Pierre and for Steve Conserve have never been executed despite repeated MICIVIH representations over the illegal and arbitrary nature of these detentions.

Police detention registers

Observers noted a deterioration in the maintenance of registres de rétention (police detention registers) at the Port-au-Prince, Croix des Bouquets and Pétionville stations. Sections on judicial contact and transferral of detainees are not filled-in completely making it impossible to determine how many detainees should be in the police stations at any given moment. The new Cité Soleil Route Nationale station has yet to receive a registre de rétention. It has become increasingly common to find cases of detainees not registered at all in different parts of the country. During this current period, such cases included five HNP agents who were arrested by Cap Haïtien police in a drugs raid and held for several weeks without ever being registered. In some cases, detainees were not entered in the register or taken before a judge because their detention was viewed by police as a purely "disciplinary" measure. A 17-year-old woman accused of theft, when interviewed on 4 August, had been held for six days in the L'Estère police station without being registered. Such detentions are arbitrary and illegal. Arcahaie police also failed to register detainees consistently

The detention register was filled up in Ouanaminthe in June and has not been replaced yet. The register had been fairly well-maintained in Jacmel police station until it ran out on 3 August. It had not been replaced by the end of September and no alternative method of recording detainees had been put in place. The detention register in Port-de-Paix, which filled up at the end of last year, had still not been replaced. As before, the police were using photocopied register pages but with less care than in the past. Almost all the entries during the last three months had significant errors or omissions. No entries had been made for over a week when MICIVIH visited, none of the 15 individuals being held at the time had been registered, and none of the 15 (seven of whom had been held for between five and seven days) had seen a judge. When MICIVIH returned to the commissariat on 30 September, it found that none of the 13 detainees then being held had been entered in the register, and that no entries had been made for two weeks. The new departmental director for the North-West blamed poor training but lack of supervision may also have contributed. All inspectors had been transferred recently and there was no municipal police commissioner.

There were still many omissions in the detention register at the Jérémie commissariat, including the type of arrest ( flagrant délit or otherwise), judicial decisions, transfers to prison and releases. Of the 12 detainees in the garde à vue at the time of MICIVIH's visit on 20 September, three had not been entered in the register, including two who had been arrested two days earlier. Serious shortcomings were also noted in records maintenance in Les Cayes. On 15 July, for example, there were no detainees in garde à vue but according to the register there should have been five. The police had failed to enter court appearances, transfers to prison and releases. Mirebalais, Léogâne, Cavaillon and Saint Louis du Sud were among the stations where the register was noted to be well-kept, as were registers in most of the smaller stations in the Artibonite.

Generally speaking, the register was much better maintained in the small commissariats and sous-commissariats than in the main police stations in the departmental capitals. However, register entries in the smaller stations usually showed an extremely low number of arrests suggesting either that the crime rate was very low or that the police were doing very little policing when they had no vehicles (which is usually the case in the smaller stations). The latter interpretation was supported by the testimony of residents and juges de paix, who often complained of police inability or reluctance to carry out investigations or execute arrest warrants beyond a limited radius around the police station, despite reports of assault, rape and other violent crimes coming from rural areas.

Police en isolement

As of the end of September, seven police agents were being held in isolement in Port-au-Prince, four of them since June. In one case, a CIMO officer suspected of murder, the agent appeared to be held in extremely lax conditions of detention. Two were being held in connection with the Carrefour Feuilles massacre (complicity in an escape). None of the seven had seen a judge and it was unclear whether any judicial proceedings had been launched against them.

Outside the capital, one police agent was being held in Jacmel police station as of the end of September, accused of taking bribes. A Gonaïves HNP was placed in isolement after the non-fatal shooting of an individual on 22 September in Saint Michel de l'Attalaye. An HNP has been held in Fort Liberté police station for four months for abandoning his post and also drugs-related charges. A police official there told MICIVIH it was an internal disciplinary affair. An Hinche police inspector was placed in isolement in Port-au-Prince on 13 September. Initially accused of instigating the work stoppage by police in early September, the charges were almost immediately changed to usurpation de titre for assuming the position of municipal commissioner. However, he appeared to have an official letter appointing him to the position ad interim. Although still in isolement at the end of the month, he was eventually released and, according to press reports, promoted. Another Hinche police agent was placed in isolement on 26 September and suspended for 20 days for "lending" his service weapon to someone who used it during an incident at a night club. A third police officer (assigned to Cavaillon) escaped on the way to court after being held for three days, from 18-21 September, in isolement in Hinche after shooting a 16-year-old suspected thief in the stomach. The Chef de poste was then put in isolement for three days for not having been sufficiently vigilant when transferring the other police officer to the Hinche parquet.

Police in detention

At least 58 HNP officers, some of whom have been revoked since arrest, were in prison as of the end of September, 11 of them in connection with human rights abuses (see below). Fifty-four of them were being held in Port-au-Prince prisons, six for the Carrefour Feuilles massacre (see below), four for abuses which occurred during the coup d'état period, most of the others, including the Carrefour police commissioner, for criminal association, armed theft and/or drug trafficking.

One police agent was in prison in Les Cayes for a death in custody (see below), one in Jérémie, for the 1998 non-fatal shooting of an individual; and two in Saint Marc, one for complicity in an escape, the other accused of drug trafficking. The police commissioner of Anse d'Hainault, arrested for drugs possession during an accident, escaped from a Port-au-Prince hospital where he had been taken for treatment in September. Five HNP were imprisoned in Cap Haïtien in September on drugs-related charges.

Investigations into abuses

As of the end of September, six police officers were in the National Penitentiary and two en isolement in Pétionville police station in connection with the eleven executions which took place on 28 May in Carrefour Feuilles. Hopes that the case would be speedily investigated with the appointment of a commission of judges have not been met. A judicial source told MICIVIH that the dossier was not transferred from the parquet to the commission until 3 August, when they questioned four detained police officials for the first time. The judges have been given three months to complete their inquiry. A police agent who was being held en isolement in Pétionville police station was sent to the National Penitentiary on 9 August after being questioned by the commission. The two HNP agents in isolement since June were still being held, for facilitating the release of one of the main HNP suspects. Three other HNPs detained or in isolement were released in August. Results of the internal police investigation have also yet to be announced. Families of the victims have been protesting about the slowness of the proceedings, and some senior police officials have expressed their doubts about the transparency of the investigations.

