Haiti’s Leader Rescinds Order by General

In a surprising clash with the military commander who put him in office, Haitian President Leslie F. Manigat on Wednesday rescinded an order of army strongman Gen. Henri Namphy that would have stripped the country’s toughest troop commander of his power.

The move aroused fears of a possible civil war between rival army units until Namphy’s army high command backed down from the confrontation late Wednesday. The command issued a communique withdrawing the Namphy order “for the time being” and reaffirming its “loyalty to the state.”

The principal beneficiary of Manigat’s unexpected showdown with Namphy was Col. Jean Claude Paul, who commands the Dessalines Battalion, one of the army’s two fully manned infantry units, which controls the Haitian capital. Paul allegedly dominates the country’s trade in smuggled goods and is under indictment in the United States for drug trafficking.

The crisis, which triggered rumors of tanks and troops on a war footing in the streets, began Tuesday when Namphy unexpectedly ordered the transfers and retirements of a number of high-ranking officers. Paul would have been relieved of his powerful troop command and reassigned to an administrative post in the army general command.

Manigat, who gained office in February after an army-staged election that most Haitians boycotted, acted immediately, rescinding the Namphy order because it was done without his approval as nominal head of the armed forces.

It was unclear, however, whether Manigat took his stand against Namphy in personal defense of Paul or whether he did so as a matter of constitutional principle, making the controversial colonel an unintended beneficiary.

Nevertheless, the move astonished Haitian and foreign political analysts, many of whom believed the president to be under Namphy’s thumb or too intimidated to confront him.

‘Staring Namphy Down’

“What surprises me is Manigat’s immediate and forthright reaction,” said a veteran diplomat here. “It could be seen as staring Namphy down.”

“At the very least, it reveals a severe split in the army,” said a leading Haitian political figure who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Namphy’s choice was either to involve the country in a civil war or back down--and obviously he wasn’t ready for a civil war. What is at stake here is who is going to take the ultimate power in the army.”

The move heightened tension in the capital to the point that the U.S. Embassy advised Americans to stay off the streets. But businesses remained open throughout the day, and life on the teeming downtown thoroughfares of Port-au-Prince appeared to be normal.

“Under the circumstances, we’re suggesting that people stay indoors if possible,” said U.S. Embassy spokesman Jeffrey Lite. “It’s like a hurricane warning. We really don’t know if anything will strike.”

Among the widely circulated rumors, one said a three-way split in the army has been simmering for some time, with Namphy leading a dominant faction in the high command, Paul leading his own troops and Defense Minister Williams Regala, a top army officer on leave to serve in the civilian post, having a more moderate group.

One of the factions--it is unclear which--is thought to be at least partly responsible for a wave of night shootings, including some 30 to 40 murders, that have kept the capital on edge for two months.

According to one report, Paul’s troops arrested six to eight members from an opposing army faction in connection with the shootings and Namphy is said to have reacted by attempting to transfer Paul.

“To some, it may seem that Manigat is aligning himself with Paul in the struggle,” said a diplomat, “but I don’t believe that yet. It could be only a constitutional issue that has nothing to do with personalities.”