Haiti issues passport for Aristide

Haiti issues passport for Aristide

Move paves the way for the ousted president to return from exile ahead of a March 20 presidential runoff election.

Last Modified: 09 Feb 2011 02:10 GMT

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In a move that worried the US, Haiti has issued a diplomatic passport for ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, clearing the way for his return from exile, just in time for a presidential election runoff.

Interior Minister Paul Antoine Bien-Aime said the diplomatic passport was handed over via an intermediary to Aristide's Miami-based lawyer Ira Kurzban, who was due to deliver it to Aristide.

Kurzban confirmed that he was given the ousted leader's diplomatic passport during a brief stopover in Haiti's capital.

"Yes, I have it,'' he said on Tuesday, while his evening flight back to Miami was on the tarmac in Port-au-Prince's international airport.

But it remained unclear exactly when Aristide, a former priest and Haiti's first democratically elected
president in 1990, might make the trip home from his exile in South Africa.

Kurzban said he asked Haiti to establish a security plan for Aristide in accordance with a law requiring the government to provide security for former presidents - to ensure a smooth transition.

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ENDS

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