In spite of the fact that judicial and police officials took key witness statements, there was no other progress in investigations into the arrest and disappearance of eight young people in Croix des Missions in April and the finding of human remains in Titanyen (see HRR, April-June 1999). MICIVIH facilitated contacts between police and also a deputy state prosecutor and a young woman who identified clothing of some of the victims found in Titanyen and who had escaped when the eight were arrested. The state prosecutor at the time refused to meet with the woman. These cases and also those of 16 individuals who were killed and four others who disappeared in Bois Neuf in May were raised with the Ministry of Justice, the head of the HNP and the Inspection Générale during meetings and in the form of aide-mémoires in July. A press release was also issued on 21 July to draw the public's attention to the seriousness of these incidents of killings and disappearances.

Of particular concern are isolated reports that the Ministry of Justice intervened with judicial officials on behalf of police officers facing charges in the courts. In Cap Haïtien, an examining magistrate was dismissed by the Ministry of Justice after he failed to obey an order to move from Cap Haïtien to Grande Rivière du Nord. In June, the official in question had issued a mandat d'amener against the Cap Haïtien municipal police commissioner because the latter had failed several times to respond to a request to appear in court (see HRR, April-June 1999). The summons was related to the alleged assault of a bus driver, a case which was investigated by MICIVIH observers at the time and found to be credible. The judge said that he had collected several witness testimonies in the case. The transfer order was issued after the judge refused to withdraw the warrant as illegally requested by the Ministry of Justice. The judge contested his transfer on the grounds that it was not legal and that he had done nothing wrong. He was subsequently dismissed in August. As a result of this affair, the Cap Haïtien judiciary threatened action and relations between the police and judiciary reached an all-time low. MICIVIH is extremely concerned about the failure of the Justice Ministry to support the efforts of a judge to pursue an inquiry into police abuses, reinforcing the unhelpful perception that police officers are above the law and undermining the independence of the judiciary.

In a rare case of speedy judicial investigations, on 5 July, an examining magistrate ordered a jury trial for an HNP who is accused of murder in connection with the beating he allegedly inflicted in April in Camp-Perrin police station on a detainee who died two days later in Les Cayes prison (see HRR, April-June 1999). The order was not issued in time for the case to be tried in the assizes that began on 9 July. Judicial officials told MICIVIH they had resisted pressure to drop the charges from a series of individuals who claimed they had been sent by the HNP. The HNP agent had been detained in Les Cayes prison since 4 May but, following reports of threats from fellow detainees, he was transferred on 30 September to the Les Cayes commissariat where MICIVIH noted that he was free to circulate inside the building.

On 21 July 1999, the acting state prosecutor in Port-de-Paix closed the case against an HNP accused of killing a suspected thief by dropping a rock on his head while arresting him on 6 June 1999 (see HRR, April-June 1999). The prosecutor concluded that the suspect resisted arrest and the HNP acted in self-defence, overriding the findings of a three-member police commission of inquiry which reported that the HNP had inflicted "deliberate blows and injuries causing death". MICIVIH also concluded as a result of its inquiry that the police agent had clearly used excessive force. The police agent had been placed in isolement for a short period but was then released. He has since returned to active duty. In another Port-de-Paix case - that of a police agent accused of a non-fatal shooting in October 1998 (see HRR, January-March 1999) - MICIVIH learnt that the acting state prosecutor closed the case on 31 May after the plaintiff reached a compensation agreement with the HNP and withdrew his complaint. Although the previous departmental director had recommended his dismissal, the HNP returned to active duty and was transferred away from the provincial capital.

A police agent accused of shooting an individual dead during a traffic dispute in December 1998 in Port-au-Prince and who had been detained since the beginning of the year was released by a judge in mid-September. Police officials told MICIVIH that as a result of a police inquiry into the case, his dismissal from the HNP had been recommended.

Police/Community relations

Residents of Saint-Marc, including members of popular organisations, reported an improvement in police-community relations following the installation of a new commissaire municipal in Saint-Marc on 26 July, filling a post left vacant since the previous holder was seriously injured on 6 June. They said there had been no allegations of police brutality, illegal house searches had stopped, attempts were being made to crack down on drug dealing, and the police were generally more disciplined. Residents of the Délugé district had complained to MICIVIH in early July that police were carrying out regular raids in reprisal for the lynching of a Saint-Marc HNP and the serious injuries inflicted on two colleagues in an incident on 6 June (see HRR April-June 1999). The police were accused of firing in the air, searching homes without warrants, chasing and manhandling residents and making arrests without warrants.

Relations between police and the population of Limbé (North) have remained poor since the ransacking of the police station in 1998. When police arrested a suspect of the ransacking on 9 August, a hail of rocks were thrown at the station. UNCIVPOL, MICIVIH and an HNP community relations specialist from Cap Haïtien are looking at ways of bringing police together with the population to bridge the gap between the two sectors.

In Mirebalais, where relations between police and the local population have often been difficult since the February 1998 lynching of a police commissioner, a police inspector facilitated a meeting between the local water company and representatives of a popular organisation which had closed down the water company's offices on 2 September during a violent demonstration. The offices were reopened after a compromise agreement was reached.

Training of police

Two MICIVIH local consultants led five days of training for ten police instructors responsible for human rights training at the Police Academy in Port-au-Prince from 26-30 July. Each of the five days covered a different theme: a review of topics related to human dignity and human rights; women's rights; violence against women; violence against children; techniques for leading training seminars in human rights. Part of the discussions about human dignity focussed on what constitutes a human rights violation, and also the perception of the police that society does not recognise that they also have rights. As in many previous seminars, the issue of the 12-hour shift featured prominently amongst their concerns.

Prior to this, the MICIVIH trainers had, for the first time, led a series of training sessions from 5-9 July at the Police Academy on the abuse of children. The sessions were given to each of five groups of 26 police cadets and sought to make police aware of the types of abuse suffered by children in Haiti, the rights of children, the role of police vis à vis minors. The training included role play and case studies, for example, how police would deal with certain situations involving street children.

Together with the HNP, MICIVIH's consultants are also preparing two training modules, to be given over three days, and drafting a guide on the protection of human rights in the context of the electoral process.

ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

Judicial reform

In a welcome initiative to get the judicial reform process underway, seven working groups were set up to consider a series of themes related to judicial reform and to draft appropriate legislation at a meeting on 29 September. It was convoked by Ministry of Justice officials and attended by international donors involved in judicial reform, among them two representatives of MICIVIH. The seven groups, made up of Haitian and international experts, will tackle various subjects including the Judicial Inspectorate, legal aid, the salary system for judicial staff, drawing up a code of ethics and statutes for the Judiciary, a law on the independence of the Judiciary and a system for evaluating judges and prosecutors, drafting statutes for the Ecole de la Magistrature and an organic law on the functioning of the Justice Ministry; seeking solutions to the problem of overcrowding in prisons, drafting a code of criminal procedures and a circular on the work of the judicial police. MICIVIH will be participating in four of the seven working groups.

