Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 9 mai 2018

 A study reveals the number of Haitians living in DR

Foreigners in Dominican Republic amount to 570,933 according to a national survey of immigrants. Haitians represent 87.2 % of this figure. The data was compiled in 2017.

According to these estimations, there was an increase of 46,300 people since 2012. This amounts to an average of 9,260 people a year.

The Secretary of Economy, Planning and Development, Isidoro Santana, explained that the Haitians and the Venezuelans who enter the Dominican Republic are motivated by work, because 80 % of them are between 15 and 45 years old.

He specified that those who are under the age of 15 represent 7.2 %, while those who are 65 years or older make up only 2.7 %. This is sign which proves that these immigrants are pursuing work in the Dominican Republic.

Haitians are still very represented in the Dominican employment market. Three quarters of them (76,4 %) occupy the following three business sectors: 33.8 % in the farming sector, 26.3 % in construction and 16.3 % in business.

Dominicans are currently doing everything they can to stop the number of immigrants entering their country, particularly Haitian. In 2017, the number of immigrants reached the figure of 847,979 people, that is 8.3 % of the total population of the country. Last February, Dominican authorities strengthened their border following declarations made by Danilo Medin to the bicameral Congress.

Clairin, the Haitian spirit that’s going to get a lot of Americans drunk this summer

This coming summer promises to be the one when Clairin, a spirit from Haiti, finally makes its way onto cocktail menus in the cool parts of the United States. Bottles from Maison Velier, with their colorful labels, have been popping up in bartender Instagram feeds and on the shelves at little liquor shops for a few months now, which means you’ll be able to order some for your imminent summer parties. If you like clearly defined trends, you could say that it’s perfectly poised to take on mezcal’s mantle as the hot small-batch spirit, a spot the smoky agave-based go-to has occupied since at least 2012. Which means you should know a little something about it.

Clairin is technically a rhum agricole—made from sugarcane juice rather than molasses—that usually doesn’t make its way into glass, much less stylized exported bottles. The producer behind the three varieties that have made their way to the U.S. market, Velier, has created strict rules around its own production, but that’s not how it’s done in most of Haiti, according to Boukman Rhum ambassador and rum educator Dani DeLuna.

The spirit can be made from either fresh sugarcane juice or sugarcane syrup, which is pressed at a distillery and then fermented for about a week—this can be spontaneous or helped along by the addition of baker’s yeast. That fermented juice is then distilled in a single pass, in what is often a hand-built still. These operations are known as guildives, and it’s said that there are more than 500 of these scattered across the country.

“When you're driving around Haiti, there is sugarcane growing all over the place, the most sugarcane I've ever seen in the Caribbean,” says DeLuna. “From time to time you will see a shack, a stack of sugarcane, and a fire, and you know that's a guildive. Basically everyone makes it, then they put it into plastic jugs and send it off to the market.”

There in Haiti, it’s a subsistence spirit, which is why the bubbling popularity of Clairin abroad could be a major boost to the country’s economy.

“It has the potential to be a promising game-changer in Haiti's export trade if pursued responsibly,” says Garcelle Menos, a longtime bartender and first-generation Haitian-American who got into rums while working at Miss Lily’s 7A in New York’s East Village. For Haitian families, she says, Clairin is an everyday dram her male relatives would sip neat with anise leaves or cinnamon sticks inside the glass.

“I advise folks to enjoy the first sip without a modifier,” says Menos. “You get extremely interesting and unique notes; it's wise to see how your palate responds. One person might get a little more hogo [funk], and someone else might get more grass and green banana.”

But if you want to work this spirit into your cocktail arsenal, rum expert and Brooklyn-based bartender Shannon Mustipher suggests splitting it with other funky rhum agricoles, cachaças, or Jamaican pot-still varieties in classic drinks.

“A daiquiri is a great way to show the Clairin in a more unadorned way and to let the character of the spirit shine through,” she says, “whether you are doing a split or the Clairin on its own.” Mustipher also suggests simply mixing it with tropical juices such as guava, passion fruit, mango, and soursop for an easy beach-style sipper.

As for which bottles to pick up, Velier’s Sajous variety is the all-around suggestion. “It's herbal, bright, and fresh,” says Mustipher. “I find it the easiest to mix.” And if you’re still looking for more, DeLuna says that “Casimir and Vaval are more for those who like truly funky shit.”

