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INFORMATION, NEWS; OPINIONS POLITIQUES -- Vous êtes sur le Blog du journaliste Cyrus Sibert. Subscribe to www.youtube.com/@reseaucitadelle
samedi 10 octobre 2009
[Anti-Pédophile - Pétition] pour les enfants de rue de Cap-Haitien.
vendredi 9 octobre 2009
Pétition en faveur des victimes de la pédophilie au Cap-Haitien.
Pétition en faveur des victimes de la pédophilie au Cap-Haitien. Par Cyrus Sibert, Palm Bay, Florida, le 10/10/2009 Radio Souvenir FM, 106.1 : souvenirfm@yahoo. fr Le Ré.Cit. : www.reseaucitadelle .blogspot. com/ Depuis 2007, les pratiques d'abus sexuels sur des enfants de rue de la ville du Cap-Haitien ont été dénoncées dans la presse. Des enfants de rue bénéficiaires du Projet Pierre Toussaint accusent ouvertement Doulgas Perlitz de les abuser sexuellement depuis 10 ans. La Police Nationale d'Haïti, assistée de policiers spécialisés des Nations Unies (UNPOL), l'Ambassade des Etats-Unis à Port-au-Prince, des enquêteurs fédéraux américains ont tous enquêté et constaté la véracité des faits reprochés. Le 17 septembre 2009, on a procédé à son arrestation Pour des raisons que nous ne maitrisons pas, vu qu'un certain prêtre américain défroqué est lié à ce dossier, Douglas décide de plaider non coupable. Ceux qui sous entend une procédure plus longue et plus rude. L'indifférence du CRS (Catholique Relief Service) qui a renoncé à son engagement en termes de programme d'appui aux enfants victimes, malgré les témoignages recueillis par ses enquêteurs, avait attiré notre attention sur le fait que le dossier avait une dimension qui pousserait des mains invisibles à chercher à le bloquer. Au centre d'accueil de carénage, les dits enquêteurs de CRS avaient exprimé leur consternation face aux témoignages expliquant dans les détails la tragédie des enfants. L'un d'entre eux a du se rendre aux toilettes pour mieux cacher ses émotions. Nous avons appris de source crédible que ces mêmes enquêteurs ont mis de coté le rapport d'enquête qu'ils avaient envoyé au Conseil d'Administration du Projet aux Etats-Unis pour tenter de minimiser le dossier aux yeux d'autres enquêteurs officiels. Heureusement pour les victimes, l'Ambassade des Etats-Unis, conformément à la morale de la justice américaine, allait donner suite, creusant en profondeur, jusqu'à l'inculpation de Douglas Perlitz. Dans ce dossier, les enfants de rue de la ville du Cap-Haitien qui normalement devraient être représentés valablement comme partie civile n'ont pas de moyens. Ils comptent pourtant sur le support des autorités, et la lettre de Stanley Lucas adressée au Premier Ministre Michèle D. Pierre-Louis, que vous trouverez au bas de ce texte, va dans le sens des besoins des victimes. Aujourd'hui, le projet n'existe plus. Faute de moyen, les enfants sont exclus du système scolaire. Ils sont jetés dans la rue et sont la risée des inconscients qui leur reprochent d'avoir dénoncé, un blanc bienfaiteur, un philanthrope qui impose, disent-ils, seulement de petites relations sexuelles. Des cadres du projet qui avaient eu le courage de collaborer avec les enquêteurs subissent des pressions de la part d'autres affairistes indifférents aujourd'hui au chômage. Depuis les premières informations publiées, malgré les appels à l'aide lancés, les responsables du gouvernement haïtien n'ont rien fait en faveur des enfants de rue de la ville du Cap-Haitien. Le Maire de la ville du Cap-Haitien, Michel Saint-Croix, connu pour son comportement envahissant, dans tout ce qui se passe dans sa circonscription, même des dossiers privés, n'a fait jusqu'ici aucune intervention en faveur des enfants de rue. Perlitz jouissait d'une influence extraordinaire dans la ville du Cap-Haitien. Il avait sur son payroll : des policiers et des corrompus de l'administration publique et du secteur privé des affaires. Ainsi, dans la lettre susmentionnée de Stanley Lucas, le gouvernement est invité à supporter activement les enfants victimes. Nous encourageons les hommes et les femmes de bonne volonté à appuyer cette démarche en ajoutant leur nom et prénom au bas de la lettre de Stanley Lucas. RESEAU CITADELLE (Le Ré.Cit), le 10 Octobre 2009, 00 heures 12.
