New York, NY – At a meeting today with the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, John Negroponte, Congresswoman Barbara Lee questioned the Ambassador about why the Bush Administration is painting some Members of Congress’ efforts to seek the truth about what actually occurred in the ouster of democratically-elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide as the work of “conspiracy theorists.
 
Negroponte’s line was one used by various Administration officials all day, even though Members were merely asking for questions in what was effectively a coup d’etat supported by the Bush Administration.

Lee, Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus’ (CBC) Haiti Task Force, was in New York with other CBC members to meet with Negroponte and, later, Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

“The Administration is attempting to discredit the Members of Congress’ efforts to ask questions about what happened over the weekend in Haiti – and indeed for the last few years,” said Lee. “All we are trying to discover is exactly what happened.  Why are we being targeted simply because we are asking questions?”

Lee’s statement came on a day when the group of Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM) nations, the sponsor of a peace plan endorsed by the U.S. just a week ago, also asked whether Aristide’s resignation was “truly voluntary.” CARICOM expressed concerned that the “removal” of a President “sets a dangerous precedent for democratically elected Governments anywhere and everywhere.” CARICOM took issue with the fact that the CARICOM peace proposal was “at no point in time . . . predicated on the unconstitutional removal of President Aristide from office.”

Lee said that the Administration had many questions to answer with its Haiti policy, beginning at a congressional hearing on Wednesday in the House International Relations’ Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, which was called for by Lee.

“I welcome this hearing as an opportunity to investigate the recent actions of the Bush Administration,” Lee said.  “I believe that this is a manifestation of Bush Administration’s foreign policy of regime change.”

“We have many questions to ask, and what we need at this point are some real answers about what really happened in Haiti.”

 

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