PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 6/94

 

          The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States (OAS) has sent a special delegation to Guatemala at that country's invitation to observe the resettlement and normalization of the so-called Communities of Peoples in Resistance in the Department of Quiche.

 

          The delegation, which has been in the country for several days, comprises the Second Vice Chairman of the IACHR, Mr. Leo Valladares Lanza; the Assistant Executive Secretary, Dr. David Padilla, the specialist in charge of Guatemalan matters, Dr. Osvaldo Kreimer; and specialist Ms. Elizabeth Houppert.

 

          The delegation has contacted various national authorities and representatives of the communities, and will travel to Ixcan and the Sierra in El Quiche on Wednesday the 9th and Thursday the 10th of this month.  There they will visit different localities and observe the human rights situation of the various sectors, accompanied by His Excellency Cesar Alvarez Guadamuz, Ambassador of Guatemala to the OAS.

 

 

Washington, D.C., March 8, 1994

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 7/94

 

          The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights celebrated its 86th special period of sessions, at its headquarters in Washington D.C., April 6 and 7, 1994. The IACHR planned this session to coincide with the presentation of its Annual Report and special reports before the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs of the Permanent Council.

 

          The IACHR discussed inter alia various points relating to the presentation of its report to the Permanent Council, its program of visits in loco and the processing of individual cases.

 

          Additionally, the Commission approved and confirmed the carrying out of special studies on themes relevant to the promotion and protection of human rights. The Special Rapporteurs for these studies of the Commission are: Michael Reisman (the offense of contempt against public officials) Alvaro Tirado Mejia, John Donaldson and Leo Valladares (the situation of prisons in the hemisphere), and Claudio Grossman (the status of the rights of women).

 

          The special session took place in the framework of activities planned by the Commission to celebrate the 35th anniversary of its creation by the Fifth Meeting of Consultation of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, conducted in Santiago, Chile in 1959.

 

Washington, D.C., April 7, 1994

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 8/94

 

          The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights was notified today by the Colombian Government that, on  April 10, Army Major Luis Demetrio Yepes Anaya was kidnapped somewhere between Cocorná and Santuario in the Department of Antioquia when, dressed in civilian clothes and unarmed, he was returning to his post after a visit to his family.  He is the father of two children, aged 3 and 4 years.  The communication expressed concern over his personal safety because other officers held in similar circumstances have been known to die.

 

          On numerous occasions, the Commission, citing humanitarian reasons, has asked the Government of Colombia to protect the lives and guarantee the personal safety of members of the Colombian guerrilla forces.  Adducing those same reasons, the Commission also urgently appeals in this case to the members of the People's Liberation Army who have kidnapped Major Yepes Anaya to respect his life and protect him from harm.

 

Washington, D.C.  April 15, 1994

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 9/94

 

          During its 85th regular period of sessions, held January 31 through February 11, 1994, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States considered the grave deterioration of the situation of human rights which continues in Haiti, and decided to carry out an on site visit in the country.

 

          The purpose of the visit is to continue observing the situation of human rights in Haiti, and to evaluate the exercise of and respect for these rights in accordance with the American Convention on Human Rights, to which Haiti is a party, and to formulate the recommendations that the Commission considers are necessary.

 

          The Commission will carry out this visit from May 16 through 20, 1994.  The Special Delegation will be composed of the following persons: Mr. Patrick Robinson, Prof. Claudio Grossman and Ambassador John Donaldson, Members of the Commission.  The Delegation will be assisted by Dr. Edith Márquez Rodríguez, Executive Secretary of the Commission, Dr. Bertha Santoscoy Noro, Human Rights Specialist, and by personnel of the Commission Secretariat, and of the Department of Translation of the OAS.

 

          In the course of its mission, the Commission hopes to meet with and obtain information from representatives of all the sectors of Haitian society, in order to gain a better understanding of the reality of human rights in Haiti.

 

 

Washington, D.C., May 5, 1994

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 10/94

 

          The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States considered the human rights situation in Haiti at its eighty-fifth session (from January 31 to February 11, 1994) and decided to carry out an on-site visit to that country.

 

          The purpose of the visit is to continue to observe the human rights situation in Haiti and to evaluate the exercise of, and respect for, those rights in accordance with the American Convention on Human Rights, to which Haiti is a party, and to draw up any recommendations the Commission deems necessary.

