White House Retracts--Haiti Chief Still in Control

The Reagan Administration announced today that Haiti’s Jean-Claude Duvalier had fallen from power and fled the country, only to discover later that Duvalier is still in control of the overcrowded and impoverished island.

The diplomatic blunder was compounded by the fact that the original, erroneous report from the White House touched off cheering celebrations by hundreds of refugees in the streets of Miami’s “Little Haiti” section.

A similar celebration sparked by an erroneous report from other sources led to a riot Thursday night in “Little Haiti.” A woman was killed and two men were injured.

Even as news of Duvalier’s supposed collapse spread from Washington, Duvalier went on radio in Haiti and proclaimed himself “strong, firm as a monkey’s tail.”

Witnesses said Duvalier, the proclaimed president-for-life in one of the world’s longest-ruling family dynasties, rode through the streets with a heavy military escort.

Embassy Blamed

In Washington, the Administration’s faux pas was quickly followed by finger-pointing and corrections. The White House blamed the U.S. Embassy in Haiti for the mistake.

The embassy, backed up by the State Department, said it never claimed--as the White House had reported--that Duvalier had fallen and fled from the island.

“Conflicting reports and rumors . . . produced that first judgment,” said State Department spokesman Bernard Kalb. He said the latest information was that Duvalier was in Haiti and that his government remained in power.

A travel advisory prepared by the department recommends that U.S. citizens not visit Haiti “until the situation there is clearer,” Kalb said.

Today’s episode began shortly after 9 a.m. EST as Air Force One was climbing into the skies, taking President Reagan to Houston for a memorial service honoring the seven astronauts killed Tuesday on the space shuttle Challenger.

Speakes’ Statement

In the rear cabin of the plane, presidential spokesman Larry Speakes made a dramatic announcement to the five reporters accompanying the Reagan entourage:

“The White House was informed shortly before 7:30 a.m. EST that the government of Haiti has collapsed and the leadership, including Duvalier, had fled the country.”

On the flight back to Washington from Houston, Speakes was asked how it happened that he announced the collapse of the government without being certain of the situation there. He replied, “The State Department advised us, quoting the deputy chief of mission in Haiti at 7:23 a.m.”

Speakes said his information, based on a report from the embassy and confirmed by an independent source, was relayed to Reagan by his chief of staff, Donald T. Regan, and his national security adviser John Poindexter.

The report was relayed immediately back to Washington by reporters on a radiotelephone.

Later, however, Duvalier’s radio statement and reported appearance forced the Administration into retreat.

‘Conflicting Reports’

“The situation remains unclear,” said White House Deputy Press Secretary Edward Djerejian. “We’re getting conflicting reports as to the exact situation.”

Kalb suggested newspaper headlines could read, “Conflicting Reports, Even Conflicting Rumors.”

Djerejian said Speakes’ initial assessment was based on a report from the embassy. “Our first report was . . . that something was under way and there was a possibility of Duvalier having fled.”

However, he said, later information suggested otherwise. “In a situation like this, there’s a great deal of confusion on the ground in Haiti,” Djerejian said. “Something is obviously happening, but the situation remains unclear.”

In Port-au-Prince, embassy spokeswoman Rachel Edensword said: “The U.S. Embassy has not issued any statement to the effect the government has fallen and that Duvalier has fled. That is all I can say.”

A State Department official, insisting on anonymity, said the embassy had never told the White House that Duvalier had fled and instead only reported rumors circulating on radio stations in Port-au-Prince.