Aristide holds out hand to US
2004-06-07 16:54
Pretoria - Former Haitian leader Jean Bertrand Aristide said Monday he wanted to improve ties with the United States and France after accusing them of forcing him to resign three months ago.
"We wish to have the possibility to have a normal relationship with the US and France," said Aristide, a week after he took up temporary asylum in South Africa.
Speaking in French, Aristide added that he was "open to dialogue with the French authorities if that is what the French authorities want" and "open to dialogue with the American authorities if that is what the American authorities want."
Aristide, 50, fled a popular revolt in Haiti in late February and arrived in the Central African Republic where he accused that the United States and France had pressured him to step down.
The two governments denied the claim, saying that Aristide resigned voluntarily to avoid a bloodbath in Haiti.
Aristide arrived in South Africa on May 31 from Jamaica, his latest stop in exile.
South Africa is supporting calls for a United Nations-led probe into the circumstances leading to Aristide's departure and has suggested that he may have been a victim of the US policy of forced regime change.
- AFP