 

          The Commission will carry out its visit from May 16 to 20, 1994.  The Special Delegation of the IACHR will consist of the following persons:  Dr. Patrick Robinson, Prof. Claudio Grossman, and Ambassador John Donaldson, members of the Commission.  The Delegation will be assisted by Dr. Edith Márquez Rodríguez, Executive Secretary of the IACHR, Dr. Bertha Santoscoy-Noro, Human Rights Specialist (already in Haiti), Dr. Relinda Eddie, Dr. Isabel Ricupero, Mr. Serge Bellegarde of the Translation Office, and Ana Cecilia Adriazola, Secretary of the IACHR.

 

          In the course of its mission the Delegation expects to meet with and obtain information from representatives of all sectors of Haitian society in order to gain more insight into the human rights situation in Haiti.

 

          The Commission will stay at Hotel Villa Créole and be available to anyone who wishes to present individual denunciations of human rights violations, on Wednesday, May 18, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

 

          The Commission will end its visit with a press conference to be held at the Holiday Inn on May 20 at 10:30 a.m.

 

Port-au-Prince, May 11, 1994

 

 

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 11/94

 

          In the face of the worsening situation with regard to human rights in Haiti, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights decided during its 84th session held in February 1994 to conduct an on-site visit to that country.  That visit was conducted from May 16 through 20.

 

          The delegation comprised the following persons: Patrick Robinson, Amb. John Donaldson, and Prof. Claudio Grossman, members of the Commission.  It was assisted by Edith Marquez Rodriguez, Executive Secretary of the IACHR, Bertha Santoscoy, Relinda Eddie, and Isabel Ricupero, attorneys at the Commission; Serge Bellegarde, OAS interpreter, and Mrs. Ana Cecilia Adriazola, secretary of the delegation.

 

          Today marks the conclusion of the visit of the IACHR's special delegation.  That visit was conducted within the parameters of its competence as established in the American Convention on Human Rights to which Haiti is party.

 

          During its stay in Haiti, the delegation met with Prime Minister Robert Malval and with Ministers Victor Benoit, Rosemont Pradel, Louis Dejoie II, Berthony Berry; with Amb. Colin Granderson, Director of the OAS/UN International Civilian Mission, and Mr. Tiebile Drame, a member of that Mission; with papal nuncio Monsignor Lorenzo Baldisseri; with the President of the Chamber of Deputies, Frantz Robert Mondé, and with the President of the  Senate Firmin Jean Louis.  The delegation also asked to meet with the Chief-in-Command of the Armed Forces of haiti, General Raoul Cedras, and members of the Chief of Staff as well as the Chief of Police, Lt. Col. Michel François, but received no response to their request.

 

          The delegation also met with the coordinator of the former Presidential Commission, Father Antoine Adrien; with representatives of nongovernmental organizations --grassroots organizations and human rights groups-- and with leaders of several political parties to learn about the human rights situation in the country.  It also interviewed representatives of the print and broadcast media from whom they heard testimony on the state of freedom of expression in Haiti.  The IACHR delegation also met with representatives of the industrial sector and the churches.

 

          Because they were unauthorized to do so, the delegation was unable to visit the penitentiary in Port-au-Prince.  They were therefore unable to ascertain directly the condition of the prisons and the situation with regard to judicial process for prisoners.

 

          During its stay, the delegation of the IACHR obtained considerable information and repeatedly heard testimony from victims of human rights violations.

 

          The delegation was able to confirm the serious deterioration in the human rights situation in Haiti since its last visit in August 1993.  The delegation has in its possession detailed and reliable information on numerous violations of the right to life, executions, and disappearances which have taken place in the past four months.  It has documentation with the names and circumstances involving 133 cases of extrajudicial executions between February and May this year and more than 210 reports of these types of crimes.

 

          The delegation also received information on severely mutilated bodies and had direct confirmation in one such case.  Information received by the delegation indicates that the purpose of these acts is to terrorize the population.

 

          In the face of the tragic scene of human corpses being eaten by animals the delegation endorses Prime Minister Malval's proposal to enlist the assistance of the international organizations in removing corpses given the inaction of those who are in power.

 

          The delegation also received numerous reports of arbitrary detention, routinely accompanied by torture and brutal beating by agents of the Armed Forces of Haiti and paramilitary groups, especially members of the Revolutionary Front for Advancement and Progress in Haiti (FRAPH), who act in concert with the Armed Forces and Police.  The delegation saw for themselves victims of torture and noted the  circumstances under which such torture had taken place.  It also received documentation on 55 cases of political kidnapping and disappearances during February and March.  Since then, 20 people have been released and 11 have been found dead.  To date, no information is available on the fate of the other 24 missing persons.

