PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Robert Manuel doesn't say much, but his omnipresence at the side of President-elect Rene Preval speaks volumes about the next head of state's newfound independence.
Manuel was national security chief in the first years of Preval's 1996-2001 presidency but was forced to resign after a crackdown on drug traffickers netted some loyalists of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who served as president before and after Preval. Manuel fled to Central America under threat of assassination, and the drug gangs pressed their point by killing the man expected to succeed him, Jean Lamy.
Preval was regarded by many analysts as an Aristide puppet during his term in office, and they viewed the pressure to replace Manuel as a humiliating act of interference. But now Aristide is the one living in exile, and in bringing Manuel back, Preval appears to be sending a message that Aristide shouldn't count on an invitation to return home any time soon.
Timothy Carney, acting U.S. charge d'affaires, was ambassador to Haiti during Preval's first term. He recalls the now 63-year-old agronomist as someone who prefers to surround himself with capable lieutenants rather than toadies.
"The popular view is that he was held down and held back by Aristide because Aristide couldn't brook any possible rival," Carney said. The Feb. 7 election "showed two things: First, that Preval is his own man, and second, it marked the reality of Aristide being a man of the past."
As the ballots were counted, the Provisional Electoral Council worked out a compromise to overcome problems with an inordinately high number of blank and invalid ballots, a redistribution that allowed Preval to garner more than 50% of the vote and avoid a runoff. Since then, the reclusive victor has been talking with friends and foes alike as he explores potential Cabinet appointments.
Among those with whom Preval has met were Haitian Chamber of Commerce President Reginald Boulos; peasant leader Jean Chavannes Jeune, who ran a distant fourth in the election; and activist Rene Monplaisir from the Cite Soleil slum of Port-au-Prince, the capital.
Tensions between Haiti's slum-dwelling masses, who supported Aristide and Preval, and the business elite frequently roil its politics. But representatives of diverse communities have spoken publicly of the need for the next government to include a broad spectrum of society.