09/10/2009 Suivent les signatures des supporteurs de cette démarche: |
Interview with Haitian reporter.
Interview with Haitian reporterhttp://fairfieldmirror.com/2009/09/30/interview-with-haitian-reporter/September 30, 2009 |
Accident d'Avion : Communiqué de presse# 395 de la MINUSTAH.
COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE # 395 Port-au-Prince, 9 octobre 2009 - La Mission des Nations Unies pour la Stabilisation en Haïti annonce avec tristesse qu'un avion de la MINUSTAH, transportant à son bord 11 passagers, y compris l'équipage, s'est écrasé au Sud-est de la commune de Ganthier, près de Fond Verrettes, aux environs de midi, aujourd'hui. Une équipe de sauvetage envoyée par la MINUSTAH n'a découvert aucun survivant sur le lieu de l'accident qui a été sécurisé par la Police des Nations Unies. Les corps des 11 victimes ont été retrouvés et seront transportés vers Port-au-Prince. La cause de l'accident est jusqu'à présent inconnue et les procédures d'investigation en cas d'accident d'avion sont en cours. L'avion de type Casa 212 faisait un vol de reconnaissance au moment de l'accident avant de heurter le flanc d'une montagne. La MINUSTAH présente ses plus profondes condoléances aux familles, collègues et amis de ces Casques bleus qui ont perdu leur vie au service de la paix en Haïti. |
Un avion de l'ONU s'écrase en Haïti, au moins six morts
Un avion de l'ONU s'écrase en Haïti, au moins six mortsPORT-AU-PRINCE - Un avion des Nations unies avec dix personnes à bord s'est écrasé vendredi en Haïti dans une commune proche de Port-au-Prince, et six corps ont été retrouvés, a-t-on appris de source policière.
L'avion s'est écrasé aux abords de la commune de Ganthier, a indiqué à l'AFP un officier de la police haïtienne, Cadostin Marc-André. Six corps ont été retrouvés sur place, selon la même source. La plupart des occupants de l'avion sont des militaires dont la nationalité n'est pas connue, a-t-il précisé. A New York, une porte-parole de l'ONU, Vannina Maestracci, a confirmé l'accident, précisant que l'avion appartenait au contingent uruguayen de la Minustah (Mission de l'ONU pour la stabilisation en Haïti). Citant des sources onusiennes en Haïti, elle a indiqué que l'appareil s'était écrasé près de Fonds-Verrettes, non loin de la frontière avec la République dominicaine. Elle a affirmé ne pas avoir d'informations sur d'éventuelles victimes. Fonds-Verrettes est située à une quinzaine de kilomètres de Ganthier. Mise en place en juin 2004, la Minustah compte environ 11.000 personnels dont 7.000 soldats et 2.000 policiers. (©AFP / 10 octobre 2009 00h11) ______________________________ * United Nations (UN) plane crash in Haiti kills all 11 on board By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer Edith M. Lederer, Associated Press Writer – 34 mins ago UNITED NATIONS – A surveillance plane assigned to the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Haiti crashed into a mountain Friday killing all 11 military personnel on board, the United Nations said. U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas said the Uruguayan CASA212 aircraft went down in rugged terrain west of Fonds-Verrettes near the border with the Dominican Republic. Rescue teams had to go to the area on foot because there were no roads in the area and when they arrived they found no survivors, she said. The victims were Uruguayan and Jordanian military personnel serving with the 9,000-strong U.N. peacekeeping force which has been in Haiti since a 2004 rebellion ousted former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Montas said. The United Nations has recovered the bodies of the victims and has launched an investigation into the crash, she said. *** XXX *** |
(Merci Stanley) Abus Sexuel contre des Enfants Haitiens: Lettre ouverte de Stanley Lucas au Premier Ministre Pierre-Louis.
Madame le Premier Ministre:
Pendant plus de dix ans un pédophile Douglas Perlitz âge de 39 ans originaire de New Haven Connecticut a abusé sexuellement des dizaines d'enfants Haïtiens dans le département du Nord. Ce dernier opérait sous la couverture d'une école pour enfants de la rue située au Cap Haïtien. Perlitz était connu comme "Le roi du Projet Pierre Toussaint".