How to celebrate Haitian Heritage Month in Miami

JACQUELINE CHARLES

May is all about celebrating Haiti and all things Haitian and in South Florida, there is no shortage of events or parties during Haitian Heritage Month.

From the largest Haitian music festival in the United States, to a celebrity chef cook off, to Haitian film screenings, May is dedicated to showcasing Haitian heritage.

The month kicks off with a free art exhibit at North Miami Public Library and the Little Haiti Book Fair featuring Haitian-American writer Edwidge Danticat and culminates with the Haitian History Bee. In between, there is the biggest Haitian party weekend, organized around Haitian Flag Day (May 18th).

While Catherine Flon sewed the first Haitian flag on May 18, 1803 in the city of Archaie in Haiti’s Artibonite Valley, Haitian music fans will be waving their flags on May 19 at the 20th annual Haitian Compas Festival, which moves to Mana Wynwood, 318 NW 23rd St., this year. And how does it plan to celebrate the milestone? With a Living Legend Award and Hall of Fame Award, of course. The latter celebrates the achievements of 20 of Haiti’s most prominent movers and shakers and influencers – some of whom live in South Florida.

Can’t make Compas Fest? There are lots of parties before and after the show. That includes former Haiti President Michel Martelly, whose alter ego, “Sweet Micky” will be performing during the Sounds of Little Haiti – Haitian Flag Day edition—at 6 p.m., May 18, at the Little Haiti Cultural Complex Courtyard, 212 NE 59th Terr.

Here is a list of things to do for 2018 Haitian Heritage Month:

May 1-31

Lakou Lakay art exhibit at North Miami Public Library, 835 NE 132nd St., North Miami . Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Thursday; 9:30 a.m– 5p.m. Friday and Saturday; Closed Sundays. Free.

May 3

PAAM Free Haitian Heritage Night featuring Akoustik, Nancy St. Leger, NSL Danse Ensemble, Rara Lakay, DJ Whiskey Chick and craft demonstrations. From 5 to 9 p.m. Perez Art Museum, 1103 Biscayne Blvd. To RSVP here.

May 4

The Institute of Contemporary Art Miami present a conversation and book signing with author Françoise Elizée and photographer Pipe Yanguas, on their newly launched book, “Haiti Rediscovered – The Quintessential Potomitan.”6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., the Institute of Contemporary Art Miami, 61 NE 41st St., Miami. Must RSVP Cette adresse e-mail est protégée contre les robots spammeurs. Vous devez activer le JavaScript pour la visualiser.

Forged Path: Culture, History and Freedom gallery opening, 6 p.m., Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr.

Lakou Lakay art exhibit, opening reception, 6 to 9 p.m. North Miami Public Library, 835 NE 132nd St., North Miami. Free

May 5

Little Haiti Book Festival featuring award-winning author Edwidge Danticat, and others from Haiti and the United States. Presented by Sosyete Koukouy & Miami Book Fair/Miami Dade College, 6 to 9 p.m., and 11 a.m. -7 p.m. on May 6 at the Little Haiti Cultural Center Complex, NE Second Avenue and 59th Terr. Free

Little Haiti Beautification Day, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Little Haiti NET, 63O1 N.E. Second Ave., Miami

A celebration of Haitian roots and culture at Zaka Fest 2018, 5 to 11 p.m., Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr., Miami. Call 954-643-2833 for more information.

May 6

Lakou Lakay, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Bayfront Park, 3O1 N. Biscayne Blvd.

May 10

Haitian Heritage Day Celebration, 6 to 8 p.m., Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr.

May 11

Screening of “Kafou,” a dark-comedy with English subtitles directed by Haitian filmmaker Bruno Mourral, 7 p.m. at the Overtown Performing Arts Center, 1074 NW 3rd Ave, Miami, FL 33136. $5 for Overtown residents and $13 for general admission.

Black Lounge Film Series Screening of “Liberty in a Soup” 4-5:30 p.m. at Culmer Overtown Braqnch Library, 350 NW 13th St. Free. RSVP here.

