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In Miami's Little Haiti, worries about home

Haitians in Florida are divided over Aristide, but united in their sorrow and concern for loved ones.

MIAMI - While President Bush worries about boatloads of Haitians descending on Florida, Anton Cunningham has a more personal concern.

His brother lives in Port-au-Prince.

"People are starving. There's no clean water. No roads. People are living in filth," said Cunningham, a 23-year-old welder who lives in Little Haiti, just north of downtown Miami.

From the street corner domino players to the voodoo botanicas blasting Kompa music, nearly everyone in Little Haiti has a direct tie to the troubled Caribbean nation.

Many here support the uprising that has swept through Haiti. And nearly everyone has strong opinions about Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, whose support has eroded due to corruption, his failure to help the poor and the brutal suppression of opponents.

The uprising began Feb. 5 and has spread to several cities, including Cap-Haitien, the country's second-largest city. Wednesday, rebels said they will wait to attack the Haitian capital of Port-Au-Prince in hopes that Aristide will resign.

About 80 people have died but Haitians in Miami fear massive bloodshed if the situation doesn't calm down.

President Bush said Wednesday the U.S. Coast Guard will turn back any Haitian refugees trying to reach American shores.

The Coast Guard Wednesday afternoon stopped a 200-foot freighter off Miami Beach with about 20 Haitians aboard. Miami TV reported the boat had been hijacked.

Cunningham, like nearly everyone else in Little Haiti, gets his news from CNN, Creole newspapers and Haitian radio stations. About 230,000 Haitians live in South Florida, the largest concentration in the United States. Many fled intense poverty or political unrest.

Haiti is the Western Hemisphere's poorest nation. Six percent of the population live without electricity, 85 percent can't read and the life expectancy is 55.

Still, people in Miami have an intense pride in their tropical nation, which became the world's first black republic when it was founded by slaves 200 years ago.

Many here hope conditions improve so they can return.

"I would definitely live there, if it was better. Who wouldn't want to live with their own people?" said Cunningham.

Solidly built with long, blond dreadlocks, Cunningham has a mouth that turns up at both corners, as if he is constantly smiling. But when he talks of Aristide and his country, Cunningham turns fierce.

"Aristide is nothing but a thug and a terrorist in a three-piece suit," said Cunningham, who visited the island three months ago. "He promised a lot, but he didn't stay with his promises."

Cunningham often talks politics with friends at the USA Carwash and Seafood restaurant in the heart of Little Haiti. It's a hub of activity, where people can eat poisson gros sel (fish with salt, a typical Creole dish) on outdoor tables while waiting for their cars to be washed and buffed.

Max Louis, the owner of the bustling compound, hoped to visit family in Haiti next month. He's not making the trip now. It's just too dangerous.

Throughout the neighborhood, people like Louis and Cunningham are glued to Haitian talk radio, where upwards of 50 people an hour call to discuss the political situation.

"The community here is really divided," said Jacques Cassagnol, a morning talk-show host at WRHB-Radio Carnivale, which broadcasts programs and music in Creole, Haiti's native language. "Even some families are divided."

An increasing number of people think Aristide should step down, Cassagnol said, though some Aristide supporters still hope a solution can be reached peacefully.

Today, a pro-Aristide rally is scheduled in Fort Lauderdale, said Farah Juste, a Haitian activist and singer who lives in Miami.

Juste thinks Aristide should be allowed to serve out his term, which ends in two years, and calls the rebels "terrorists."

"People should sit together and discuss," she said. "The country is in a difficult situation already. It is a time to build, not a time to destroy."

Juste is organizing upcoming rallies in Miami, Orlando and Tampa - anywhere there is a thriving Haitian population.

Tens of thousands of Haitians immigrated to Florida by boat in the late 1980s and early 1990s, during another tumultuous period in the country.

The United States fears another wave is coming.

The Bahamas, about 90 miles from Haiti, estimate that about 400 Haitians have landed on its shores in the past week and about 100 of them have been captured. Another five boats, carrying 100 more, are reportedly on their way.

More than 500,000 Haitians live in Florida, with about 20,000 in the Tampa Bay area.

Andre Poulard of Safety Harbor hasn't been home in four years but is constantly in touch with his family still on the island.

"They're just sitting there, waiting to see what's going to happen," said Poulard, 55, president of the Haitian Association of Tampa Bay. "Nobody goes outside unless they have to. If you don't have guns, all you can do is wait inside and see what happens."

Poulard's brother and sister live within walking distance of the Aristide family home.

Some Haitians, such as Poulard and Juste, say that Aristide has many flaws, but was duly elected. Others are crushed by the recent turn of events, that Aristide has disappointed the country.

"Just when you think things couldn't get worse, they got worse," said Gespie Metellus, executive director of the Haitian Neighborhood Center.

Aristide has been a "colossal disappointment," she said. "The poor saw a savior in him."

This weekend, Little Haiti will celebrate Carnivale, a fiesta similar to Mardi Gras, with a parade, Haitian bands and spicy food.

But Metellus said most Haitians in Miami will participate in Carnivale with a "heavy heart" because of the unrest. Most are waiting to see if the rebels take over Port Au Prince and hope to hear from family.

Everyone, she said, is on edge.

"This is not a time to celebrate," she said.

- Times staff writer Shannon Colavecchio-Van Sickler and researcher Kitty Bennett contributed to this report. Tamara Lush can be reached at 727 893-8612 or at lush@sptimes.com

NO ATTACK FOR NOW: The leader of the opposition said his troops will hold off attacking Port-au-Prince to see if President Jean-Bertrand Aristide will go peacefully. He didn't say how long he would wait.

PANIC IN PORT-AU-PRINCE: U.S. Marines escorted foreigners out of the country as looting erupted in the capital.

HELP FROM AFAR?: President Bush supports the creation of an international security presence in Haiti to maintain order if a political settlement is reached. France's foreign minister urged that such a force be established immediately.

BOAT INTERCEPTED: Hours after Bush urged Haitians not to flee their homeland, the Coast Guard stopped a freighter with 22 Haitians on board off the coast of Miami Beach.