Ecole de la Magistrature (EMA)

In September, in another positive development, competitive examinations were organised in Port-au-Prince, Gonaïves, Hinche, Cap Haïtien and Les Cayes to select the second group of forty students to train as judges and prosecutors. The course, which will last one year, is due to begin in November. The first and only group of students to have graduated as judges from the EMA did so in May 1998. MICIVIH observers provided logistical support for and monitored the examinations in some towns, as well as collecting completed examination papers, thereby contributing to the EMA's efforts to ensure a transparent selection process.

Prolonged pre-trial detention

Prolonged pre-trial detention continues to be an indicator of the dysfunctional nature of the judicial system despite continuing efforts to address the issue and despite some positive signs of progress. According to a survey of detainees in pre-trial detention, at the time of the MICIVIH visit, Anse à Veau, Aquin, Delmas, Les Cayes and Petit Goâve prisons had five or less detainees held without trial for more than a year. Mirebalais had none. For the first time in well over a year, some developments were noted with regard to prolonged pre-trial detention in the Department of the West with the release of a number of detainees, though the criteria for selecting those to be released were difficult to define.

Sixty-five detainees were released from the National Penitentiary on the orders of the commissaire du gouvernement, one of his substitutes and a juge de paix on 9 and 10 September. Five had been held in pre-trial detention for more than three years, 21 for more than two years and 16 for more than a year. Prison officials and detainees were extremely disturbed by what they perceived to be an arbitrary selection of detainees to be released on the part of the judicial officials. Detainees were particularly outraged by the fact that 13 of the 65 individuals released were arrested in 1999 and that some of them had been charged with more serious offences than detainees awaiting trial since 1996.

Also released, on 20 September, were 14 of the 25 detainees held in prolonged pre-trial detention at the Carrefour Prison. Two of them had been held since 1995, five since 1996 and seven since 1997. The remaining 11 long-term pre-trial detention detainees appear not to have been considered either because they had either empty or incomplete dossiers in which the state prosecutor, who ordered the other releases, could not determine the charge. Such detentions were highly irregular.

On 19 September, observers handed the Minister of Justice's Director of Legal Affairs, an up-dated list of 175 National Penitentiary detainees held in pre-trial detention since 1995 and 1996. Eighty-seven of the 175 detainees were waiting to be tried by jury criminal assizes, which have not taken place in Port-au-Prince since July 1998. In the course of updating the list, observers met with each of the five examining magistrates (juges d'instruction) to discuss their caseloads of such detainees. One of the five magistrates subsequently visited the National Penitentiary at the end of September to interview all 15 detainees on the list for whom he is responsible. On 22 September, one of the legal assistants working with the Bureau du Contrôle de la Détention Préventive (BUCODEP) also interviewed all detainees held since 1995. BUCODEP, which had been set up to tackle the most serious cases of pre-trial detention, had ceased to be active for several months. On 23 July MICIVIH submitted to the Director of Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Justice an aide-mémoire on the work of the Unit with a series of recommendations for strengthening its activities.

Former FAd'H Colonel Léopold Clerjeune, held in pre-trial detention at the National Penitentiary since August 1998, began a hunger strike on 22 September to protest what he described as discrimination in the judicial processing of detained former soldier's dossiers. On 26 and 27 September a further 24 detainees joined Clerjeune in the strike. By the month's end, six of the strikers had begun eating but nine were put on intravenous drips as the hunger strike began to seriously affect their health. All but one of the hunger strikers were demanding an immediate release or trial. Some had release orders pending which had never been executed. The other, who is serving a nine-year sentence, was demanding a re-trial. Among the group were nine former FAd'H who were arrested outside the Ministry of Finance in July 1998 when protesting about the non-payment of pensions. MICIVIH found no trace of their dossiers in the court system. All nine were eventually released, in mid-October.

The problem of excessive pre-trial detention persists, in great part the inevitable consequence of the negligence and uncaring attitudes of state prosecutors and judicial officials. Apart from the several hundred detainees held for long periods in the National Penitentiary, in August, observers determined that three of the 109 detainees in Fort National prison had been held in pre-trial detention since 1996, 8 since 1997 and 20 since 1998. In Pétionville, also in August, 56 of the 112 in pre-trial detention had been held for more than a year. Of the 56, five had been held for four years, four for more than three years, and 14 for more than two years, making the average length of time 412 days, compared with 291 days in December 1998.

Outside of Port-au-Prince, Cap Haïtien has the most cases of prolonged pre-trial detention, primarily because most of the cases are in the hands of one examining magistrate who has done very little to advance the dossiers for which he is responsible. As of 2 September, 1 detainee had been held since 1996, 20 since 1997 and 51 since 1998, i.e. 72 out of 154 detainees had been held in prolonged detention.

In August, MICIVIH established that, aside from the 17 accused in connection with the 1994 Raboteau massacre, Gonaïves prison had 60 inmates who had been awaiting trial for more than a year, though the number had dropped with the holding of criminal assizes at the beginning of the month (see below). Of the 60, half were accused of murder, attempted murder or rape, but many of the others had been held for very long periods on such lesser charges as theft, assault, illegal possession of a firearm and abuse of confidence. These dossiers were brought to the attention of the judicial authorities who were encouraged to speed up proceedings. Two detainees held on murder charges in Gonaïves since September 1996 were released by the deputy state prosecutor on 11 August. Judicial officials had been unable to locate the related dossiers for many months. They were finally located at the parquet and transferred to an examining magistrate prior to the detainees' release.

In Jérémie, the prolonged absence of the new doyen (he never took up office since his appointment several months ago) and a dispute between the state prosecutor and the Bar Association, on-going since April, continued to paralyse the judicial system, seriously affecting the speed of judicial proceedings. No hearings were held at the correctional tribunal during this period and assizes scheduled for July were postponed. With the tacit support of certain judicial officials, the lawyers were demanding inter-alia the dismissal of the prosecutor, whom they accused of abuse of authority, including in relation to a series of arbitrary detentions in August which MICIVIH investigated and corroborated. Fifteen detainees have been awaiting trial for more than a year, five of them for more than two years. Among the five are three minors, whose case was exacerbated by the fact that the judge dealing with minors is based in Les Cayes. He told MICIVIH he could do nothing because he lacked transport to visit Jérémie. MICIVIH also raised its concerns about another minor accused of stealing a radio and detained in Jérémie prison since mid-February. His detention order was issued by a deputy prosecutor who was subsequently retired. Since then, no judicial action has been taken in the case as the dossier has been mislaid. He was eventually released, on 8 October.

