A Swiss court agreed Wednesday to maintain a block on some of the 7.6 million swiss francs (6.2 million US dollars) stashed in Switzerland by the former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, according to dpa. The move, which only affects money held in Geneva, comes just days before a freeze on the Baby Doc fortune, held in several bank accounts across Switzerland, was due to expire. The Duvalier family would then be able to claim the money. The authorities in Port-au-Prince claim 100 million dollars was stolen from the public purse before Duvalier fled the country in 1986. Today's ruling followed an appeal lodged on behalf of two Haitians this week who were awarded more than two million in damages against Duvalier in 1988 by a US court. A final decision on whether to block the funds for another year, when the current freeze expires on June 3, must be taken by the federal authorities.
