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IPFS News Link • Government

US 'surprised' at return of ex-Haiti dictator

• telegraph.co.uk

The former tyrant was holed up in a luxury Port-au-Prince hotel after arriving back in the country late on Sunday, with observers wondering about the purpose of his return in the wake of a contested election.

"We are surprised by the timing of Duvalier's visit to Haiti. It adds unpredictability at an uncertain time in Haiti's election process," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said in a post to blogging site Twitter.

Human rights groups have called for Duvalier to face trial, but the justice system is in tatters after last year's catastrophic earthquake and many Haitians are too young to remember his oppressive 1971-1986 rule.