THE LEDGER-STAR
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, July 21, 1994 TAG: 9407210732
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BRADLEY GRAHAM, WASHINGTON POST
DATELINE: ABOARD THE USS INCHON LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines
Yanked suddenly from shore leave two weeks ago to go back to sea, the Marines now offshore of Haiti are beginning to wonder what all the rush was about.
Eager for some kind of action in Haiti, they say they will be disappointed if they return to the United States in a month in a scheduled rotation, having done little more than engage in training exercises.
``Our greatest fear now is we'll sit out here and then go home, and another unit will come here and do something,'' Staff Sgt. Vernon L. Clark, a rifle platoon member, told reporters visiting the ship Wednesday.
``If they don't send us (into Haiti), it will have been a waste not only of our time and effort but also everyone's tax money back home,'' said Lance Cpl. Jason C. Morrison.
Such comments grow out of the unusual circumstances under which the 2,000 members of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit were deployed earlier this month. Having just completed a six-month tour in Somalia and elsewhere, the 24th MEU was called back to duty within two weeks of returning home, making Marine Corps history as the first MEU to go through so rapid a turnaround.
Their mission, the Marines were told, was to be ready to evacuate as many as 8,500 American citizens and designated foreigners from Haiti. But administration officials also acknowledge the Marines' mission also was to try to intimidate Haiti's military leaders into leaving the country.
Vacations were aborted and family goodbyes were said just after long-awaited hellos had been uttered. A frantic several days were spent at Camp Lejeune, N.C., packing up gear the MEU had just unpacked and stored.
The Marines said they doubt Haiti's poorly equipped military would put up much resistance. But they worry about controlling Haitian crowds that can form quickly and be fanned by anti-American provocateurs. They also worry about snipers and guerrilla-like attacks.
``I worry about how long we're going to stay if we go in and whether we'll be stuck there,'' said Morrison, aware that the last time the Marines invaded Haiti in 1915, they stayed for 19 years. ILLUSTRATION: ASSOCIATED PRESS color photos
Marine Lance Cpl. Jim Marszalik sits on his bunk as Lance Cpl. Elias
Ortiz catches a nap aboard the Inchon off Haiti.
A sailor on the Spruance salutes as his ship speeds past the
high-tech command and control ship Mount Whitney.
KEYWORDS: HAITI U.S.S. INCHON U.S. MARINE CORPS
by CNB