An Amnesty International report blamed the Haitian and U.S. governments for human rights abuses in Haiti.

BY MICHAEL A.W. OTTEY

Haiti is rife with human rights abuses, and the U.S. and interim Haitian government are largely to blame, Amnesty International said in a lengthy report Friday.

''Despite the presence of the [U.S.-led] . . . Multination Interim Force, a large number of armed groups have continued to be active throughout the country and to abuse human rights,'' said the report, written after a 15-day fact-finding visit to Haiti.

''The interim government has swiftly moved to arrest members of former President [Jean-Bertrand] Aristide's Fanmi Lavalas party suspected of acts of political violence or corruption, but has not acted with the same commitment against accused or convicted perpetrators of grave human rights violations, some of whom played a prominent role in the recent insurgency,'' the report added.

The report was especially critical of U.S. Marines in Haiti for what it called questionable shootings of Haitians. At least six Haitians were shot dead by U.S. troops March 7-12 in the capital city of Port-au-Prince.

''Appropriate investigations into these killings have apparently not been undertaken,'' it said.

DISAGREES WITH REPORT

U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. David Lapan, a spokesman for the Multinational Interim Force in Haiti, rejected Amnesty International's conclusions.

''In each of the few instances where members of the Multinational Interim Force used deadly force in response to threats against them, a thorough review was conducted to determine if the individuals involved acted in full accordance with the rules of engagement,'' Lapan said in an e-mailed response to The Herald.

''In each of these instances, the initial reviews determined that the actions of those involved were carried out in compliance with the rules of engagement,'' he added.

`LAWLESSNESS'

In its report, Amnesty cited ''a climate of lawlessness and violence [that] has prevailed in Haiti since early February,'' when an armed revolt against Aristide erupted.

The 39-page report also complained that Haitian police tortured and executed five Aristide supporters in March and fired on a pro-Aristide march in May, killing at least one person.

The policemen suspected in the first case have been arrested, but relatives of the victims have received threats.

The report was the result of hundreds of interviews the London-based human rights group conducted during a fact-finding visit to Haiti from March 25 to April 8.

Aristide signed a letter of resignation Feb. 29 amid a bloody revolt, but later said he was forced out in a virtual coup orchestrated by the United States and France. Both countries have denied the allegation.

Eric Olson, director for the Americas at Amnesty International USA in Washington, D.C., said the priority for the international peacekeepers in Haiti should be to disarm all groups -- both the rebels who helped topple Aristide and the armed gangs that supported the president.

DIFFICULT TASK

''Disarming people is always a difficult task,'' Olson said in a telephone interview.

''But this is an incredible moment. What we're saying is let's all get on the same page and make it a priority. There's no rebuilding or stabilizing Haiti on the cheap. It's going to take a long focused effort.'' he said.