THE IMPENDING visit of former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide has generated wide reaction, perhaps because Prime Minister P.J. Patterson's announcement does not make entirely clear why such a visit is being entertained at this time, even while attempts are in train to de-escalate violence in Port-au-Prince and to establish some Government continuity in that beleaguered CARICOM member-state.Our letters page in this edition reflects divided views of readers both local and foreign seeking to ascertain who will bear the cost of the visit and expressing support or opposition to the exiled leader.
There has been the view that if the main reason for the visit is to facilitate Mr. Aristide and his wife being reunited with their two children this could surely have been achieved by flying the children to the Central African Republic. This is where the former president has been staying presumably for an interim period before seeking political asylum elsewhere.
In any case, such a reunion in Jamaica must be balanced against the possibility that Mr. Aristide's presence so close to Haiti could fan the political flames there and hinder efforts for a diplomatic solution to the simmering problems. Indeed, Mr. Gerard LaTortue, Haiti's new Prime Minister, has called such a visit "unfriendly" which must be an embarrassment to Mr. Patterson who had agreed to meet with Mr. LaTortue in Jamaica and had referred to him as being "well-respected".
In assessing what local political mileage he is getting from Jamaica's involvement in Haiti's affairs, Mr. Patterson will have noted that those Jamaicans who oppose the proposed visit do so, not because it might be seen as CARICOM's defiance of America's stand in the matter, but because they believe Jamaica will be paying for the visit, a gesture which they do not feel we can afford at this time.
This is evidence of a common sense pragmatism which is characteristic of the Jamaican psyche and Mr. K.D. Knight, Minister of Foreign Affairs, has been obliged to deny that the trip will be a burden on the Jamaican purse. He has also said that clear rules governing the etiquette of the visit have been worked out with Mr. Aristide.
"It has been made very clear that Jamaica must not be used as a launching pad to further any desire to be reinstated in Haiti," Mr. Knight told a media briefing on Friday.
And the American Embassy expressed the hope that the visit will be consistent with CARICOM's official commitment to restoring democracy to Haiti.
In our view Jamaica as a member of CARICOM should not refuse a request for Mr. Aristide to visit and he should be welcomed. The terms under which he is being allowed in must not be breached and should be carefully monitored during the period of the visit.
