USA consollidates hold on Haiti with 12,000 troop invasion

[Jan Klimkowski]

US accused of 'occupying' Haiti as troops flood in

France accused the US of "occupying" Haiti on Monday as thousands of American troops flooded into the country to take charge of aid efforts and security.

(Snip)

The French minister in charge of humanitarian relief called on the UN to "clarify" the American role amid claims the military build up was hampering aid efforts.

Alain Joyandet admitted he had been involved in a scuffle with a US commander in the airport's control tower over the flight plan for a French evacuation flight.

The French are pissed off because their former slave colony has changed hands.... :evil:

You are, of course, correct Jan, Haiti being in the French 'sphere of influence' and all, but it was also the 5 MSF planes which were refused landing by the US military who had taken over the Port au Prince airport causing delays by having to be diverted to Dominiacan Republic and they are a French organisation. Being a Francophone nation French speaking aid workers will be more useful on the ground. Brasil has also lodged a protest.

Magda - agreed, largely.

However, Toussaint L'Ouverture overthrew French slavemasters, and was kidnapped by them before dying of pneumonia in a French prison. So, Haiti was - in white man's history - originally a French slave colony, and is now an American and multinational slave colony.

The criticism of American militarization was originally made by a French government minister. This makes it unusually powerful, as one NATO government would never routinely criticize the actions of another, particularly in the context of a humanitarian disaster.

Last time I checked, Médecins Sans Frontières was still officially an NGO, rather than part of the French government. However, the activities of Bernard Kouchner make this separation less plausible.....