SPICE IT UP! Miami Haitian Heritage Month Celebration “Real Men Cook” 7 p.m. Caribbean Marketplace, 5925 NE Second Ave., Miami. Cost $50. RSVP at 305-492-7868 or EventBrite.

Performance: Jamilah Sabur “Beneath the rivers, there are no borders,” 8 p.m. Little Haiti Cultural Center, 212 NE 59th Terr.

May 12

Tap Tap Unveiling, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Caribbean Marketplace, 5925 NE Second Ave., Miami

May 13

Joël and Mushy Widmaier in concert, 6 to 9 p.m., Amaturo Theater at Broward Performing Arts Center, 201 SW 5th Ave., Fort Lauderdale. Tickets $23.58 – 35.00, available at Ticketmaster or Broward Center.

May 16

Pre-Compas Fest Unplugged, 7 p.m., Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr. Cost $20. Call 855-736-7420 or EventBrite.

May 17

A Conversation With…Diaspora Speaks, Caribbean Marketplace, 5925 NE Second Ave., Miami. Free

Haitian Compas Festival Kickoff Party featuring NuLook, Sweet Micky, T-Vice, Cafe Iguana, 8358 Pines Blvd, Pembroke Pines. Doors open 10 p.m. $40. For more information call 305 945-8814.

May 18

Sounds of Little Haiti – Haitian Flag Day edition — featuring former Haiti President Michel Martelly, aka “Sweet Micky” 6 p. m. Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr., Miami

Youth art competition: Forever 1804, presented by Kultural Kontractors, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Little Haiti Cultural Complex visual arts building, 212 NE 59th Terr., Miami.

Afrikin 2018| art, culture and fashion, 6 to 11:45 p.m., 144O Biscayne Blvd., Miami.

Haitian Compas Festival All Black Affair featuring Nulook, Djakout #1, Harmonik, KAI, and Mikaben, Cafe Iguana, 8358 Pines Blvd, Pembroke Pines. Doors open 10 p.m. $40. For more information call 305 945-8814.

May 19

20th annual Haitian Compas Festival featuring the top bands in Haitian music. Doors open at 4 p.m. Mana Wywood, 318 NW 23rd St., Miami. Cost $40 to $120 for VIP. For a list of parties associated with the event go to www.haitiancompasfestival.com

May 20

Haitian Compas Festival All White Affair After Party featuring Kreyola, Vayb, Djakout #1, Cafe Iguana, 8358 Pines Blvd, Pembroke Pines. Doors open 10 p.m. $40. For more information call 305 945-8814

May 21

Haitian Compas Festival Official After Party featuring Roody Roodboy, 5Lan, Harmonik, Kai, DJ TonyMix, Cafe Iguana, 8358 Pines Blvd, Pembroke Pines. Doors open 10 p.m. Pembroke Pines $40

May 25

Poetic Lakay, 7 to 11 p.m., Caribbean Marketplace, 5925 NE Second Ave., Miami.

Best Nation Ayiti, 9 a.m. to noon. Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr., Miami.

May 26

Anniversary of the official naming of Little Haiti and Caribbean Market Day, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Caribbean Marketplace and Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 5925 NE Second Ave. Miami.

May 28

The Haitian Compas Festival sponsors a Mass in memory of departed Haitian musicians at 11 a.m. at Notre Dame d’Haiti Catholic Church, 110 NE 62nd St. Miami.

May 30

Little Haiti Senior Day, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59th Terr.

May 31

Lakou Lakay: In My Own Backyard – Mother’s Day edition. 11 a.m.- 3 p.m. Free. Bayfront Park, 301 N. Biscayne Blvd.

Haitian History Bee finale, 10 a.m to 1 p.m. Stephen P. Clark, 111 NW First St., Miami.

Jacqueline Charles

Bahamas moving to ban plastics

NASSAU, Bahamas (CMC) — The Bahamas government says it will ban plastics such as shopping bags, food utensils, straws and styrofoam food containers by 2020.

Environment and Housing Minister, Romauld S Ferreira, said his ministry is working to develop a phase-out plan for single-use plastics.

“We will also move to make the release of balloons into the air illegal, as they end up in our oceans, releasing toxins and injuring marine life.

