French priest describes his kidnapping in Haiti

A French priest who was kidnapped by a Haitian 400 Maoist gang last April tells of his horrific experience.

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“There were a lot of us and we had to go through Croix-des-Bouquets to go to an event. On the way, young men stopped us with guns, followed by a driver. Then we realized we had been kidnapped. I was calm,” Father Michelle Bryand said in an interview with CNN this week. Testified.

The hostages were first moved to a more rural area and had to lie outside on pieces of cardboard stacked under a tree.

They were then transferred to an abandoned house, then to a second. Conditions were tough, he admitted.

“It was like being in a black hole, a dungeon, and finally we had no windows. At first they fed us once a day, but eventually they stopped feeding us. They starved us, I believe it was a tactic of negotiation,” the priest recalled.

In all, the kidnapping of Father Michelle Bryand and his associates lasted almost three weeks.

“Kidnappers play with time. They play on people’s nerves, especially when they are negotiating,” he told the American media.

Father Michelle Bryand argues that 17 missionaries, including a Canadian kidnapped last Saturday east of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, should be hopeful in all respects.

“Victims cannot lose faith. They must hold on to hope. For us, our hope is our best friend,” he said.

The kidnappers are demanding $ 17 million in ransom for their release.