 

          The delegation received strong evidence that in Port-au-Prince, armed paramilitary groups have raided neighborhoods, notably in Cite Soleil, Sarthe, Carrefour, Fonds Tamara, among others, murdering and  pillaging residents who, for the most part, support the return of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

 

          Reports received by the delegation point to an increase in the number and brutality of human rights violations by the Army, FRAPH, and other paramilitary groups working in tandem with the military (attaches) in the country's interior.  They also heard testimony  proving conclusively the liability of the army in massacres of defenseless groups of the population in Raboteau, Gonaives, Department of Artibonite, on March 22 last.  There, between 15 and 20 residents were executed with no justification.  Information the delegation also received leads to the conclusion that the army attacked defenseless groups of the population in the Departments of the Center (Seau d'EAU) and the North (Borgne).

 

          These attacks bear similar traits:  actual military campaigns where army units, assisted by FRAPH and other paramilitary groups, surround and burst into certain areas under the pretext of combatting subversive groups, indiscriminately beating residents and committing acts of arson, destruction and theft, followed by arbitrary detentions.

 

          The delegation further observed that most of the violations reported follow a systematic pattern of repression, indicative of a political plan to intimidate and terrorize the people of Haiti, especially sectors that support President Aristide or that have expressed themselves to be in favor of democracy in Haiti.  According to information received, victims are kidnapped, forced to get into vehicles and are taken blindfolded to clandestine places of detention where they are interrogated and tortured.  Some victims have been released, others have succumbed as the result of severe beating

 

          The delegation received reports of rape and sexual abuse against the wives and relatives of partisans of the democratic regime whose wives and children happen to be on the spot when they are being sought out.  These wives and children are abused by the military, "attaches", or members of FRAPH, when they are unable to locate the partisans.  Thus, sexual abuse is used as an instrument of repression and political persecution.  Despite the reticence of the victims in reporting these crimes, the delegation received conclusive proof of 21 incidents of violations occurring from January to date.  During its visit, the delegation met directly with 20 victims of this horrible practice.  The international community has repeatedly recognized the universal character of women's rights as well as the fact that rape is one of the  greatest crimes against them.

 

          Given the seriousness of this crime, the Commission will give special importance to rape in the report it will submit to the upcoming session of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States.

 

          In fulfillment of the functions assigned to it under the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights, the delegation observed the status of other rights, in addition to those mentioned above.

 

          With respect to the right of assembly, the delegation has concluded that exercise of this right does not exist for those who support a return to democracy.  When groups of individuals try to exercise this right they are arrested and brutally beaten by members of the military and police force, and accused of organizing meetings in support of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.  In a recent incident, 20 participants were arbitrarily arrested at a meeting for legal training organized by the diocese in Hinche, Department of the Center, on April 29, and accused of being terrorists.

 

          The delegation wishes to express its concern with regard to exercise of the right to freedom of expression.  Information received  would confirm restrictions endured by representatives of the press and radio in Haiti.  These have led to self-censorship of the media to the detriment of its functions of keeping the Haitian public informed.  The delegation heard testimony of acts of intimidation and repression of journalists exercising their profession.

 

          With regard to the problem of displaced persons (maroons) the delegation confirmed that political activists, community leaders and numerous opponents of the de facto authorities have had to live as fugitives in their own country, forced as they are to abandon home and family.  The delegation received convincing information that the number of displaced persons continues to increase at an alarming rate and it therefore behoves the international community to take a direct interest in this situation.

 

          The delegation received claims from Haitian nationals who have returned home that they have been subjected to persecution and violations of their right to physical and moral integrity.  The Commission will open cases concerning these complaints.

 

          One common trait that emerges from these violations reported to the delegation is the total ineffectuality of the judiciary or other mechanisms to prevent or punish human rights violations in Haiti.  The result is outright impunity for the perpetrators of these violations.

 

          The delegation wishes to note that as the body responsible for observing respect for human rights embodied in the American Convention on Human Rights, it cannot fail to mention the right to participate in government established in Article 23 of that Convention.  The attempt to install a "government" without the vote of the people and in breach of the Haitian Constitution is  a flagrant violation of the political rights of the people of Haiti.

 

          The delegation wishes to note for the record the importance, seriousness and objectivity of the work and reports of the OAS/UN International Civilian Mission which it observed throughout its visit.  The delegation expresses deep concern in the face of the acts of intimidation and aggression, on March 23 last, to which members of the Mission were subjected in the Hinche region (Central Plateau) by a number of demonstrators acting at the bidding of members of FRAPH. The delegation condemns the passive stance of the military authorities there in putting an end to these acts which once again are indicative of their open complicity with the members of FRAPH.