Il a été prit en flagrant délit grâce aux enquêtes d'un journaliste Haïtien Cyrus Sibert. Alertée, l'ambassade américaine a mène une enquête conclusive qui a aboutie à l'arrestation et la déportation de Perlitz.
Douglas Perlitz est maintenant en prison à Wyatt Détention Center in Central Falls, R.I. et fait face à la justice américaine.
Le gouvernement Haïtien à le devoir de défendre les droits des enfants abusés et de les représenter.
En ce sens Madame le Premier Ministre vous devriez:
1. Demander au Ministère des Affaires Sociales et à l'Institut du Bien-Etre Social de préparer un dossier complet établissant les faits.
2. Demander au commissaire du gouvernement du Cap-Haitien à travers le ministère de la justice d'entamer une procédure judiciaire formelle contre Douglas Perlitz.
3. Ordonner à l'Ambassadeur d'Haïti à Washington via le Ministère des Affaires Etrangères, de retenir les services d'un avocat Haitiano-américain charge de défendre les intérêts des enfants abusés. L'avocat devrait rechercher une sentence maximale contre ce pédophile et solliciter la vente de ses biens pour réparer les torts faits aux enfants Haïtiens.
4. Ordonner une enquête nationale par le ministère des Affaires Sociales et l'Institut du Bien Etre Social (IBESR) pour contrôler et superviser les institutions du genre
5. Ordonner à l'ambassade d'Haïti à Washington de collecter la liste des prédateurs sexuels aux Etats Unis en vue de la communiquer à la Direction Générale de l'immigration qui interdira l'entrée de ces prédateurs sur le territoire national
Madame le Premier Ministre, je souhaite que votre intervention rapide en faveur des enfants Haïtiens ne se fera pas attendre.
Stanley Lucas
www.solutionshaiti. blogspot. com
Barack Obama Prix Nobel de la paix.
LEMONDE.FR avec AFP 09.10.09 11h12 •Mis à jour le 09.10.09 15h02 Portfolio Barack Obama, "l'audace d'espérer" Portfolio Les prix Nobel 2009 en images Revue de presse Les médias américains et les choix d'Obama en Afghanistan Compte-rendu Encouragements et félicitations pour Barack Obama
L'académie a choisi Barack Obama "pour ses efforts extraordinaires en faveur du renforcement de la diplomatie et de la coopération internationales entre les peuples". Le président américain Barack Obama s'est vu attribuer le prix Nobel de la paix 2009, vendredi 9 octobre, "pour ses efforts extraordinaires en faveur du renforcement de la diplomatie et de la coopération internationales entre les peuples", a annoncé le jury du prix à Oslo. |
Le premier Afro-Américain élu à la Maison Blanche a lancé des appels en faveur d'un monde sans armes nucléaires et s'emploie à relancer le processus de paix israélo-palestinien, depuis son investiture en janvier. En poste depuis moins d'un an, il a déjà fortement infléchi la politique étrangère américaine en optant pour une approche plus consensuelle et multilatérale. "En tant que président, Obama a créé un nouveau climat dans la politique internationale", a déclaré le président du comité Nobel norvégien, Thorbjoern Jagland, soulignant sa quête de solutions négociées.
En septembre, Barack Obama avait présidé une réunion du Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies, qui avait entériné à l'unanimité une résolution, rédigée par les Etats-Unis, appelant les pays nucléarisés à démanteler leurs arsenaux. M. Obama est le troisième Américain membre du Parti démocrate à recevoir le Nobel de la paix depuis le début du XXIe siècle, après l'ancien président Jimmy Carter (2002) et l'ancien vice-président Al Gore (2007).
Il rejoint ainsi d'autres chefs d'Etat ou de gouvernement qui ont reçu cette distinction alors qu'ils étaient en exercice : le Russe Mikhaïl Gorbatchev en 1990, l'Israélien Itzhak Rabin et le Palestinien Yasser Arafat en 1994. Parmi les deux cent cinq candidats au Nobel de la paix, figuraient notamment trente-trois organisations, des hommes politiques et des militants des droits des femmes.
UN PRIX INATTENDU
Si aucun favori ne semblait se dégager clairement, certains noms étaient plus souvent cités, tels l'opposant zimbabwéen, devenu premier ministre, Morgan Tsvangirai, le médecin congolais Denis Mukwege, qui soigne les femmes victimes de violences sexuelles liées à la guerre civile, le dissident chinois Hu Jia, l'ancien chancelier allemand Helmut Kohl ou encore la Franco-Colombienne Ingrid Betancourt. Le président américain ne figurait pas parmi les favoris.