Four individuals were finally brought to trial in Saint-Marc on 6 August for the May 1998 murder of land reform official Chenel Gracien and his wife. One was convicted and sentenced to six years imprisonment, and the other three were acquitted. Seven other suspects were previously released for lack of evidence in April after spending some 11 months in detention, in the course of which they had staged a number of hunger strikes to protest judicial inaction. It would seem that, possibly because of political pressure for results, police and judicial officials carried out many arrests in this case on the sole basis of denunciation, making little attempt to verify the accusations and obtain real evidence through investigation.

Criminal assizes

MICIVIH urged judicial and ministerial officials to organise criminal assizes with juries in Port-au-Prince (where the last assizes were held in July 1998) and in Cap Haïtien, where jury assizes have not been held since 1997. According to Haitian law, criminal assizes with jury must be organised at least every six months.

Criminal assizes with jury did, however, take place in ten jurisdictions, mostly in July or early August. Problems repeatedly arose in the formation of juries, and in a number of cases trials were delayed or postponed as a result, suggesting that ways need to be found to ensure the presence of jurors. Judicial officials reported that the jury assizes held in Port-de-Paix on 12-16 July were much facilitated by the fact that the Ministry of Justice provided funds for hotel accommodation and transport for jurors. Such funding by the Ministry has become relatively rare.

The first jury assizes since April 1998 were held in Jacmel on 19 July - 3 August. Twelve cases with a total of 18 defendants were heard. Five of the defendants had spent more than a year awaiting trial. Six cases were heard in jury assizes held in Les Cayes on 9-16 July. No major problems were reported. Of particular note were jury assizes held in Gonaïves, the first since September 1997. Ten cases with a total of 16 defendants were heard. Almost all of them had spent extremely long periods awaiting trial. One defendant had been held for more than four years, eight for more than three years and another five for more than two years. The start of most of the trials was delayed by difficulties in forming juries. On the second day, jurors had to be fetched from their homes in order that the trial could start. In many cases, defendants were not given the required eight days advance notice of the indictment (acte d'accusation) or the trial order (ordonnance de renvoi). Physical evidence and witnesses were rarely produced and prosecution cases were poorly presented, while court-appointed defence lawyers appeared to know little about the cases. Thirteen of the 16 defendants were convicted.

In Mirebalais, only one of 12 defendants being tried at the assizes was represented by a practising lawyer, while in Hinche, a defendant was granted provisional liberty but the state prosecutor refused to release him, as a protest that state prosecutors have no right of appeal in cases of main levée d'écrou (provisional release) though he eventually freed the individual. In Grande Rivière du Nord, all the defendants were acquitted, even though some of them acknowledged they were guilty. Assizes with jury were held in Saint-Marc on 2-10 August. Eight cases were due to be tried, but three were postponed because of a lack of jurors (including that of two men accused of killing a Saint-Marc court bailiff who have been awaiting trial for four years) and one was postponed because witnesses did not appear.

Aquin's jury assizes were delayed because of repeated protests by local lawyers demanding that someone from their ranks be appointed to the post of state prosecutor, vacant since March. They prevented the assizes from starting on 26 July by refusing to defend the accused. As a result, the Minister of Justice sent two lawyers from the Port-au-Prince Amicale des Juristes to take their place and a second - unsuccessful - attempt to start the assizes was made on 29 July. Aquin lawyers created a disturbance in the courtroom, while supporters burned tyres outside and barricaded the nearby Route Nationale 2. Burning tyres also aborted a third attempt on 2 August. On 3 August, one of the deputy state prosecutors (not an Aquin native) was sworn in as the new state prosecutor after being assigned bodyguards and a vehicle by the Minister of Justice. With riot police stationed outside the courtroom, and the two Port-au-Prince lawyers acting for the defence, the assizes finally got under way the same day. Four of a total of eight scheduled trials went ahead, three were postponed to the next assizes because of a lack of jurors and the eighth case was postponed because the defendant refused to accept a lawyer from Port-au-Prince.

The jury assizes held in Petit-Goâve from 12 July to 2 August, in which a total of 14 cases were heard, were marred by reports of threats against jury members and friction between the state prosecutor and defence lawyers. The most serious instance of the latter occurred in the early hours of 28 July, when the doyen upheld the defence's angry demands for the jury to reconsider its verdict of guilty, and refused to hear the prosecutor's objections. The prosecutor was accused of brandishing his handgun in court, though he denied this. The Ministry of Justice carried out an inquiry into the affair, though the outcome is not yet known.

Habeas corpus, non-respect for release orders

Port-au-Prince observers conducted a survey at the National Penitentiary, Fort National and Pétionville prisons in September as a first step in determining how many detainees remain in prison despite the existence of release orders. Of the 2,020 detainees contacted, 211 claimed that they had received release orders but nevertheless remained in prison. Exhaustive research in registries at the prisons, the parquet and cabinets d'instruction will need to be done to verify information provided by the detainees. Observers hope to work in collaboration with DAP legal assistants on the endeavour.

MICIVIH is extremely concerned by the completely arbitrary and illegal nature of the continuing detention of persons who have obtained release orders and whose cases have a political or security dimension. The Mission continued to press the authorities to execute release orders issued by judges in 22 cases of former FAd'H and others, nine of whom have spent well over 1,000 days awaiting trial.

The 22 are: Robert Lecorps, Patrick Moïse, Eric Thertulien, Steve Conserve, Claude Raymond, Jean Enel Samedi, Léoncefils Céance, Georges Métayer, Jean Michel Touvenaux, Méradieu Faustin, Léonard Lucas, Rémy Lucas, Jean-Michel Richardson, Alexandre Paul, Thomas Assabath, Jean-Louis Henry, Jean-Robert Lhérisson, Bertrand Constant, Rilande Louis, Akis Deronette, Calero Bibas Fabien and Luckner Pierre. An aide-mémoire detailing the specifics of these cases as well as copies of some of the release orders were submitted to the Minister of Justice, who formed a commission of judges to look into the cases in September. No further developments were reported by the end of the month, and these cases remained inexcusable illustrations of flagrant violations of human rights principles regarding individual liberty and due process. The situation of Evans François, detained without charge since April 1996, is as offensive as the above cases. It is quite clear that raison d'état has taken precedence over due process and the rule of law.

Detentions and other incidents related to Jacmel prison escape

In Jacmel, an order for the provisional release of two civilians and a prison supervisor issued on 20 August had not been executed by the end of the reporting period. The three were detained following the escape from Jacmel prison, on 25 July, of a foreign detainee facing serious charges of drug trafficking. To MICIVIH's knowledge no appeal had been lodged against the release order to justify the continued detention of the three. MICIVIH was later informed that the release orders had been lost.

