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Haitians Afloat
Aired February 26, 2004 - 14:10 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Waiting for orders to attack, rebel forces in Haiti are poised to enter the capital, Port-au-Prince, and vow to capture President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Opposition leaders who say that they have no ties to the rebels say the violence would end if he would just step down. President Aristide has given no indication that he's going anywhere. The U.S. suggests sharing power. The United Nations Security Council is just now taking up the debate.
Some Haitians aren't waiting around to see if the international community comes to the rescue. They're getting out any way they can, many of them by boat.
CNN's John Zarrella with a case in point.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN MIAMI BUREAU CHIEF: Immigrations and customs enforcement agents spent the night on board the Margot trying to assess and evaluate what 17 Haitians wanted and why they apparently hijacked that coastal freighter and forced the captain to bring it to Miami.
The investigation into what happened continued today. What we do know is that, back on the 22nd, the men boarded the Margot and apparently forced the captain to come to Miami. He radioed Coast Guard at 4:00 yesterday afternoon Eastern time, told the Coast Guard that in fact armed men had seized the vessel and were forcing him to come to Miami. He was told to stop 10 miles offshore. He did.
Coast Guard and immigration officials eventually boarded that vessel and began to figure out and try to figure out exactly what happened and what these 17 individuals want. Florida's governor, Jeb Bush, says that if in fact they did hijack the vessel and don't have legitimate claims to stay in the United States, they should be sent back.
GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: Hijackers, they should be sent back to Haiti. The -- they hijacked a boat. And they hijacked a large vessel. And unless they have a well-founded fear of persecution that is specific that meets the criteria of our laws, they should be sent back.
ZARRELLA: It is possible the men could be brought in and face hijacking charges. But it is also more likely that they might just be sent back to Haiti without ever touching U.S. soil.
John Zarrella, CNN, on Miami Beach. (END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired February 26, 2004 - 14:10 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Waiting for orders to attack, rebel forces in Haiti are poised to enter the capital, Port-au-Prince, and vow to capture President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Opposition leaders who say that they have no ties to the rebels say the violence would end if he would just step down. President Aristide has given no indication that he's going anywhere. The U.S. suggests sharing power. The United Nations Security Council is just now taking up the debate.
Some Haitians aren't waiting around to see if the international community comes to the rescue. They're getting out any way they can, many of them by boat.
CNN's John Zarrella with a case in point.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN MIAMI BUREAU CHIEF: Immigrations and customs enforcement agents spent the night on board the Margot trying to assess and evaluate what 17 Haitians wanted and why they apparently hijacked that coastal freighter and forced the captain to bring it to Miami.
The investigation into what happened continued today. What we do know is that, back on the 22nd, the men boarded the Margot and apparently forced the captain to come to Miami. He radioed Coast Guard at 4:00 yesterday afternoon Eastern time, told the Coast Guard that in fact armed men had seized the vessel and were forcing him to come to Miami. He was told to stop 10 miles offshore. He did.
Coast Guard and immigration officials eventually boarded that vessel and began to figure out and try to figure out exactly what happened and what these 17 individuals want. Florida's governor, Jeb Bush, says that if in fact they did hijack the vessel and don't have legitimate claims to stay in the United States, they should be sent back.
GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: Hijackers, they should be sent back to Haiti. The -- they hijacked a boat. And they hijacked a large vessel. And unless they have a well-founded fear of persecution that is specific that meets the criteria of our laws, they should be sent back.
ZARRELLA: It is possible the men could be brought in and face hijacking charges. But it is also more likely that they might just be sent back to Haiti without ever touching U.S. soil.
John Zarrella, CNN, on Miami Beach. (END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
