Haiti

Hundreds of Haitians caught, but no 'exodus'

MIAMI - The number of Haitians fleeing the deadly uprising in their homeland has escalated, with the Coast Guard saying it has intercepted 546 people at sea over the past three to four days, but officials said the increase doesn't signal an exodus.

The Haitians were picked up within 50 miles of their country's shore in about a dozen small boats, Coast Guard spokesman Luis Diaz said, bringing the total number of immigrants intercepted this month to 694. They've been brought onto Coast Guard cutters to receive food and water, Diaz said.

"I don't consider that an exodus," Diaz said. He said during a tumultuous period in Haiti during the early 1990s the Coast Guard would sometimes encounter 2,000 to 3,000 migrants in a single day.

Federal officials would not disclose if the immigrants were being returned to Haiti. On Wednesday, President Bush repeated the government's policy to turn back any Haitian migrant trying to reach U.S. shores.

Florida Sen. Bob Graham was among at least 30 members of Congress who signed a letter to Tom Ridge, secretary of homeland security, asking him to designate Haiti for the Temporary Protected Status Program.

Ridge, the letter said, could provide a temporary protected status to eligible Haitian nationals.

"There are Haitians in this country scheduled to be returned to Haiti," said Paul Anderson, Graham's director of communication. "This would allow them to stay temporarily."

It would also affect Haitians encountered at sea, Anderson said. They would be processed, at sea, under the current rules. If it was determined that they had reason to fear for their safety, they would be held in a detention center.

Many Haitian-Americans and immigrant advocates fear the bloodletting in Haiti will lead to another exodus to Florida.

"The numbers at this point aren't alarming, but given the current political crisis in Haiti, I think it's reasonable to expect greater numbers in the coming days and weeks," said Cheryl Little, head of the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center.

Authorities Thursday were interviewing nearly two dozen Haitians on a ship the Coast Guard intercepted off Florida, trying to determine whether the vessel was hijacked and if the immigrants should be returned home.

The freighter, carrying 21 Haitians and seven Filipino crew members, was stopped about 7 miles off Miami Beach on Wednesday. Officials would not say if the Haitians had requested asylum.

Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Thursday called it a hijacking.

"They should be sent back to Haiti. They hijacked a boat, a large vessel, and unless they have a well-founded fear of persecution that is specific and meets the criteria of our laws, they should be sent back," he said.

- Times staff writer David Ballingrud contributed to this report, which used information from the Associated Press.

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