The creation of the Great Rally for Haiti's Development (Grand rassemblement pour l'évolution d'Haïti, GREH), a centre-right political party, was announced in August 2003; the party was then called the Group of Reflection on Haiti (Groupe de réflexion sur Haïti, GREH) (We Haitians 18 Aug. 2003; Radio Metropole 19 Aug. 2003; ibid. 23 Aug. 2003; Signal Radio 23 Aug. 2004). The first GREH group was established to reflect on the country's problems and begin the process of setting up a political party that offered "a modern alternative" for the future (We Haitians 18 Aug. 2003).

Established by Himmler Rebu, a former colonel in the Hatian Armed Forces (Forces armées d'Haïti, FAd'H) who opposed the former Aristide government, the GREH became a true political party in August 2004 (Signal Radio 23 Aug. 2004; Radio Metropole 23 Aug. 2004; We Haitians 18 Aug. 2003). Keeping the same acronym, the GREH announced that it had changed its name to the Great Rally for Haiti's Development at a launch ceremony held at the Centre for Physical Education and Maintenance (CEPEM), a school for physical education that belonged to Rebu (Signal Radio 23 Aug. 2004). During the ceremony, the GREH "presented the framework of the party, which is based on agricultural production, free markets, and public security" (ibid.).

At the GREH launch, 10 people, who were not named in the report, were elected to the party's executive (ibid.). This election re-established Rebu as president of the GREH (ibid.). Rebu also declared that the party would remain open to all political trends and to former members of the military, as well as to members of the Lavalas party (ibid.). Moreover, Rebu "asked the government to facilitate the participation of the Lavalas sector in the electoral process" (ibid.).

In September 2004, the Presidency Chief of Staff, Pierre Michel Brunache, formed a committee, on which Rebu was a member, in charge of recreating the Haitian Armed Forces (Signal Radio 10 Sept. 2004). The committee, made up of seven other members, was also responsible for identifying the interests of the nation and assessing geopolitical challenges (ibid.).

No information on the treatment of members of the GREH once it became an official political party could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. Rebu, however, had been harassed in November 2003, before the GREH became a political party (Radio Metropole 5 Nov. 2003). According to Radio Metropole, the police raided Rebu's CEPEM (5 Nov. 2003). He claimed that the police entered the CEPEM with a justice of the peace in search of arms (Radio Metropole 5 Nov. 2003). Rebu believes that the raid was a decision "aimed at disrupting his political and business activities because he has opposed the Lavalas government" (ibid.).

No information on whether the party issues membership cards could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints for this Response.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Radio Metropole [Port-au-Prince]. 23 August 2004. "Program Summary: Port-au-Prince Radio Metropole." (summary from the Morning Newscast) (FBIS-LAT-2004-0823 24 Aug. 2004/WNC)

____. 5 November 2003. "Haiti: Former Colonel Rebu Denounces Police Raid." (FBIS-LAT-2003-1105 6 Nov. 2003/WNC)

____. 19 August 2003. "Program Summary: Port-au-Prince Radio Metropole French 1145 GMT 19 Aug 2003." (FBIS-LAT-2003-0819 20 Aug. 2003/WNC)

Signal Radio [Port-au-Prince]. 10 September 2004. "Haitian Government Forms Committee on Army Restoration." (FBIS-LAT-2004-0910 13 Sept. 2004/WNC)

____. 23 August 2004. "Haiti: Rebu's GREH Becomes Political Party." (FBIS-LAT-2004-0823 25 Aug. 2004/WNC)

We Haitians United We Stand for Democracy. 18 August 2003. "In Troubled Haiti, Over Here a New Political Party." http://www.wehaitians.com/in%20troubled%20haiti.html [Accessed 30 Nov. 2004]

Internet sites, including: Amnesty International, Country Reports 2003, Freedom House, Haiti Democracy Project, Haiti Press Network, Haïti Progrès, Haiti Reborn, Human Rights Watch.