 

          The delegation feels that given the seriousness of the prevailing situation in Haiti, the number of observers of the OAS/UN International Civilian Mission must be increased to more adequately cover the entire country.

 

          In conclusion, the delegation notes that, based on its observations, the overall picture with regard to the human rights situation is one of a very serious deterioration in the most elementary human rights in Haiti --all part of a plan to intimidate and terrorize a defenseless people.  The delegation holds those in de facto power in Haiti responsible for these violations.  They have engaged in conduct that make them liable to be charged with international crimes, which give rise to individual liability.

 

          The delegation will report on the outcome of this visit to the Twenty-fourth Regular Session of the OAS General Assembly, to be held in Belem, Para, in Brazil this coming June.

 

          The delegation wishes to thank the various sectors and individuals in Haiti for their cooperation and assistance during their visit.

 

          The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will continue to observe the human rights situation in Haiti.  It will conduct any visits it considers necessary, in exercise of its functions, and will keep the Organization of American States and the international community informed accordingly.

 

 

Port-au-Prince, May 20, 1994

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 12/94

 

          With the consent of the Government of the Bahamas, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, ("the Commission") will be conducting an on-site visit in the Bahamas, from May 22nd to May 27, 1994.  The object of this visit is to assess the Haitian refugee situation in the Bahamas.

 

          The composition of the Commission's delegation is as follows:  Professor Michael Reisman, President of the Commission, Ambassador John Donaldson, Dr. Leo Valladares Lanza, Commissioners, Dr. Edith Márquez Rodríguez, Executive Secretary, Dr. David Padilla, Assistant Executive Secretary, Dr. Relinda Eddie, human rights specialist, and Mrs. Rosario McIntyre, administrative secretary.

 

          By consenting to this visit, the Government of the Bahamas, guarantees that the Commission will be able to travel freely throughout the territory of the country, to communicate freely, and in private with those who provide the Commission with information, concerning the Haitian refugee situation, and that no reprisals will be taken against persons who communicate with the Commission.

 

          During the course of this mission, the Commission anticipates having meetings with Government Officials, non-governmental human rights organizations and representatives of the Haitian refugees, and Haitian refugees in the Bahamas in order to have an honest assessment of the extent of the Haitian refugee situation there.

 

          The Commission will be staying at the Wyndham Ambassador Beach Hotel.

 

 

Commonwealth of The Bahamas, May 22, 1994

PRESS COMMUNIQUE

 

 

Nº 13/94

 

          Today, the delegation of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights concludes its on-site visit in The Bahamas.

 

          For the past decade, the Inter-American Commission has studied and reported on the human rights situation in Haiti.  Its focus has been on both human rights problems within Haiti and on human rights problems in the Haitian diaspora.  On April 15, 1994, after consultations with representatives of the Government of The Bahamas, the Commission wrote to the Minister of Foreign Affairs suggesting that it conduct an on-site visit "in order to assess the extent of the Haitian refugee situation in The Bahamas."  On May 4, 1994, the Government of The Bahamas agreed to the visit.

 

          The Commission's on-site visit commenced on May 22nd and concluded on May 27th, 1994.  The delegation of the Commission was composed of the following members:  Professor Michael Reisman, Chairman of the Commission, Dr. Leo Valladares Lanza, Second Vice-chairman and Ambassador John Donaldson.  The Commission was assisted by Dr. Edith Márquez Rodríguez, Executive Secretary of the Commission, Dr. David Padilla, Assistant Executive Secretary of the Commission, Dr. Relinda Eddie, attorney and human rights specialist, Mrs. Rosario McIntyre, administrative secretary, and Jocelyne Mayas, interpreter.

 

          The Commission is the principal organ of the OAS charged with reporting on compliance with human rights standards in the hemisphere. The seven members of the Commission, each serving a four year term, are elected by the General Assembly of the OAS in their individual capacity and not as representatives of governments.  The authority of the Commission derives primarily from the American Convention on Human Rights for the 25 states that are parties, and from the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man for those member-states of the OAS that have not yet ratified the Convention.  The Bahamas is subject to the American Declaration.

 

          The Commission's petition jurisdiction extends to two categories of human rights problems. Petitions may be brought by or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals whose rights are alleged to have been violated.  But when large numbers of grave violations are occurring in a country, single petitions are unlikely to help.  For such situations, the Commission may undertake on its own initiative, a country study of human rights violations.