Dear Friends,

So Anne is a prisoner of conscience in Haiti arrested for her political beliefs. Please distribute this generously and for more information on how to help with the campaign to free this brave and dear soul please see :

http://haitiaction.net/News/hac5_11_4.html

 
For further background please see:

http://haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_12_4.html
http://haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_24_4.html

STATEMENT FROM ANNETTE AUGUSTE (So Anne)

Pétionville Penitentiary, Haiti, 23rd May 2004

I speak to the world today as a prisoner of conscience in Haiti, held in detention for my political beliefs and convictions.

I was arrested on May 10th in Delmas, a suburb of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, by U.S. Marines who brutally assaulted my home in the middle of the night with explosives and large arms, terrorizing all within, especially the small children of my family. The only security we had was our two small dogs which they killed immediately upon entering the premises, after using explosives to blast open the front door of our home. I can never forget nor forgive the trauma these men have caused the youngest and most vulnerable of our household. Of the three teenagers and young adults who escaped arrest that night by jumping over the balcony, one suffered serious wounds that required urgent medical treatment. I think none of us will ever be able to forget the inhuman treatment we were subjected to in the course of this violent action undertaken in the name of the Bush government for what he calls “building democracy