“Additionally, we will become a signatory to the Clean Seas Campaign, which was launched in January 2017 by the United Nations Environment. It aims to increase global awareness of the need to reduce marine litter by engaging governments, the private sector, and the general public,” Ferreira said.

He said that with the assistance of a diverse group of environmental professionals and other stakeholders, including the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, the government will embark on a nation-wide public consultation and educational outreach campaign.

“We will visit communities and schools, hold town hall meetings and meet with businesses to gather valuable data that will assist us in developing a fair and reasonable phase-out plan by 2020 and associated legislation,” he said.

“In the coming weeks we will be reaching out to businesses that have already incorporated sustainable food products within their daily operations. As the Minister of the Environment and Housing, I must commend your efforts to take responsibility for how your business impacts our environment. Thank you.”

Toronto restaurant ordered to pay $10,000 after asking black customers to prepay for their meal

Emile Wickham is seen in downtown Toronto on April 26, 2018, in front of the restaurant where, in 2014, he and three friends were asked to prepay for their meals. Mr. Wickham filed a complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal, alleging the establishment discriminated against his party because they are black.

The Ontario Human Rights Tribunal has ordered a Chinese restaurant in downtown Toronto to pay a black man $10,000 as compensation for a rights violation after it required him and three black companions to prepay for their meals.

In May, 2014, Emile Wickham went to Hong Shing Chinese Restaurant, a popular establishment just east of Toronto’s Chinatown, for a late-night birthday dinner with friends. After the server took their order, he told the group they would need to pay for their meals in full before receiving them, according to testimony Mr. Wickham gave at the April tribunal hearing. They questioned the server, who explained this was restaurant policy, and they obliged.

But Mr. Wickham was unsettled by this. Realizing he and his companions were the only black people in the restaurant, he approached other diners to ask if they’d been required to prepay and all said no.

When the server later returned to the table, Mr. Wickham and his friends questioned him about the policy, and the server admitted they were the only ones who had prepaid. He and another staff member asked Mr. Wickham and his friends if they wanted a refund. The group took their money and left the restaurant.

In her decision, adjudicator Esi Codjoe concluded that restaurant staff had violated section 1 of the province’s human-rights code – which guarantees equal treatment when accessing goods, services and facilities – when they treated Mr. Wickham as “a potential thief in waiting.”

“His mere presence as a Black man in a restaurant was presumed to be sufficient evidence of his presumed propensity to engage in criminal behavior,” she wrote.

Staff from Hong Shing did not attend the tribunal hearing, nor did they send legal representation. But in November, 2015, six months after Mr. Wickham had filed his human-rights complaint, the restaurant submitted a response to the tribunal through a lawyer. In it, they explained the restaurant “attracts something of a transient crowd” and dine and dashes were common, so they adopted a policy requiring customers whom staff did not recognize as regulars to prepay for their food.

Ms. Codjoe rejected this explanation in her decision, saying there was no evidence such a policy existed, that the other patrons that night were regulars or that Mr. Wickham’s party was advised of this policy when they were at the restaurant.

When reached by phone and e-mail following the decision, staff at Hong Shing said they were unfamiliar with the incident and said ownership had changed since it occurred. They did not respond to any further questions.

In a photo taken by the server on the night in question, which was submitted as evidence in the hearing, Mr. Wickham and his three friends are sitting at a table where an unused stack of plates and cutlery are in front of them, along with a tray that holds the cash they just put down for their food. In the background, three other tables can be seen and the patrons appear to be white, South Asian and East Asian.

Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 16 mai 2018

 US may be moving toward an access road to citizenship for Haitians under TPS

GRIND LOUIS AZER CHERY

White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly, gave an interview on "hot" political topics to an NPR (National Radio Public) correspondent.

During the interview, the cancellation of Temporary Protection Status (TPS) for Haiti and countries in Central America, was discussed.

Kelly explained that it would be possible to allow TPS holders to have access to citizenship. "I think that we should gather all beneficiaries of the TPS program who were here during a considerable period of time, and to find a way for them to be on their way to citizenship.” Kelly is referring to the 60,000 Haitians who are on the verge of losing their TPS.

During the conversation, John Kelly also made insensitive declarations regarding immigration, in particular regarding illegal immigrants. For example, he declared that "[…] Migrants are not criminals. But they are not people who easily integrate in the United States, in our modern society."

