Police State

Police State

Haiti

The military rounds up what remains of the political opposition and installs a provisional government with vague assurances of future elections. Haiti is open for business again so come on down and place your bets and bribes. In response, the international community places an embargo on fuel sales to Haiti. As soon as a few nights pass without renewed hostilities, the curfew is eased and travel is allowed from dawn to dusk. Black market fuel prices skyrocket and gas lines extend for kilometers as fuel is rationed to one 5-gallon can per vehicle. Kevin makes his way downtown to the Iron Market to exchange a check for cash, but the market is deserted. Rather than waste gas going to some of the alternative exchanges, he drives back up a side street toward Petionville.

Kevin’s hoping to avoid the police checkpoints on Delmas, but now a military truck is behind him on this narrow street. It’s following so closely he can’t even see its headlights. Kevin pulls over and waves the truck past but its driver stops and waits for him to continue. After another failed attempt to let them overtake, he speeds up and gets some distance. Slowing to take a sharp turn, Kevin sees a man lying on the street, his features bloody and swollen from a heavy beating. Kevin swerves, takes his foot off the accelerator, and looks for a place to pull and help. Suddenly the military truck rounds the turn behind him and drives straight for the man in the street. Instead of slowing, Kevin says a silent prayer for forgiveness and drives on.

Running out of cash and without contacts who can access fuel, Kevin spends most of his time in his apartment. He’s been working his way through reports of every imaginable human rights abuse. No one recalls a time when so many men have been murdered and so many women and children brutalized with such impunity. The first-hand reports from survivors are harrowing. Kevin’s been trying to translate and transcribe them. But after a few weeks of not much sleep, he realizes the emotional toll is too great. The next time he links up with Father Vitor, he hands over the tapes and partial transcriptions. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to do any more of this”, he explains. Fr. Vitor looks at him closely with sad eyes and then nods reassuringly, “Not a problem. We’ll have one of the brothers do that here.” He shakes Kevin’s hand and then hugs him, “Go with God. Now please get some rest!”

Henri, Jè, and Solange combine the transcripts from Fr. Vitor with their own materials for distribution to resistance groups. No one has the full list of groups. As arranged during their 6:00 radio check-ins, Kevin meets with Jè at Radio Protestant’s new Petionville studio to discuss “technical issues”. They exchange sealed envelopes with code names on each, which Kevin distributes the envelopes along with some cash. Only he knows the total amount and accounts for it creatively on his expense reports.

Kevin is making a delivery to some friends of Father Vitor who are hiding out in a house near the Cathedral. While Kevin is chatting in the kitchen, one of the lookouts calls from the front window and motions for Kevin to join him. They peer out between curtains and see a soldier searching the glove compartment of Kevin’s Lada. The lookout asks, “Do you need to get out of here another way?” Kevin watches the soldier for a few seconds before chuckling darkly, “Nothing in there but French Bibles”.

The lookout laughs nervously but doesn’t say anything in reply. Kevin’s face falls into a serious expression, “I’m sorry about all this. I’m leading the Macoutes to you now.” The lookout quickly change the subject and asks him to stay for a meal. Kevin declines but leaves some cash by the door when he leaves. The lookout sees this and starts to protest. Kevin smiles and makes a time out gesture with his hands. “It’s just ti kob. Don’t know when I’ll be back again. If you don’t need it for food, get a box of those Cuban cigars for next time.” He shakes hands with the organizers and their families and checks his glove compartment for any surprises left by the soldier. The Lada starts in a plume of smoke and he drives up Delmas toward his apartment.

Out of habit, he almost makes the turn to Education NGO’s guest house but veers back into the traffic heading toward Petionville. Ashley and Matt have been pulled out of Mirogoane. He hasn’t heard what happened to Jocelyn and Ti Mon. He should find out right now. After considering a U-turn back down the hill, he remembers the guest house is filled with JAFO. Sighing, he lights a cigarette and pulls off the road to get a bottle of Barbancourt before the vendor closes up for the evening. Restarting the SUV, he notices his fuel gauge has fallen to 1/8. Ashley and Matt have somehow kept their Land Cruiser fueled for the cannonball runs back and forth to the airport. The rest of their staff are pulling out but last Kevin heard, they’re staying. Rather than siphoning more gas from abandoned missionary vehicles, Kevin decides he’ll park the Lada and save fuel for his own exit.

Petionville Park

A few days later, Matt and Kevin park the Land Cruiser along the plaza wall next to Petionville Police Station. There hasn’t been a general strike in days. After the US Embassy invited everyone to leave, gangs were robbing Americans on the road to the airport. But that’s bad for business so the military razed a few slums, slaughtered a few hundred random peasants, and things are just fine again. Life goes on.

Matt’s heard that one of their favorite bakeries is open again. They make their way a couple blocks downhill from the police station and find that the bakery is indeed open. They grab pastries and hustle back to the truck. As they’re climbing in, Kevin sees a handful of street kids approaching. He mentions this to Matt, who gestures up the street at an approaching soldier. They quickly climb into the truck as the kids reach Kevin is closing his passenger door. The soldier is shouting something and motioning for Matt to drive ahead. Kevin rolls up his window as the first boy tries to get his face close in the window to shout something. One of the other kids pushes him from behind as the truck pulls away. As Kevin finishes rolling up the window, he notices a smear of tears from where the child’s face had been.

Matt slowly drives the truck down the street toward the armed man. He’s wearing a police uniform, a WW2-style helmet and carries a long rifle with wooden stock and attached bayonet. He twirls his finger to signal that Kevin should roll down his window. Then the soldier taps on the door with his bayonet and gestures for Kevin to let him in the truck. Kevin slides across the bench seat toward Matt as the soldier climbs in with them.

As Matt starts driving the soldier asks, “How are you finding the security?” Kevin’s not sure he’s heard him correctly and looks over at Matt who just raises his eyebrows as if to say, “I have no idea!” Kevin asks him to repeat the question. The soldier leans in very closely with his bayonet pointing everywhere and asks slowly, “How do you like the security?” Kevin replies that it’s fine. Then the soldier continues, “I need you to give me money. It’s very difficult for the armed forces right now.” Matt is slowing for the turn into Delmas. Kevin is completely out of ideas and just replies, “I can’t do that.” The Haitian cop/soldier snorts and says, “You can’t give me anything at all?” Kevin says again, “No, sir.” The truck slows to a near stop and Matt seems frozen at the wheel. The soldier seems to think this means his ride is over, so without further comment he gets out of the truck and walks downhill toward the Army barracks.

They have quite a party at the Guest House that night and Kevin somehow gets back to his apartment. The next morning he’s awakened by the screams of Marie, calling his name over shouts from a man outside. Kevin hurries onto the stairway landing and sees his neighbor shouting at her. “Get out of here! You’re not my maid. I’m tired of seeing you. If I see you again, I’m going to get my gun and shoot you.” Kevin is trying to decide how to respond when Guardian Joel rounds the corner and walks up to the gate. Without comment, he unlocks it so Marie can run upstairs to Kevin’s apartment. Then Joel looks calmly at Kevin’s neighbor and says, “It’s for people like you that we need Aristide to return.”