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Opposition demonstrators take cover on the sidewalk from shotguns fired by supporters of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide during an opposition march in Port-au-Prince |
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Haiti is bracing for more anti-government protests Monday, as President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's opponents continue to press him to resign.
Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince Sunday in the largest protest so far against the embattled president. Riot police followed the protesters. Witnesses aid Aristide supporters threw sticks at the marchers, but no injuries were reported.
In a separate protest in the town of Miragoane, 80 kilometers west of the capital, an Aristide supporter was reportedly shot and killed. The circumstances of the killing were not clear, but Aristide supporters retaliated and set an anti-government protester on fire. The man was hospitalized, but there were no confirmed reports about his condition.
Opposition leaders are calling for more street protests after a general strike Thursday that shut down most businesses in Port-au-Prince.
Mr. Aristide's opponents have been staging protest marches for months, accusing the president of corruption and calling for his departure.
In another development, a police chief was found shot to death on the outskirts of the city of Cap Haitien Sunday. The circumstances and motive for the apparent murder were unclear.
Mr. Aristide became Haiti's first democratically-elected leader in 1991. Since his re-election in 2000, he has been at odds with opponents over results of parliamentary elections that year.