Aristide Promises Legislative ElectionsHaitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide...

Aristide Promises Legislative Elections

Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide refused to bow to opposition demands for his resignation but promised legislative elections in the next six months.

Aristide, speaking from Monterrey, Mexico, where he was attending the Summit of the Americas, said representatives of his government would meet with opposition leaders and members of the 15-member Caribbean Community in the Bahamas next week. But opposition leaders said they had no plans to meet with Aristide there and did not intend to participate in elections unless he stepped down.

Aristide, whose critics accuse him of being power hungry and failing to help the poor, won a six-year term in 2000.