Certaines voix, telles que le Polonais Lech Walesa, lui-même lauréat en 1983, ont jugé ce Nobel prématuré, faute de percée concrète à l'actif du président américain. "Nous avons maintes fois essayé de donner [le prix] pour encourager ce que de nombreuses personnalités essayaient de faire", a répliqué M. Jagland, citant le chancelier ouest-allemand Willy Brandt (1971) pour sa Ostpolitik ou le dirigeant soviétique Mikhaïl Gorbatchev (1990) avant la fin de la guerre froide.
Par la voix d'un responsable de son administration, Barack Obama s'est dit honoré d'avoir été désigné pour ce prix. Le président américain reste toutefois confronté à deux conflits ouverts : en Irak mais surtout en Afghanistan, où il est à la recherche d'une nouvelle stratégie et où la situation se dégrade au point que certains évoquent un nouveau bourbier comparable au Vietnam.
In Surprise, Obama Wins Nobel for Diplomacy
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG and WALTER GIBBS Published: October 9, 2009 WASHINGTON — President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday. In a stunning surprise, the Nobel Committee announced in Oslo that it has awarded the annual prize to the president "for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples." The award cited in particular Mr. Obama's effort to reduce the world's nuclear arsenal. "He has created a new international climate," the committee said. The announcement, coming extraordinarily early in Mr. Obama's presidency — less than nine months after he took office as the first African American president — shocked people from Norway to Washington. The White House had no idea it was coming. "There has been no discussion, nothing at all," said Rahm Emanuel, the president's chief of staff, in a brief telephone interview. Mr. Emanuel said he had not yet spoken directly to the president, but that he believed Mr. Obama may have been informed of the award by his press secretary, Robert Gibbs. There was no official comment from the White House. However, a senior administration official said in an e-mail message that Mr.. Gibbs called the White House shortly before 6 a.m. and woke the president with the news. "The president was humbled to be selected by the committee," the official said, without adding anything further. Mr. Obama made repairing the fractured relations between the United States and the rest of the world a major theme of his campaign for the presidency and since taking office as president, he has pursued a range of policies intended to fulfill that goal. He has vowed to pursue a world without nuclear arms, as he did in a speech in Prague earlier this year, reached out to the Muslim world, delivering a major speech in Cairo in June, and sought to restart peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. "Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said in its citation. "His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population." But while Mr. Obama has generated considerable good will overseas — his foreign counterparts are eager to meet with him, and polls show he is hugely popular around the world — many of his policy efforts have yet to bear fruit, or are only just beginning to. North Korea has defied him with missile tests; Iran, however, recently agreed to restart nuclear talks, which Mr. Obama has called "a constructive beginning." In that sense, Mr. Obama is unlike past recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize such as former President Jimmy Carter, who won in 2002 for what presenters cited as decades of "untiring efforts" to seek peaceful end to international conflicts. (Mr. Carter failed to win in 1978, as some had expected, after he brokered a historic peace deal between Israel and Egypt.) Thorbjorn Jagland, the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee and a former prime minister of Norway, said the president had already contributed enough to world diplomacy and international understanding to earn the award. "We are not awarding the prize for what may happen in the future, but for what he has done in the previous year," Mr. Jagland said. "We would hope this will enhance what he is trying to do." The prize comes as Mr. Obama faces considerable challenges at home. On the domestic front, he is trying to press Congress to pass major legislation overhauling the nation's health care system. On the foreign policy front, he is wrestling with declining support in his own party for the war in Afghanistan. The White House is engaged in an internal debate over whether to send more troops there, as Mr. Obama's commanding general has requested. Mr. Obama also suffered a rejection on the world stage when he traveled to Copenhagen only last Friday to press the United States' unsuccessful bid to host the Olympics in Chicago. Mr. Emanuel, who heard the news at 5 a.m. when he was heading out for his morning swim, said he joked to his wife, "Oslo beats Copenhagen." But rebuffs have been rare for Mr. Obama as he has traveled the world these past nine months — from Africa to Europe, Latin America and the Middle East, with a trip to Asia planned for November. In April, just hours after North Korea tested a ballistic missile in defiance of international sanctions, he told a huge crowd in Prague that he is committed to "a world without nuclear weapons." In June, he traveled