The suspected drug trafficker, Emmanuel Laugel, two other foreigners, two HNPs and a third Haitian had been arrested in Cayes-Jacmel in February on charges that included criminal association, illegal possession of firearms and conspiracy against state security. Laugel was freed by four individuals firing automatic weapons as he was being escorted back to the prison from the adjoining commissariat where he had taken a phone call. Police did not return fire or give chase.

The HNP chef de poste, a prison supervisor and a prison guard were arrested the same day on suspicion of complicity and placed in the prison, which was put under police control. Two civilians were also detained. One, an employee of the Port-au-Prince law firm which was acting for the six detainees arrested in February, claimed he had arrived in Jacmel the day before the escape in order to discuss the case with the state prosecutor. The other civilian said he is a former police trainer and had been visiting one of the HNPs detained with Laugel.

The arrests were immediately criticized by one of the Fanmi Lavalas leaders in the South-East, Joseph Lambert, former president of the Conseil Départemental, who in press interviews accused the police departmental director of having acted dictatorially and arrested honest citizens. Thereafter, graffiti appeared in Jacmel accusing the departmental director of being a drug trafficker, while anonymous leaflets circulated accusing Lambert and the detained former police trainer of working for the Colombian drug cartels.

The HNP chef de poste and the prison guard were released from prison on 16 August on receipt of a main levée de dépôt issued by an examining magistrate because of lack of evidence. When prison officials received the provisional release orders for the three other detainees accused of complicity in the escape, on 20 August, they received instructions not to execute the orders from higher officials.

In the wake of the escape, the prison inspector and another prison supervisor were transferred to other prisons. Jacmel's two deputy state prosecutors and one of the examining magistrates were dismissed by the Ministry of Justice in letters received on 20 August that gave no reason for their dismissal. It was not clear to what degree, if any, their dismissals were linked to the Laugel affair as all three had been the subject of previous allegations of corruption, especially of taking bribes for the release of individuals accused of drug trafficking. The state prosecutor was transferred to a judge's post in Port-au-Prince a month later.

Tribunaux de paix in the Artibonite

MICIVIH visited 22 of the Artibonite's 23 tribunaux de paix during the reporting period, finding that the main concerns voiced by the juges de paix related to the very limited ability of the police to guard courthouses, escort them on field visits, carry out arrests in rural areas and transfer detainees. Judges voiced such fear of reprisals in the absence of police protection that it appeared to be having an impact on their independence and impartiality and undermining their will to carry out their duties. The judges reported that arrest warrants are not executed or arrests are carried out illegally by persons with no arresting powers, such as local government elected officials (CASEC members) or auxiliaries, while delays in carrying out transfers result in detainees spending overlong periods in small police stations with sometimes inadequate conditions of detention. They acknowledged that the police lack vehicles and other resources but said that police agents, many of them from urban backgrounds, refuse to go far on foot or ride a mule in the execution of their duties, unlike the judges themselves. The judges also reported difficulty in maintaining regular contact with the parquet, with the result that judges in the remoter localities are often unable to transmit judicial files to the parquet in time, contributing to the excessive length of the periods some detainees spend in garde à vue.

Impunity

The month of September has a particular significance with regard to impunity in Haiti given that the anniversary of the coup d'état falls at the end of the month, and that the killing of Antoine Izméry in 1993 and the Saint Jean Bosco church massacre in 1988 also occurred in the same month. As part of the activities to mark the eighth anniversary of the coup d'état this year, the Fondation 30 Septembre, a victims' defence association, organised a two-day exhibition of photographs of the coup d'état period at the Port-au-Prince City Hall and a mass in the Champ de Mars. The latter was disrupted by a carnival-type demonstration with political and electoral overtones bringing together several hundred revellers to call for justice for victims of the coup d'état. Events were also organised in the provinces, including in Mirebalais where a peaceful demonstration of some 40 people was organised by the Fédération des victimes du coup d'Etat du 30 septembre de Mirebalais.

MICIVIH issued a press release in memory of the victims, and expressed the hope that lessons learned from the past would help Haiti to find a way forward in the current fragile and difficult process of democratisation, which should be guided by a spirit of dialogue, tolerance and the principles of the rule of law. Many of the statements issued in connection with the anniversary made reference to the importance of returning the FRAPH/FAd'H documents in their entirety. A US congressional delegation which visited Haiti in September noted in its report the findings of the American Law Division of the Congressional Research Service, which concluded that "the documents are the property of the Haitian Government, and it is clear that the seizure violated the spirit, if not the letter, of the Multinational Force's mandate. Claims by the Department of Defense and other branches of the US Government that the documents needed to be redacted to comply with the Privacy Act are simply without merit. The documents should be returned in their original form."

At a press conference on 28 September, MICIVIH presented its report, La lutte contre l'impunité et pour la réparation, the fruit of three years' research both in the field and at headquarters. The report examines the treatment of cases of human rights violations by courts in five jurisdictions - Port-au-Prince, Hinche, Mirebalais, Saint Marc and Gonaïves - and analyses the causes of impunity. It gives a bleak picture of the State's efforts to provide justice for victims and their families, underlining the general lack of political will on the part of state prosecutors and judicial officials as well as of the State and the Government to tackle the issues of impunity and compensation, particularly the failure to follow up the recommendations of the National Truth and Justice Commission. The report concludes with a series of recommendations directed not only at the Government but also at civil society. The report was submitted in draft form to the Government in May.

Legal proceedings in the 1994 Raboteau massacre case crossed a critical threshold, with the completion of the prosecutor's brief (réquisitoire définitif) and also the trial order (ordonnance de renvoi) by the examining magistrate, the notification of charges against the accused (on 29 September) and their committal for trial at criminal assizes. Thirteen detainees who were being held in Pétionville were transferred to Gonaïves on 28 September, where they joined the other 17 detainees. On 30 September, MICIVIH briefed the detainees on the legal implications of the trial order and on rights of appeal. Of the 30 accused who are in detention, charges were dropped against eight for lack of evidence but their release was blocked by the prosecution to allow for appeals against the decision. Although a standard practice, the refusal to release them was illegal, according to lawyers working for MICIVIH. The military high command are also among those charged, in absentia, as intellectual authors of the killings. Two consultants recruited by MICIVIH at the request of the Haitian authorities presented a report on the military aspects of the case to the Ministry of Justice. The Association of Victims of Raboteau continued to press for the replacement of the state prosecutor, who was eventually dismissed. Tremendous procedural and organisational obstacles remain to be overcome before the trial becomes a reality.

