Strongly condemning the military coup in Haiti, the General Assembly called today for the immediate restoration of the democratically elected Government of the exiled President, the Rev. Jean-Bertrand Aristide, but made no move to request that peacekeeping forces be sent to the area.
After delegates from around the world denounced the military takeover in Haiti and expressed support for Father Aristide, who was ousted Sept. 30, the Assembly unanimously approved without a vote a resolution demanding his immediate return to office, full application of the Constitution and full observance of human rights in Haiti.
The resolution, introduced by the Foreign Minister Roberto Flores Bermudez of Honduras, as chairman of the Latin American and Caribbean Group, also declared "unacceptable" any entity resulting from the illegal situation and expressed support for measures taken by the Organization of American States.
Later, Haiti's delegate to the United Nations, Fritz E. Longchamp, said at a news conference that he was very satisfied with the resolution, which he said "from a moral and political standpoint, is very important. We're not looking for military action to solve the problem," the Haitian delegate said. He stressed that Father Aristide wanted a peaceful solution to the problem and had called on the people to resist by nonviolent means.
In the Assembly debate, the United States delegate, Thomas R. Pickering, declared that his Government "does not and will not recognize the self-appointed junta which has illegally usurped power in Haiti." He said the United States strongly supported efforts by the Organization of American States to resolve the crisis and restore Father Aristide's "legitimate, constitutional rule."
There was no indication in Mr. Pickering's statement that the United States was moving away from its unequivocal support of the ousted President. Some Administration officials last week criticized Father Aristide for what they said was his condoning of mob violence by his supporters.
The French delegate here, Jean-Bernard Merimee, called the recent move by the military leaders in Haiti to name a provisional President "a second coup d'etat." He said President Aristide, who was elected with a large majority through free, United Nations-supervised elections, respresented "the only legitimate constitutional order."
In a strong statement of support for the Aristide Government, Canada's Secretary of State for External Affairs, Barbara McDougall, expressed "anxiety and outrage" over the evolving tragedy in Haiti. "We cannot accept that military intervention is the means to an end and that the people's will is overturned by the interests of a few," the Canadian official said. She urged all countries to join the O.A.S. in its effort to restore constitutional stability in the region, including a trade embargo on Haiti except for humanitarian aid.
Haiti's provisional President moved to form a new government today, announcing the appointment of Jean-Jacques Honorat as Prime Minister. Mr. Honorat is a civil rights leader and staunch foe of the deposed President, Father Aristide.
A terse announcement on the national radio said only that "Jean-Jacques Honorat is named Prime Minister."
The provisional President, Joseph Nerette, issued a call for Parliament to meet on Saturday to ratify the appointment of Mr. Honorat, a lawyer, agronomist and leader of the Haitian Center for Human Rights.
He was known to be the most popular choice among lawmakers, who met privately all day on Thursday to consider canidates from a list sumbitted by Mr. Nerette. Parliamentary approval is considered to be virtually assured.
Source: New York Times
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