to Cairo, fulfilling a campaign pledge to deliver a speech in a major Muslim capital. There, in a speech that was interrupted with shouts of "We love you!" from the crowd, Mr. Obama said he sought a "new beginning" and a "fresh relationship" based on mutual understanding and respect. "I am convinced that in order to move forward, we must say openly the things we hold in our hearts, and that too often are said only behind closed doors," the president said then. "There must be a sustained effort to listen to each other, to learn from each other, to respect one another, to seek common ground." But Mr. Obama's foreign policy has been criticized bitterly among neoconservatives like former Vice President Dick Cheney, who have suggested his rhetoric is naïve and his inclination to talk to America's enemies will leave the United States vulnerable to another terrorist attack. In its announcement of the prize, the Nobel Committee seemed to directly refute that line of thinking. "Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics," the committee wrote. "Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play." Interviewed later in the Nobel Committee's wood-paneled meeting room, surrounded by photographs of past winners, Mr. Jagland brushed aside concerns expressed by some critics that Mr. Obama remains untested. "The question we have to ask is who has done the most in the previous year to enhance peace in the world," Mr. Jagland said. "And who has done more than Barack Obama?" He compared the selection of Mr. Obama with the award in 1971 to the then West German Chancellor Willy Brandt for his "Ostpolitik" policy of reconciliation with communist eastern Europe. "Brandt hadn't achieved much when he got the prize, but a process had started that ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall," said Mr. Jagland. "The same thing is true of the prize to Mikhail Gorbachev in 1990, for launching perestroika. One can say that Barack Obama is trying to change the world, just as those two personalities changed Europe." "We have to get the world on the right track again," he said. Without referring specifically to the Bush era, he continued: "Look at the level of confrontation we had just a few years ago. Now we get a man who is not only willing but probably able to open dialogue and strengthen international institutions." President Obama was the third leading American Democrat to win the prize in 10 years, following former Vice President Al Gore in 2007 along with the United Nations climate panel and former President Jimmy Carter in 2002. The last sitting American president to win the prize was Woodrow Wilson in 1919. Theodore Roosevelt was selected in 1906 while in the White House and Mr. Carter more than 20 years after he left office. The prize was won last year by the former president of Finland, Martti Ahtisaari for peace efforts in Africa and the Balkans. The prize is worth the equivalent of $1.4 million and is to be awarded in Oslo on Dec. 10. The full citation read: "The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 is to be awarded to President Barack Obama for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples. The Committee has attached special importance to Obama's vision of and work for a world without nuclear weapons." "Obama has as President created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play. Dialogue and negotiations are preferred as instruments for resolving even the most difficult international conflicts. The vision of a world free from nuclear arms has powerfully stimulated disarmament and arms control negotiations. Thanks to Obama's initiative, the United States is now playing a more constructive role in meeting the great climatic challenges the world is confronting. Democracy and human rights are to be strengthened." Sheryl Gay Stolberg reported from Washington and Walter Gibbs from Oslo, Norway. Alan Cowell contributed reporting from London and Richard Berry from Paris. |
Doug Perlitz's release pending trial on sexually abusing Haiti street children may hinge on higher bond
Haiti program founder's release may hinge on higher bondhttp://www.connpost .com/ci_13517597 Judge hints higher bond may be OK Updated: 10/08/2009 10:14:49 PM EDT Click photo to enlarge   NEW HAVEN -- Real estate in three states worth $2.3 million, a part-time job with a Fairfield lawyer and residence at a retired Fairfield lawyer's home were not enough to secure Doug Perlitz's release on bond Thursday. But another $3 million, as well as an additional custodian or two, might get the founder of a charitable program in Haiti out of jail until his trial on charges of sexually abusing nine of the children he was helping. U.S. Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis continued the hearing to Oct. 19 after indicating she might be more receptive to a $4 million to $5 million bond with more local involvement "given the gravity of the charges." Perlitz, a thin, sandy-haired man dressed in prison khakis, waved to supporters who packed a side of the courtroom to witness him plead not guilty to seven charges of traveling overseas to engage in sexual conduct with minors and three charges of engaging in illegal sexual conduct with minors. Each charge carries a maximum 30-year prison term. Perlitz, 39, formerly of Fairfield, is held at the Wyatt Detention Center in Central Falls, R.I. The arraignment was the calmest part of the 90-minute proceeding. Margolis heard William F. Dow III, Perlitz's lawyer, disclose the "government is extremely interested in Paul Carrier," the Jesuit priest who served as Fairfield University's director of campus ministry and community service as well as headed the Haiti Fund, which raised millions for Perlitz's Project Pierre Toussaint program. The program, which began as a street clinic grew into a residential school for street boys in Cap Haitian, Haiti, also built a two-story home where Perlitz lived. He was referred to as the "King of Project Pierre Toussaint." Dow said if Perlitz were released on bond he could work part time in the law office of Thomas Tisdale on Spruce Street, Fairfield, and live with Anthony and Laura Sirianni in Fairfield while wearing an electronic monitoring device. "Short of putting him in a police station, handcuffed and strapped to a radiator, this is about as tight a control to put on any person," the defense lawyer said. But it wasn't enough for Assistant U.S. Attorney Krishna Patel, who said she knows of "no studies that those who molest children stop when they cross" a continent. Patel, who specializes in prosecuting sexual-abuse cases, said she never had "a hands-on sex offender released by the court." The prosecutor further advised the judge she would like to question any person who comes forward as a third-party custodian or agrees to post bond for Perlitz, as well determine who is paying for Perlitz's defense. Perlitz told a federal agent he only has "about $1,000," according to court documents. Tisdale as well as any other "current or former board members "of the Haiti Fund could clearly be a witness in the case," Patel said. "Certain board members engaged in conduct of a very disturbing nature." The federal probe determined more than $2 million was transferred from the Haiti Fund to an account Perlitz controlled in Haiti. "These monies did not include other significant capital expenses and other expenses that were directly paid by the Haiti Fund for Project Pierre Toussaint," Patel said in court papers. "Perlitz had access to an enormous sum of money ... and thus far there does not appear to be an accurate accounting of what happened to these monies." Western Union records confirm that from 2008 through 2009, "Perlitz was sending money" to individuals in Haiti formerly enrolled in his program, she said. The prosecutor also charged that beginning in July 2008 and continuing until March, Perlitz traveled to the Dominican Republic to meet with some of the children and adults associated with his program, shuttered recently because of lack of funds. On the night before Perlitz's Sept. 16 arrest in Colorado, Patel said he admitted receiving 17 calls from Haiti. The Haitian national police department, which began investigating Perlitz's activities, has a warrant for his arrest. During a conversation with a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, Perlitz denied sexually abusing any of the children. But he allegedly said "molestation would be tough" but the victims "should just get over it ... He said he got over his father's death and even though it was tough he moved on ..." Patel disclosed in court papers. Dow downplayed the allegations, claiming they arose out of a rift between differing groups of people operating the Haiti Fund and Project Pierre Toussaint. "There are a number of people who support and believe fervently in his innocence and the good works he's done," Dow said. ************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ****** Man charged with Haiti sex abuse pleads not guilty By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN (AP) NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) "A former Connecticut man charged with sexually abusing nine boys at a school for poor children he founded in Haiti should not be released from prison because he poses a "clear and continuing danger," federal prosecutors said. A detention hearing was planned Thursday in New Haven to determine whether 39-year-old Douglas Perlitz, founder of the Project Pierre Toussaint school in Cap-Haitien, should continue to be held in prison. Perlitz, who formerly lived in Fairfield County, Conn., was arrested at his home in Eagle, Colo., last month. Authorities accused him of enticing children into sex acts by promising food, shelter, cash, cell phones, electronics, shoes and clothing. He also withheld benefits and threatened to expel the boys if they refused to have sexual relations, prosecutors said. Perlitz's attorney, William Dow III, said his client intends to plead not guilty and will argue he should be released from prison pending trial. Perlitz has surrendered his passport and would be monitored electronically if released from prison, Dow said. "There's no evidence, no claim that anyone in the United States has been endangered by my client," Dow said Thursday. "He is a man not only with a clean record but an admirable record who enjoys the support of many many people in the face of these allegations. " In court papers filed Wednesday, prosecutors call Perlitz a sexual predator who used a charitable institution to sexually molest vulnerable children for a decade. Electronic monitoring only tells authorities where a person