The Plateforme des organisations haïtiennes des droits de l'homme (POHDH) organised a series of meetings bringing together members of several human rights organisations and representatives of MICIVIH to start preparations for an international conference on impunity, to be held in 2000, an idea proposed by Nobel peace prize laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel during a visit to Haiti in April. Four meetings have taken place so far, the first of these on 24 August, which was attended by some 20 members of NGOs and which focussed on five reports on impunity: two reports by the POHDH itself (Plan d'Action contre l'impunité - 1998, and Violence, insécurité et droits de l'homme: Réflexions et propositions - June 1999); Jalons pour une politique de réparation produced by MAPVIV which was distributed in July 1999 (see HRR, April-June 1999), the 1999 MICIVIH report and a 1997 report on the question of impunity by the UN Special Rapporteur on impunity of authors of violations of economic, social and cultural rights. Subsequent meetings discussed themes to be covered during the conference and a number of activities to be held in the months leading up it.

PRISONS

On the basis of statistics mainly gathered in August and September, MICIVIH noted a prison population of some 3,888 detainees, of whom 3,227 (83 per cent) were in pre-trial detention. This compares with a total of 3,471 detainees in the previous quarter, of whom 3,003 (81 per cent) were in pre-trial detention. One hundred and sixty-seven of the current detainees were women, of whom only 26 have been sentenced. There were 77 minors in detention, 13 of whom had been convicted.

Concerns are growing that progress made in the prison reform programme is at risk of being reversed if management and coordination are not improved at a national level, particularly regarding the provision of food (see below), and also at the level of some of the prisons themselves. These shortcomings are exacerbated by the continuing overcrowding resulting from prolonged pre-trial detention and also the number of individuals being placed in detention. Les Cayes, Grande Rivière du Nord, Port-de-Paix and Cap Haïtien were among those which appear to be badly run in general. In many prisons, DAP supervisors, inspectors and guards struggled to maintain conditions in spite of poor logistical support. Anse-à-Veau was cited by observers as being well-run, in terms of conditions, provision of food and medical care and in the maintenance of prison records.

DAP/respect for human rights

Eight incidents of ill-treatment in prisons were reported this quarter - in Les Cayes, Cap Haïtien, Gonaïves, Grande Rivière du Nord and in the National Penitentiary - during which some 20 detainees alleged being slapped or beaten by prison guards. In the majority of cases, the beatings were meted out as punishment, in violation of article 125 of the DAP internal prison regulations which forbids corporal punishment. They included two detainees in Les Cayes and eleven of the 25 detainees transferred from Les Cayes to the National Penitentiary mentioned below. The latter alleged that they were beaten and trodden on by guards as they arrived at the prison and also, more severely, the following day. Many of them had marks, a few quite serious, on their bodies. Prison authorities gave conflicting accounts, one official saying they arrived at the prison in that condition, others saying that the detainees had beaten each other up. Only after MICIVIH intervened were the detainees given medical treatment for their injuries.

At least two cases of degrading treatment were reported. In Gonaïves prison, a detainee who pocketed a five-gourde coin he found, was made to roll around in the mud in the prison yard as punishment. During a visit to Port-de-Paix on 6 September, MICIVIH found two detainees naked, without mattresses or any other items, in a punishment cell from which they were not being let out to use the latrines. The two were removed from the cell after MICIVIH raised concerns about the appalling conditions.

Only one DAP guard was reportedly sanctioned for ill-treatment during this period. He was placed in isolement on 1 September pending the outcome of an inquiry into allegations that he beat up a detainee at the National Penitentiary as punishment for refusing to go to court wearing handcuffs. In Gonaïves, a guard implicated in the punishment of 26 detainees in June (see HRR, April-June 1999) was also implicated along with a colleague in the alleged slapping of three of the accused in the Raboteau massacre case (see Impunity above) shortly after their transfer to Gonaïves prison from Port-au-Prince on 28 September. The local prison coordinator is monitoring the behaviour of the DAP guard concerned. In Hinche, a prison guard suspended more than a year ago for ill-treating detainees and officially banned from working in the prison, reportedly continued to draw his salary and was seen inside the prison verbally abusing detainees during a visit by MICIVIH on 8 August.

Prison conditions

Detainees in Carrefour, Cap Haïtien, Saint-Marc, Delmas, Pétionville, Port-de-Paix, Les Cayes, Aquin and Arcahaie were only allowed out of their cells to bathe, mostly, according to prison authorities, because there were not enough guards to supervise or because prison yards were not secure. Serious concerns were raised about the prolonged presence of detainees without exercise in cells which were sometimes overcrowded, with little ventilation or light in some places, and with buckets for latrines inside the crowded cells. In Aquin prison, for example, 44 detainees were crammed into two small cells, and had to share mattresses. Detainees were also sharing mattresses in Fort Liberté, where adults, minors and sick detainees were all being held together, though they were allowed out of their cells at times during the day. During one visit to Delmas prison in August, MICIVIH recorded 54 detainees in three cells, which could only accommodate three mattresses in each cell. Detainees were taking turns to sleep. By the end of September conditions had been eased somewhat by a drop in the number of detainees to 40.

PRISON POPULATION
Prison	Date visited	Total pop.	No. in pretrial detention	No. awaiting trial >1 year
Anse à Veau	26/8/99	35	27 (77%)	4
Aquin	4/8/99	51	48 (94%)	3
Cap-Haïtien	2/9/99	204	154 (75%)	75
Carrefour	15/7/99	82	73 (89%)	21
Delmas	30/9/99	38	38 (100%)	0
Fort-Liberté	1/10/99	91	78 (86%)	19
Fort National (P-au-P)	15/9/99	118	112 (95%)	24
Gonaïves	3/9/99	252	183 (73%)	75
Gde-Rivière du Nord	17/9/99	34	25 (74%)	0
Hinche	8/8/99	118	78 (66%)	12
Jacmel	4/8/99	132	95 (72%)	N/A*
Jérémie	20/9/99	145	105 (72%)	15
Les Cayes	9/9/99	116	105 (91%)	5
Mirebalais	23/9/99	93	39 (42%)	0
National Penitentiary	22/7/99	1933	1708 (88%)	N/A*
Pétionville	25/8/99	124	112 (90%)	56
Petit-Goâve	7/9/99	97	71 (73%)	5
Port-de-Paix	1/10/99	121	89 (74%)	N/A*
Saint Marc	28/7/99	104	87 (84%)	14
TOTAL		3888	3227 (83%)

* data not available.

Detainees in Gonaïves, Mirebalais and Jérémie were regularly allowed to spend time out of their cells. Prisoners in Hinche reported to MICIVIH that following the transfer of seven "troublemaker" detainees, including two former police who tried to escape on 22 September, conditions had improved and that they were allowed to spend a considerable amount of time outside in the yard. Conditions were eased in Cap Haïtien and in Mirebalais with the provision of extra mattresses.

