Haiti Report
By Carolyn Scarr
Monday, February 23, 2004
They live, they die before his eyes
as in the basement room
Pierre recounts the stories he has heard.
from distant friends, last seen
only two months past.
Moise is in hiding
don't know where.
I hope to hear from him again
in a few days.Imprisoned torturers
broken free by well-armed friends
drag from their homes
the witnesses against them.In Gonaïves
thirty Lavalas supporters
are murdered in one day
execution style.Cap-Haitien taken by armed rebels
re-taken by its populace.
In early morning darkness
gunboat enters the harbor
heavy arms, new guns.
Some fighters speaking Spanish
Once again Cap-Haitien
falls to foreign hands.Old woman's house
is burned before her eyes.
Her daughter organized
bicentennial celebrations
-- crime enough.
Fighting despair, Pierre recounts
the stories he has heard.
© 2004 Carolyn S. Scarr
Carolyn Scarr is a member of the board of Ecumenical Peace Institute/Clergy and Laity Concerned in northern California. She is dedicated to addressing many justice and peace issues, and since May 1995 she has been especially working on Iraq, including the sanctions and the ongoing and growing war. Carolyn is a United Methodist layperson, and may be reached by email at epicalc@earthlink.net.