Former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier has returned home after living in exile in France for 25 years.
His return coincides with the anniversary of last year's devastating earthquake and comes at a time when the impoverished country is in the midst of a serious crisis following inconclusive presidential elections.
Reports from Haiti say the son of the late Haitian dictator Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier arrived Sunday afternoon on an Air France flight that landed at 5.50 p.m. local time.
The reports say supporters of the 59-year-old dictator greeted him with hugs at the airport before he was taken into an immigration office.
"He is happy to be back in this country, back in his home," said Mona Beruaveau, a candidate for Senate in a Duvalierist party who spoke to the former dictator inside the immigration office. "He is tired after a long trip."
She did not say why he has returned but added that he would speak with reporters at a news conference on Monday.
Duvalier loyalists have been campaigning to bring back the dictator and even launched a foundation to improve "Baby Doc's" image. They had also revived the Duvalier's political party, hoping that he could return to power democratically.
Duvalier and his wife fled into exile during a 1986 popular rebellion and have been living in Paris. His father, "Papa Doc", tortured and killed political opponents, ruling in an atmosphere of fear and repression ensured by the bloody Tonton Macoute secret police.
In the fall of 2007, President René Préval told reporters that Duvalier could return to Haiti but would face justice for the deaths of thousands of people and the theft of millions of dollars.
"Baby Doc's" return also coincides with a visit to the country by the head of the Organization of American States (OAS), Jose Miguel Insulza, who is scheduled to arrive in Haiti Monday to discuss an OAS report on the election results.
Insulza will meet with President Rene Preval, Prime Minister Jean Max Bellerive and directors of the Provisional Election Council (CEP) to "talk about the findings and recommendations of the final report on the election," an OAS statement said.
The OAS experts officially handed their report to Preval's office on Thursday. A leaked draft suggested that Jude Celestin, Preval's handpicked protege, should step aside after fraud in the first round of voting.
According to the contested first round results, former first lady Mirlande Manigat took first place with 31 per cent, while Celestin won 22 per cent of the votes.
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