With regard to these "insensitive" comments, an American newspaper revealed that the democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham published a declaration qualifying Kelly's "sectarian comments" as an insult to the "generations of people who came from foreign countries to contribute to the wealth of our nation."

“It is sad,” she added, “to have to keep reminding the administration that immigrants participated in the construction of this country.”

Let us recall that that in November, 2017, the Department of Homeland confirmed that it was granting a period of 18 months, until July 22nd, 2019 to current TPS recipient from Haiti and El Salvador. This decision was made a few months after John Kelly had declared that "the conditions in Haiti had improved enough for the United States not to extend their temporary status".

Partial transcription of the interview on NPR

Why is Port-au-Prince the dirtiest city in the world?

Loop HAITI

In the 20^th report of the annual investigation by Mercer on quality of life, published in March and surveying 231 countries, Port-au-Prince is number one out of 10 cities that are the least healthy in the world.

The spokesman for the city’s mayor Allwitch Joly, recognized that Haiti’s capital is dirty. He wished to highlight the challenges which city hall faces, in spite of its efforts to fight this situation.

“The management of garbage in the city is not a reflection of City Hall. It is the mission of the Metropolitan Service to Collect Garbage, and unfortunately it is failing,” he said. Although he recognized the lack of means which prohibit the specialized entity from doing its work.

Overpopulation

The massive exodus of the population from provincial towns towards big cities, is one of the big challenges which must be taken into account when speaking about waste management. The metropolitan zone was not designed to receive so many people, continued the mayor’s spokesman.

In addition, the Haitian State does not have a developed plan to receive and manage all of these inhabitants. Yet, "The more people are concentrated within one place, the more waste they will produce."

Educational Problem

The citizens don’t even hide even anymore to throw their trash cans in the streets, especially when it is raining. "Because they know that city hall will come by and collect it,” said Joly. But sometimes, because of the lack of equipment, the garbage stays out for a long time in public before being collected.

Prospective Solutions

In the municipality of Cite Soleil a popular district of Port-au-Prince, is Truitier. This space was used for a long time as place to discharge the Haitian capital’s garbage. But today, Truiter cannot sustain this anymore, said Allwitch Joly.

City Hall is aware of this problem and is willing to act accordingly. It is for that reason that it is working with organizations and other city halls on a project linking local authorities to create a discharge center and transformation of trash. An awareness campaign for young people in schools is also in progress. It aims at getting the youth to become concerned and responsible for their behavior towards their environment. On their end, municipal authorities planned to implement everything possible to strengthen the fleet of vehicles necessary for a timely collection of waste.

Port-au-Prince is not the only place where garbage is accumulating on a daily basis. In Cap-Haïtien for example, the country’s second city, people denounce the filthiness of certain streets.

U.N. criticized for failing on promise to help Haiti cholera victims

BOGOTA (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Haitians battling cholera blamed on United Nations peacekeepers are getting little support with only two percent of promised funds materializing, according to campaigners accusing the global community of again failing the Caribbean nation.

Haiti was free of cholera until 2010 when peacekeepers helping after a devastating earthquake that killed more than 250,000 people accidentally dumped infected sewage into a river.

Since then about 9,750 Haitians have died of the waterborne disease that has infected more than 800,000 people, with the epidemic continuing to affect dozens of people every week.

The United Nations has not accepted legal responsibility for the outbreak but in late 2016 outgoing U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon apologized to Haiti for the organization’s role and announced a $400 million fund to help affected Haitians.

But to date - almost halfway through the fund’s expected three-year term - the U.N. Haiti Cholera Response Multi-Partner Trust Fund has only raised $8.7 million or 2.2 percent of the total - and less than half has been spent, U.N. figures show.

Sienna Merope-Synge, a human rights lawyer at the U.S.-based Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH), said this showed “a failure by the U.N. system to honor that promise”.

“The U.N. promises, in particular to create a package of assistance that would provide redress to victims, (have) not been moved forward,” she said.

The IJDH previously filed a lawsuit against the U.N. on behalf of cholera victims, including a demand for financial compensation, but in 2016 a U.S. federal appeals court upheld the organization’s immunity from damages.

