page_title: History of Haiti
section_title: Military rule (1991–94)
hierarchical_section_title: History of Haiti / The struggle for democracy (1986–present day) / Military rule (1991–94)
caption_attribution_description: English: President Jean-Bertrand Aristide returns triumphantly to the National Palace at Port au Prince, Haiti during Operation Uphold Democracy.
context_page_description: The recorded history of Haiti began on 5 December 1492, when the European navigator Christopher Columbus happened upon a large island in the region of the western Atlantic Ocean that later came to be known as the Caribbean. It was inhabited by the Taíno and Arawakan people, who variously called their island Ayiti, Bohio, and Kiskeya. Columbus promptly claimed the island for the Spanish Crown, naming it La Isla Española, later Latinized to Hispaniola. French influence began in 1625, and French control of what was called Saint-Domingue in modern-day Haiti began in 1660. From 1697 on, the western part of the island was French, and the eastern part was Spanish. Haiti became one of the wealthiest of France's colonies, producing vast quantities of sugar and coffee, depending on kidnapped Africans to provide the labor. Inspired by the message of the French Revolution, the enslaved Haitians rose up in revolt in 1791, and after decades of struggle, the independent republic of Haiti was officially proclaimed in 1804.
context_section_description: An estimated 3,000–5,000 Haitians were killed during the period of military rule. The coup created a large-scale exodus of refugees to the United States. The United States Coast Guard interdicted (in many cases, rescued) a total of 41,342 Haitians during 1991 and 1992. Most were denied entry to the United States and repatriated back to Haiti. Aristide has accused the United States of backing the 1991 coup. In response to the coup, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 841 imposing international sanctions and an arms embargo on Haiti.
  On 16 February 1993, the ferry Neptune sank, drowning an estimated 700 passengers. This was the worst ferry disaster in Haitian history.
  The military regime governed Haiti until 1994, and according to some sources included drug trafficking led by Chief of National Police Michel François. Various initiatives to end the political crisis through the peaceful restoration of the constitutionally elected government failed. In July 1994, as repression mounted in Haiti and a civilian human rights monitoring mission was expelled from the country, the United Nations Security Council adopted United Nations Security Council Resolution 940, which authorized member states to use all necessary means to facilitate the departure of Haiti's military leadership and to restore Haiti's constitutionally elected government to power.
caption: President Jean-Bertrand Aristide returns triumphantly to the National Palace at Port-au-Prince, Haiti in 1994
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