Haiti's rebels stick to their guns

The guns were out and on full display as Haiti's rebel armies entered the capital Monday, now claiming the cloak of liberators.

"The truth is that without those guns we would still be living under the despot," says Vladimir Desir, a liberal arts student, watching a throng of mostly young people celebrate with dance and song the ouster of ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide and the triumphant arrival of the rebels who helped remove him.

"We have become disappointed by every head of state we have had, and then the guns force them out," he adds, no joy in his voice. "It's the story of Haiti."

But now the guns - sidearms, automatic rifles, machine guns - look likely to be one of the first problems that Haiti after Mr. Aristide must confront.

The rebels had said they would lay down their arms once Aristide was gone. But Tuesday rebel leader Guy Philippe proclaimed himself commander in chief of the reestablished Haitian Army. He claimed constitutional authority for the move, noting that although Aristide dissolved the military in 1995, the constitution was never revised to exclude it. Rebel forces moved into the former Army headquarters in downtown Port-au-Prince across from the National Palace. Tuesday, Mr. Philippe's supporters began patrolling parts of the capital where pro-Aristide supporters live.

Some Haitians blame the international community for not arriving fast enough to stabilize a chaotic country, thereby leaving a security vacuum for the tainted but charismatic rebels to fill.

"The security forces of the international community haven't shown up yet, and it's causing us a lot of problems," says Hans Tippenhauer, a member of the steering committee of the Group of 184, a collection of civil society organizations and a key opposition force to the ousted Aristide.

US marines, and French and Canadian troops have arrived, and by Tuesday were guarding some key installations but not performing peacekeeping functions. In Washington, US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld estimated between 1,500 and 2,000 US troops would go to Haiti for a "relatively short period." They would participate in an interim force, which could include as many as 5,000 troops from several countries, until replaced by a UN peacekeeping force.

Haiti's rebel leaders - Philippe and Louis Jodel Chamblain, among others - held court poolside Monday at one of Port-au-Prince's hilltop hotels. Watching the discussion, Mr. Tippenhauer added, "We said all along that Haiti's transition would be an inclusive one, so we have to talk to these people. They will be a part of any new security force."

In 1995, when Aristide disbanded the army that had carried out a coup against him, the idea - backed by the US - was to build a clean and efficient national police to take charge of the country's security. But an untrusting Aristide organized and armed a personal militia. Corruption was rife and some former military officers who became police chiefs - such as Philippe - gradually dropped out or fled into exile to form insurgent forces.

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