Defense

Duvalierism, Martelly, FAd'H and the New Haitian Army

Jeb Sprague went in search of the camp that is said to be the training grounds for recruits of the new Haitian army. The story came out a month ago and was also published here.

Sprague and Isabeau Doucet, a journalist for the Guardian and Christian Science Monitor, found the camp and wrote notes about what they saw.

There were 11 points that Sprague took note of while at the military training camp:

• 1 - The group of ex-FAd’H and their new recruits say they have been operating at this location for the last 1 ½ to 2 years.
• 2 - They openly claim to be Duvalierists. A Red and Black flag of the Duvalier era hangs in their main HQ tent.
• 3 - Security companies send recruiters often to this camp. According to one officer: “They hire many of our men for their [security] companies, so we must always look for others [to join].” It appears the leadership of the camp have some benefactors among the business elite and get some sort of kick back payment from security companies after they train and vet new recruits.
• 4 - The Second in Command of the camp asked if we would like to hire a security detachment and that we could have many well-trained men, each with a weapon, for 500 US dollars per man per month.
• 5 - The men say that similar or smaller camps are also located near Cap-Haïtien (rumoured to be headed by a family member or son of Dany Toussaint), near Jérémie (headed by Guy Philippe), near Croix-des-Bouquets, and half a dozen other locations around the country. The Ex FAd’H at ‘Lambi 12 Grande Saline’ say that the leaders of the camps communicate and coordinate with each other regularly.
• 6 - They say that the Ministry of Justice provided them with USAID and sky blue UN tents (the UN tents at ‘Lambi 12’ are from the Chinese contingent of MINUSTAH).
• 7 - The ex-FAd’H at the 'Lambi 12' camp say that national police chief Mario Andresol will do nothing to hinder their activities.
• 8 - According to well-placed sources, the DEA has “cut deals” with some of the leadership of these camps, as some have been implicated in narco-trafficking (not to mention, numerous killings, armed assaults, etc).
• 9 - The ex-FAd’H at the camp are strongly anti-Aristide/Lavalas but a few said [in response to a question about Aristide’s recent return] that “all Haitians should return to the country,” a widely held sentiment. The ex-FAd’H are strongly supportive of Michel ‘Sweet Micky’ Martelly who has for many years held close ties with members of the military and paramilitaries.
• 10 - According to some of the ex-FAd’H at the camp, Martelly, in a campaign stop, visited them. A worker at the nearby Lambi hotel also told us that Martelly visited the ex-FAd’H camp.
• 11 - While some in the camp appear to live in Port-au-Prince or the nearby area, it appears some live with their families full time at the camp. New recruits undergo military training, including martial arts classes provided by a Haitian-American who has trained police and military personnel in the United States. He was present during our visit.

It appears some among the ex-military are looking to improve their image in the media, as they hope Haiti’s next government will reinstitute the armed forces.

For more photos and original article: Jeb Sprague Blogspot