Brazil sends 161 troops to join UN force in Haiti
Saturday, May 29, 2004
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP): Brazil on
Friday sent 161 soldiers to join a 6,700-troop UN stabilization force in
Haiti. The UN force is to take over in Haiti
next month from an international contingent set up after president Jean
Bertrand Aristide was forced from power on February 29.
Four ships carrying the 161 troops, 143 vehicles and other gear left the
Mocanque Naval Base in Rio de Janeiro Bay destined to arrive in Port-au-Prince
in 18 days. The troops were to remain in
Haiti for six months. They will be part of a
mostly Latin American force of up to 6,700 soldiers who will replace US,
French and Canadian troops. The UN force will also have about 1,600 civilian
police. "We are happy that Brazil" is coming
to lead the UN troops, Haitian Prime Minister Gerard Latortue said in
Guadalajara, Mexico, where he was attending the summit of European and Latin
American leaders. The peace force's job will
include disarming Haitian militias loyal to Aristide and up to 800 rebels,
Latortue said. Aristide appears to have armed
about 15,000 people before his departure, he said.
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