Opposition Party Office Raided
Police raided the headquarters of an opposition party and arrested five of its members on weapons charges, authorities said Thursday.
Police accused Confederation of Democratic Unity party members of stashing weapons in their headquarters in Port-au-Prince, the capital.
Opposition leaders claimed that the arrests were part of a government crackdown on foes of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
“The building is the hide-out of a gang of bandits,” police spokesman Jean-Dady Simeon said. He said a cache of weapons was found in a false ceiling during Wednesday’s raid.
Four men and a woman were arrested and charged with illegal possession of weapons, Simeon said.
Evans Paul, an opposition party leader, disputed the police account, saying six party members were arrested. He said the weapons were planted to justify the arrests.
“It’s a staged event, designed to mask the ruling party’s clampdown on the opposition,” Paul said.
“Aristide preaches peace but practices war,” he said.
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