Water shortages were reported in Saint Marc, Port-de-Paix, Jacmel and Fort Liberté, though some of the problems were related to the town's water supply. In Jérémie, the water system which had been repaired in February, broke down again obliging the inspector to fetch water from outside the prison. The ICRC informed MICIVIH that it is funding projects to improve sanitary conditions in four prisons - Aquin, Les Cayes, Hinche and Port-de-Paix - which would be completed before the end of the year. The projects consist of repairing or building latrines and attending to the prisons water supply systems. Sanitary conditions in the National Penitentiary deteriorated when septic tanks overflowed because they had not been emptied for three months, creating hazardous health conditions. Improvements in sanitary conditions were also often dependent on the provision of cleaning materials and disinfectant by the ICRC.

As in previous quarters, skin diseases - exacerbated by overcrowding, dirty cells, lack of bathing water and insufficient out-of-cell time - were reported in many prisons, including the National Penitentiary, Port-de-Paix, Cap Haïtien, Fort National, Carrefour, Saint Marc, Hinche, Arcahaie and Pétionville. In Port-de-Paix, a prison official attributed the better health of women detainees in part to the fact that they spent time out of their cells while the men were not allowed out because of security concerns.

Incidents in Les Cayes prison

Overcrowding and generally appalling conditions of detention, including the lack of latrines and showers, and inadequate medical treatment were viewed as contributory factors in a riot in Les Cayes prison on 23 July for which the immediate trigger were beatings allegedly inflicted by guards earlier the same day on two inmates who had tried to escape by climbing on to the roof. All of the detainees broke out of their cells and gathered in the prison courtyard in protest, remaining there for most of the day until the police departmental director and the state prosecutor finally persuaded them to return to their cells peacefully.

To reduce the number of inmates (which totaled 108 at the time of the riot), ten who were near the end of their sentences were released in the next few days, while 15 others with lengthy terms still to be served were transferred from Les Cayes to the National Penitentiary in Port-au-Prince. Eleven of the group were reportedly beaten on arrival (see above). Judicial officials in Les Cayes told MICIVIH they feared further unrest unless urgent measures were taken to increase the number of guards and carry out improvements in the prison. MICIVIH's Executive Director wrote to the Minister of Justice on 27 July enclosing an aide-mémoire on the alleged beatings and recommending that the Prison Administration (DAP) authorities in Port-au-Prince carry out an immediate visit to the prison because of the gravity of the situation there. The letter also included copies of two letters from MICIVIH to the DAP director in August and November 1997 expressing concern about overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions in Les Cayes prison and their security implications.

WOMEN AND MINORS IN PRISON
Prison	Date visited	Women		Minors
		Total no.	Convicted	Total no.	Convicted
Anse-à-Veau	26/8/99	1	0	1	0
Aquin	4/8/99	1	0	0	0
Cap-Haïtien	2/9/99	8	1	5	2
Carrefour	15/7/99	5	0	5	2
Delmas	30/9/99	0	0	1	0
Fort-Liberté	1/10/99	1	1	2	0
Fort National (P-au-P)	15/9/99	88	6	30	0
Gonaïves	3/9/99	4	0	7	2
Gde-Rivière du Nord	17/9/99	0	0	1	1
Hinche	8/8/99	6	3	3	0
Jacmel	4/8/99	4	1	3	0
Jérémie	20/9/99	7	0	6	0
Les Cayes	9/9/99	10	2	1	0
Mirebalais	23/9/99	5	1	1	0
Pétionville	25/8/99	2	2	2	1
Petit-Goâve	7/9/99	7	6	2	2
Port-de-Paix	1/10/99	10	3	4	0
Saint Marc	28/7/99	8	0	3	3
TOTAL		167	26 (16%)	77	13 (17%)

In early August, an ICRC representative visited the prison with the DAP technical director, following which a decision was taken that the ICRC would support the construction of latrines and showers and repairs to the cells. The work was supposed to start in October. In early September, the ICRC restocked the prison dispensary and distributed toothpaste, toilet paper and buckets to the cells.

On 9 September, the number of inmates had risen to 116, eight more than at the time of the riot. However, the prison had still not received any additional guards by the end of this reporting period. Because of the under staffing and the resulting danger of escapes, the guards told MICIVIH they were not letting the inmates out of the cells for exercise. Two detainees escaped in the early hours of 24 September through a hole they made in the roof. Prison officials reported further unrest in the prison on the night of 29 September following which nine more inmates were transferred to the National Penitentiary.

Provision of food

Growing concerns about the provision of food in prisons, including fears of an increase in cases of malnutrition, were expressed by detainees, the ICRC, observers and prison officials themselves especially with the ending of the agreement at the end of September with the Dutch NGO BND to provide 75 per cent of food stocks. Alternatives for the provision and delivery of food were being sought by the DAP authorities and an interim system was set up in the meantime. However, the looming ending of the agreement already appeared to be having a detrimental impact.

Detainees in Jacmel, Cap Haïtien, Mirebalais and Saint Marc reported receiving only one meal a day in September. In Jérémie and Port-de-Paix the provision of food fluctuated between one and two meals a day, according to the level of stocks. The ICRC purchased supplementary food supplies for Les Cayes in September as food stocks declined. The inmates there were receiving only one meal a day, rarely including fresh foodstuffs. Food rations were cut in half at Carrefour prison. Milk and bread were taken out of the Fort National prison meals. Food stocks in Pétionville and Delmas appeared to be well-managed. Petit Goâve detainees were receiving two meals a day in September. Fort Liberté detainees were also receiving two meals a day but not essential foodstuffs. Detainees in Anse-à-Veau were receiving two meals a day when MICIVIH visited in August.

In Gonaïves, inmates not on an ICRC-backed emergency feeding programme for malnourished detainees were only receiving one meal a day. But the number of those on the programme, who were given an extra meal of porridge made from cornmeal, soya, powdered milk, oil and sugar, fell from 92 in June to 68 in September, partly as a result of releases and partly because some of those initially on the programme were later found to be no longer suffering from malnutrition.

While this modest improvement in Gonaïves is encouraging, the extent of malnourishment in other prisons (except the National Penitentiary, where an emergency feeding programme had been put in place in March) needs to be gauged, particular given the serious implications which cuts in the provision of food may have for the health of detainees.

Provision of medical care

The quality of medical care fluctuated and was dependent on a number of factors including the professional capacity and willingness of prison nurses, the availability of medical supplies, and of transport and prison guards to take detainees to hospital. Given the shortage of prison guards, prison officials are often faced with the dilemma of leaving the sick detainee in the hospital with no guard, or leaving the detainee in prison with no treatment. The negligent attitude or frequent absence of nurses in at least three prisons was brought to the attention of the authorities.

