Aristide arrives in Haiti, ending seven years of exile
Agence France-Presse
Posted at 03/18/2011 10:16 PM | Updated as of 03/18/2011 10:37 Pm
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (UPDATE) - Former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide arrived back in Haiti on Friday, ending seven years in exile in South Africa and raising fears his return could disrupt crucial weekend elections.
A private plane carrying Aristide, Haiti's first democratically-elected leader, landed at 9:05 am (1405 GMT) in the capital Port-au-Prince, according to an AFP journalist at the airport.
The return of Aristide, still hugely popular in Haiti's swollen slums, comes ahead of a presidential run-off vote on Sunday that could offer some stability to a country reeling from a devastating 2010 earthquake and political turmoil.
The shantytown priest rose to power opposing the Duvalier clan's dictatorial rule and became Haiti's first democratically-elected president in 1991.
After directly challenging the entrenched ruling class, he was ousted by a military coup seven months later but reinstalled in 1994 with the help of 20,000 US Marines ordered in by US president Bill Clinton.
Aristide won a second term in 2001 only to lose favor with the international community as his reforms stalled. He was forced out again by the 2004 rebellion, which is widely thought to have had tacit US approval.
US officials have warned that the three-time leader's return could add to the uncertainty gripping the Western Hemisphere's poorest country, and US President Barack Obama said the timing may be "destabilizing."
A private plane carrying Aristide, Haiti's first democratically-elected leader, landed at 9:05 am (1405 GMT) in the capital Port-au-Prince, according to an AFP journalist at the airport.
The return of Aristide, still hugely popular in Haiti's swollen slums, comes ahead of a presidential run-off vote on Sunday that could offer some stability to a country reeling from a devastating 2010 earthquake and political turmoil.
The shantytown priest rose to power opposing the Duvalier clan's dictatorial rule and became Haiti's first democratically-elected president in 1991.
After directly challenging the entrenched ruling class, he was ousted by a military coup seven months later but reinstalled in 1994 with the help of 20,000 US Marines ordered in by US president Bill Clinton.
Aristide won a second term in 2001 only to lose favor with the international community as his reforms stalled. He was forced out again by the 2004 rebellion, which is widely thought to have had tacit US approval.
US officials have warned that the three-time leader's return could add to the uncertainty gripping the Western Hemisphere's poorest country, and US President Barack Obama said the timing may be "destabilizing."
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