is, not what they are doing, prosecutors said. "There are simply no conditions of release that can assure the safety of children in the community and his appearance in court," prosecutors wrote, citing the length of the alleged crimes, Perlitz' extensive international travel and access he had to millions of dollars in donations. Perlitz continued to visit and contact former students amid the investigation, prosecutors said. "He clearly is very focused on either controlling these individuals or has little control over his sexual impulses towards minors," authorities wrote. "In either case, he presents a clear and continuing danger." While authorities allege Perlitz sexually abused nine boys, they said "many more" told Haitian authorities they were sexually abused by Perlitz for a separate investigation. Perlitz told an investigator victims of molestation "need to move on and get over it," prosecutors wrote. Perlitz admitted "some boundaries were crossed" when he allowed children to stay overnight in his room but he denied any sexual contact with children, according to court papers. The indictment lists seven counts of traveling outside of the United States with the intent to engage in sexual conduct with minors and three counts of engaging in sexual conduct in foreign places with minors. The educational program initially served mostly street children as young as 6 years old, and later expanded to include a residential program for high school-aged children. Children were offered meals, sports, classroom instruction and access to running water for baths. Volunteers and staff members were scared to come forward with the allegations, the indictment says, because Perlitz controlled the school's operations and "utilized the fear of unemployment and the difficult economic situation in Haiti." Each count in the indictment carries up to 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. ************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ****** School Founder Arraigned In Abuse ChargesFounder Of Haitian School Is Accused Of Sexually Abusing Nine Former Students NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- A United States district courtroom in New Haven was packed with supporters for Douglas Perlitz on Thursday.Perlitz is accused of sexually abusing nine students at a school that he founded in Haiti. At his arraignment and detention hearing on Thursday, he plead not guilty. In addition to calling the case circumstantial, Perlitz's attorney said that his family offered $2 million worth of property to secure his release until trial, and a Fairfield family would let Perlitz stay with them under house arrest with an ankle bracelet.The assistant U.S. Attorney said that he should not be released because since he had been forced out of the Haitian school, he remained in contact with former pupils, visiting them in the Dominican Republic. The judge wants to hear more from both sides, with a higher amount of money posted for Perlitz to be released. The detention hearing was continued until the end of October. |
jeudi 8 octobre 2009
Haïti/Tourisme: La Citadelle La Ferrière convoitée par des membres de la communauté noire américaine
Posté le jeudi 08 octobre 2009 à 10:47 Une mission touristique de la communauté noire américaine arrive à Port-au-Prince, ce 8 octobre 2009, dans l'objectif de visiter plusieurs du site du pays, dont la Citadelle La Ferrière dans le département du Nord, annoncent les organisateurs dans un communiqué. Ce pèlerinage, qui se déroule du 8 au 12 octobre en cours, est une initiative de Haiti Support Project (HSP) en collaboration avec la Fondation destination Haïti (FONDESTHA) et le Conseil de réflexion pour le développement de Milot. Composée d' "une cinquantaine de dignitaires et de leaders de la communauté Africaine-Américaine", cette mission est la troisième du genre effectuée à la "Citadelle Henri, symbole universel de la lutte pour la liberté des Noirs." A Milot où se trouve la Citadelle, les personnalités faisant partie de ce troisième "pèlerinage" doivent s'entretenir avec des membres de la population et promettent de supporter un programme d'éducation du Conseil de réflexion pour le développement de Milot. Située à près de 900 mètres d'altitude, La Citadelle La Ferrière domine la plaine du Nord, la baie du Cap-Haïtien, la Grande Rivière du Nord et la ville du Cap-Haïtien. C'est dans ce lieu historique que le cinéaste haïtien Raoul Peck a tourné son dernier long métrage intitulé "Moloch Tropical". La visite de ces personnalités afro-américaines dans ce lieu historique est présentée comme une contribution à "la relance du tourisme en Haïti et tout particulièrement dans le développement d'un tourisme solidaire et durable axé sur la mise en valeur du patrimoine culturel et historique de la première République Noire." Joseph Beasley (représentant de la Raimbow/PUSH Coalition du Révérend Jesse Jackson), les journalistes Warren Ballentine, Brook Titus et Richard Muhammad, font paratie de cette délégation, conduite par Ron Daniels de Haiti Support Project. Parmi ces personnalités et leaders d'opinion de la communauté noire américaine, se trouvera également le représentant au Congrès Américain Gregory Meeks, membre de l'influent Congressional Black Caucus, qui arrivera vendredi et rejoindra le groupe au Cap-Haïtien. [dol/rv2000] |