Duvalier's comeback attempt cut short in Haiti (Feature)

By Helmut Reuter Jan 18, 2011, 22:20 GMT

Port-au-Prince/Sao Paulo - Tuesday could be a historic day for Haiti: former dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, also known as 'Baby Doc,' was arrested, some 25 years after the end of his brutal regime.

The question is what will happen now to the man who led the Caribbean country from 1971 to 1986, massively enriching himself in the process, and who surprised most by returning from exile Sunday.

Duvalier, 59, must have imagined his return quite differently. When he arrived, he said he wanted to serve the country and to help its people - the same people whose destiny he once said was 'to suffer.'

Barely 48 hours later he was sitting in a police vehicle. Hundreds of supporters and detractors, reporters and passers-by gathered Tuesday before the luxury hotel Karibe in Petionville, a suburb of Port-au-Prince.

For hours, rumours were rife about an imminent arrest, possibly on corruption charges, which were reinforced with the arrival of police officers, a judge, a public prosecutor and Duvalier's own lawyers.

'Baby Doc' was interrogated in his hotel room, and he was escorted away from the hotel under massive security measures.

It remained unclear Tuesday what would happen to this man who was chased away from Haiti in 1986, after a 15-year regime of brutality. There were also no details about the allegations levelled against Duvalier.

For now, he walked down the stairs of his third-floor room flanked by his wife and police officers. He smiled and waved at the crowd.

In fact, Duvalier had intended to hold a press conference later Tuesday to tell Haitians why he had returned from exile in France 25 years later. The arrest interrupted those plans.

The police convoy could only move slowly through the crowd. Supporters of Duvalier shouted his name and waved pictures of the former dictator in the small sidestreets near the hotel.

Others sang to celebrate the arrest. There were tumultuous scenes as numerous photographers pushed for the best place.

Human rights organizations have stressed since Duvalier's return to Haiti that he should be tried for the many crimes committed under his regime and that of his father and predecessor, Francois Duvalier, also known as 'Papa Doc.' These crimes, they say, include systematic torture, extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances.

These organizations demand that Haitian authorities seize their chance and bring 'Baby Doc' to justice, in a move that they see as long-overdue.

The question remains, however, whether he will be tried, and for which crimes. In Haiti, he could be charged with corruption and having stolen hundreds of millions of dollars of public funds by 1986.

For many years after that date, Duvalier lived a life of luxury on the Cote d'Azur. But the days of wine and roses could well be over for him.

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