National Palace

Loyalist soldiers stormed the National Palace today and arrested a supporter of ousted dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier who had tried to overthrow the government. At least 34 people reportedly died in street violence during the coup attempt. State-run radio said 26 Haitians were killed in a shoot-out at the headquarters of the Union for National Reconciliation, the party headed by the coup leader, Roger Lafontant.

Former singer Michel Martelly was sworn in Saturday as Haiti's new president, promising change in a country whose towering needs will soon test his ability to shift from political outsider to national leader. Martelly, elected in March by a commanding margin, spoke in front of a powerful symbol of the work ahead: the National Palace, crumpled like many other buildings in last year's devastating earthquake. In his first remarks as president, Martelly summoned some of the same passion that fueled his campaign, his first foray into electoral politics.

Former singer Michel Martelly was sworn in Saturday as Haiti's new president, promising change in a country whose towering needs will soon test his ability to shift from political outsider to national leader. Martelly, elected in March by a commanding margin, spoke in front of a powerful symbol of the work ahead: the National Palace, crumpled like many other buildings in last year's devastating earthquake. In his first remarks as president, Martelly summoned some of the same passion that fueled his campaign, his first foray into electoral politics.

Thousands of Guatemalans gathered for a march to the National Palace to demand that the president resign over accusations that he ordered a lawyer killed, a scandal threatening the rule of the country's first leftist leader in more than 50 years. President Alvaro Colom denies the allegations of Rodrigo Rosenberg, which were broadcast posthumously after the attorney was shot to death last week. He has dismissed calls for his resignation and asked the FBI and a U.N. panel to investigate the killing.

Thousands of Guatemalans gathered for a march to the National Palace to demand that the president resign over accusations that he ordered a lawyer killed, a scandal threatening the rule of the country's first leftist leader in more than 50 years. President Alvaro Colom denies the allegations of Rodrigo Rosenberg, which were broadcast posthumously after the attorney was shot to death last week. He has dismissed calls for his resignation and asked the FBI and a U.N. panel to investigate the killing.

About 500,000 teachers, demanding a 100% salary increase and democratic reform in Mexico's pro-government teachers' union, staged a one-day strike in Mexico City and at least 14 states, union leaders said. The strike, the third stoppage in the last month, left millions of Mexican students without classes and snarled traffic in the capital as thousands of teachers converged on the National Palace.

Police searched for coup conspirators Tuesday as some opposition leaders claimed that what President Jean-Bertrand Aristide called a failed coup was really staged as a pretext to crush dissent. The attack Monday touched off widespread protests and violence by Aristide supporters, who blamed the opposition for the incident at the National Palace. "The so-called coup d'etat was a masquerade," opposition leader Evans Paul said.

President Jorge Serrano was forced from office Tuesday under intense pressure from military commanders and civilian business leaders, one week after he suspended democratic rule and dissolved government institutions. Ending an explosive political crisis that had isolated Guatemala and spawned a furor here and abroad, the army ousted Serrano and said it was turning the government over to civilian leaders.

Even before the four U.S. Air Force helicopters had lifted off from the parade ground of the palace with their reluctant cargo--a powerless president and his party--the swelling crowd had unfurled a banner: "Occupy the People's Palace." The occupation was inevitable. Nothing less than standing on the grounds of the sprawling Malacanang Palace would satisfy these people.

The scene inside the National Palace is about what you would expect of a Third World dictatorship. It resembles an armed fort, crawling with soldiers, the courtyard full of newly arrived crates of submachine guns, Uzis from Israel. Offices are decorated with the most expensive Haitian art, waiting rooms are opulent concoctions of white-on-white, full of priceless antiques and luxurious sofas adorned with dozens of perfectly matched African elephant tusks.

Police searched for coup conspirators Tuesday as some opposition leaders claimed that what President Jean-Bertrand Aristide called a failed coup was really staged as a pretext to crush dissent. The attack Monday touched off widespread protests and violence by Aristide supporters, who blamed the opposition for the incident at the National Palace. "The so-called coup d'etat was a masquerade," opposition leader Evans Paul said.

President Jorge Serrano was forced from office Tuesday under intense pressure from military commanders and civilian business leaders, one week after he suspended democratic rule and dissolved government institutions. Ending an explosive political crisis that had isolated Guatemala and spawned a furor here and abroad, the army ousted Serrano and said it was turning the government over to civilian leaders.

On a cold rainy day in early 1949, as Communist troops advanced from the north, panic-stricken families of Nationalist Chinese navy men rushed a Taiwan-bound ship in the Yangtze River port at Nanjing. The uncontrollable crowd swarmed into space intended for nearly 2,000 crates of art from China's dynastic collections--art that had survived 16 years of shipment back and forth across the war and revolution-torn nation and that was now to be sent to Taiwan.

Loyalist soldiers stormed the National Palace today and arrested a supporter of ousted dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier who had tried to overthrow the government. At least 34 people reportedly died in street violence during the coup attempt. State-run radio said 26 Haitians were killed in a shoot-out at the headquarters of the Union for National Reconciliation, the party headed by the coup leader, Roger Lafontant.

About 500,000 teachers, demanding a 100% salary increase and democratic reform in Mexico's pro-government teachers' union, staged a one-day strike in Mexico City and at least 14 states, union leaders said. The strike, the third stoppage in the last month, left millions of Mexican students without classes and snarled traffic in the capital as thousands of teachers converged on the National Palace.

Even before the four U.S. Air Force helicopters had lifted off from the parade ground of the palace with their reluctant cargo--a powerless president and his party--the swelling crowd had unfurled a banner: "Occupy the People's Palace." The occupation was inevitable. Nothing less than standing on the grounds of the sprawling Malacanang Palace would satisfy these people.

On a cold rainy day in early 1949, as Communist troops advanced from the north, panic-stricken families of Nationalist Chinese navy men rushed a Taiwan-bound ship in the Yangtze River port at Nanjing. The uncontrollable crowd swarmed into space intended for nearly 2,000 crates of art from China's dynastic collections--art that had survived 16 years of shipment back and forth across the war and revolution-torn nation and that was now to be sent to Taiwan.

The scene inside the National Palace is about what you would expect of a Third World dictatorship. It resembles an armed fort, crawling with soldiers, the courtyard full of newly arrived crates of submachine guns, Uzis from Israel. Offices are decorated with the most expensive Haitian art, waiting rooms are opulent concoctions of white-on-white, full of priceless antiques and luxurious sofas adorned with dozens of perfectly matched African elephant tusks.