A Diario Libre editorial written by Anibal Castro says today that it is highly suspicious that, despite the supposedly efficient vigilance of the Dominican border by the Armed Forces, Guy Philippe was able to leave DR soil to emerge as the commander of the rebel Haitian forces. This border has been strengthened by an aggressive and generous program of equipment and supply purchases and an intellectual minister (Lt. General Soto Jimenez) who is well-versed in modern military strategies and tactics and has clear ideas on national defense. It’s therefore suspicious, says the editorial, how, all of a sudden, Philippe and his men find weapons of war to carry out a successful, violent offensive in the north of the country. It’s suspicious that a promo that injures Dominican sovereignty that circulated in the frontier last October is back again to give the impression of crisis in the neighboring country. It’s suspicious that the official media highlight with frequency and alarm what is occurring in Haiti and that the military chiefs travel so often to the frontier in a way that seems to seek to divert the attention from the many problems of the country and redirect it to the border.
“But they did not hit the jackpot, if anyone is playing the lottery,” writes De Castro, “because there has not been a massive exodus to the frontier and the Haitian crisis is mostly felt through the government media than in reality – and surely Philippe and his rebels will have won or died before the 16 May elections.”