In July, a new chief medical officer took office at the DAP, the post having been vacant since October 1998, and he began a series of visits to prisons. Among the tasks of the officer are the training of prison nurses and ensuring that necessary medical supplies are made available to prisons. Improvements were noted in Fort National, where two additional specialist medical staff were appointed. Following a visit to Cap Haïtien, where MICIVIH observers had repeatedly protested about the lack of medical care, an agreement was reached with a local hospital that a doctor would visit the prison regularly to treat the most serious cases.

The ICRC provided medical supplies to several prisons during this quarter, replenishing stocks which in some places such as Mirebalais had already run out. Jérémie and Les Cayes prisons were also among the recipients. Following the purchase of a mobile dentists' chair by the ICRC, the DAP dentist will now be able to visit certain provincial prisons as well as those in Port-au-Prince where he has been based up until now.

Record-keeping

Prison dossiers and records were noted to be well-kept in Gonaïves, Saint Marc, Mirebalais, Les Cayes, Anse à Veau and Cap Haïtien prisons. Particular problems were reported in the National Penitentiary, where prison records showed three hundred more detainees than the head count by prison guards. Observers were also concerned that a register had not been put in place for the solitary confinement cells as required by the DAP regulations, leaving the use of the cells open to abuse. These concerns have been raised several times with prison authorities. The disarray of records and dossiers at the Arcahaie detention centre was also a source of concern. In Jérémie records are not maintained systematically, and there were difficulties at times in locating dossiers. The DAP had started a programme of training prison record clerks but this was suspended with the closure of the DAP training centre at the end of 1998 (see below).

Training/support for DAP officials

A MICIVIH observer was seconded to the DAP almost full-time in September to provide technical assistance and training for the ten DAP legal assistants, who have had some success in pursuing cases at the level of justices of the peace, but less so at the level of the parquet or cabinets d'instruction.

More than nine months after the closure of the DAP training centre an alternative solution still had not been found. As a result, more than a 100 new recruits who had been selected still had not begun their training. MICIVIH had given training sessions on human rights issues to previous groups. Six inspectors and 29 supervisors appointed earlier in the year have yet to be deployed to their new posts pending additional training, in spite of the need for managers within the prison system. Prison guards at the National Penitentiary have, however, been given supplementary training, devised by UNDP, on how to deal with security emergencies at the prison.

CIVIL SOCIETY

MICIVIH Documentary

As part of its human rights promotion activities, the Mission launched the Creole version of its documentary Chemen an long: Dwa Moun ann Ayiti - produced by the head of its Press and Information Unit - which will also be released in English (A Work in Progress: Human Rights in Haiti) and in French (Oeuvre inachevée: droits de l'homme en Haïti). Several hundred people, including government, police and judicial officials, NGOs, artists and many others, attended the première in Port-au-Prince on 30 September. It was also shown the same day in Mirebalais, Jacmel, Gonaïves, Port-de-Paix, Cap Haïtien and Les Cayes. The 50-minute video looks at the long struggle for human rights and dignity in Haiti, the institutional reforms currently being undertaken and the activities of MICIVIH that contribute to strengthening institutions and protecting and promoting human rights.

Civic education for schools

The Haitian Government took a significant step forward in terms of developing civic education for schools by organising a two-day conference on Education and Citizenship (Education et Citoyenneté) on 27/28 September. It was the start of an ambitious programme of activities to promote awareness and discussion about the need to reform the education system not only to include civic education in the curriculum but also to ensure that education is carried out in such a way as to respect civic values. The main working document for the conference was a draft programme of studies for all levels of schools, Education à la Citoyenneté, put together by the Education Ministry. Working groups examined three themes in particular, the role of the school in constructing the identity of a citizen, the school as a source of apprenticeship for learning the values of equality, and school and the question of individual and collective freedom. The two-day conference was attended by some 250 teachers from the private and public sectors and well as student delegations and government officials. It was supported by MICIVIH, in the form of materials, and by UNESCO.

Training for NGOs

The June down-sizing of MICIVIH had a serious impact on its human rights promotion activities, with most of the programmes being suspended. However, priority is being given to the training of trainers and capacity-building for human rights and other NGOs. Strengthening the network of NGOs set up around the country to monitor prisons and police custody was one of the prime focusses of these activities. In July, MICIVIH assisted in the organisation and presentation of a week-long training course for members of the network which focussed on topics including concepts of human rights violations, the justice system, case studies and experiences of the different representatives in carrying out prison visits. Obstacles facing the groups are often considerable, including lack of resources and difficulties in getting access to prisons at times.

Training sessions of these groups have continued in Gonaïves, where weekly training sessions were given to a group of lawyers and paralegals who make up the committee. The number of regular participants increased from five to 13 with the incorporation of new members, all law students. Sessions included developing reporting formats, principles on the use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials, and how to prepare project proposals. In September, members of the Port-de-Paix group attended the monthly training session of the Gonaïves-based committee in order to exchange information and ideas and to benefit from the latter committee's greater experience.

The prison and police detention monitoring committee which MICIVIH helped set up in Jérémie accompanied observers during some of their investigative work in August. They held a press conference on 1 September about the apparent illegality of the arrests of six persons on 16 August and their transfer to prison a week later on the parquet's orders without ever seeing a judge.

The coordinator of MICIVIH's Port-au-Prince office provided a day's training in investigative techniques to 35 human rights monitors from different parts of the country as part of the National Coalition for Haitian Rights' training programme. MICIVIH has been collaborating with the programme since 1995, several sessions being organised each year. The coordinator of MICIVIH's Gonaïves regional office met on 30 September with some 30 representatives of the Catholic human rights organisation Justice et Paix from throughout the North-West and Artibonite departments and from its head office in Port-au-Prince, who had gathered in Gonaïves for a week of training. She spoke about MICIVIH's work, including the type of technical assistance and training which is available to Haitian human rights activists, and then fielded many questions about dealing with human rights violations and working with victims.

In Les Cayes, some 18 NGOs met with MICIVIH to plan a series of training of trainers sessions which began in September with 29 participants. The programme consists of eight four-hour modules, led by a Haitian trainer, and includes themes such as human, civil and political rights in a democracy, elections, the rights of women and children, who to approach in the case of a human rights violation, and techniques for leading seminars.

Prepared by the Coordination, Analysis and Reports Unit (CARU)

OAS/UN International Civilian Mission in Haiti Misyon Sivil Entènasyonal ann Ayiti OEA/ONU

Boîte Postale 1602, Port-au-Prince, Haiti

(509) 246-2025 or (212) 963-9921