SLOW PROGRESS

The spotlight on the failure to eradicate cholera comes after the United Nations and aid organizations have faced criticism for slow reconstruction efforts in Haiti due to a lack of coordination and bypassing the government and businesses.

The behavior of aid workers in Haiti after the earthquake has also come under scrutiny with Oxfam rocked by allegations that staff, including a former Haiti country director, used prostitutes during the relief mission.

Eight years after the disaster Haiti remains the poorest nation in the western hemisphere. World Bank figures show only one in four rural Haitians has access to a toilet, and less than half to clean water.

Experts said improving the country’s water and sanitation systems is vital to overcome Haiti’s vulnerability to new cholera outbreaks, particularly after hurricanes.

In emailed comments, the U.N. Special Envoy for Haiti, Josette Sheeran, said nearly $700 million had been spent by the U.N. and global community on fighting cholera in Haiti since 2010 but funding for the Multi-Partner Trust Fund was lacking.

The office said Sheeran was working on “new innovative financing mechanisms” to raise funds but gave no details.

“There is still a big funding gap, and we urgently need $80 million to complete the next phase of cholera reduction, and community support,” Sheeran said by email.

Cholera is currently infecting about 74 more people each week although this is down from 18,500 at the outbreak’s peak.

Cholera expert Louise Ivers, executive director of the Centre for Global Health at the Massachusetts General Hospital said it was not enough to say things had improved since 2010.

“This has been one the biggest cholera epidemics in recent history and we are into the eighth year,” said Ivers, a doctor who led cholera response efforts during the outbreak in Haiti as head of mission for medical charity Partners In Health.

“Epidemics go down because people have had the disease, they have some natural immunity now.”

NO COMPENSATION

The U.N. fund envisions a two-track process.

The first track would focus on eradicating cholera and building infrastructure for sanitation an clean water.

The second is described as “a package of material assistance and support to those most affected by the disease” which Ban described as a “concrete expression of the regret of our organization for the suffering so many Haitians have endured”.

But Merope-Synge said so far no one has received any type of financial compensation, and projects to help rebuild affected communities - such as constructing markets and clinics - were virtually non-existent.

Ivers said working out which families could receive support is “daunting” because it is now hard to prove who died of what but that this should not account for the slow progress made.

“What’s happened over the last year is a real reluctance by the U.N. system, including the donor sites, to support direct payment to households,” Merope-Synge said.

“There’s a fear among the donors and within the U.N. system that it could set a precedent, that if the U.N. does something bad in the future it might have to compensate.”

In response to emails from the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the U.N. Office of the Special Envoy for Haiti did not confirm whether the U.N. had provided any direct financial assistance to individual cholera victims or families, or plans to do so.

The U.N. office also did not provide requested details about any development projects that are up and running.

It did say Sheeran and Haitian government officials met some cholera victims in February to discuss proposed pilot projects.

Following consultations with four communities in the central town of Mirebalais, the first set of projects had been chosen, and will start next week, with $1.1 million disbursed, the U.N. office said.

The United Nations did not provide details about what this would entail or look like on the ground but said it planned to carry out similar work in at about 140 more communities.

However Ivers said some Haitians feel they have been excluded from the U.N. consultation process which had led to street protests over the past year.

Merope-Synge said the cholera outbreak had left thousands of families struggling to rebuild their lives with little support.

“Families lost breadwinners that have plunged them further into poverty, people took on debt to buried loved ones. All these very real financial consequences,” she said.

RUN ACROSS HAITI IS IMPROVING LOCAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH RUNNING

23.04.18

WORDSVIVIEN LUK

PHOTOSDUY NGUYEN, PATRICK MOYNAHAN AND KEVIN KIM

I first stumbled on the Run Across Haiti while researching Esther Park, an inspiring American runner that we featured in this piece for International Women's Day.

When I learned that the 2018 edition of Run Across Haiti was only weeks away, I knew we had to cover it on Tempo for a number of reasons.

Luckily, organizer Vivien Luk and photographer Duy Nguyen were on board to share the stories from this amazing adventure.

Enjoy this fantastic piece from Viv and Duy, and be ready to be inspired.

We created the Run Across Haiti in 2015 to show that Haiti is not a place to be feared or to be pitied, and to raise funds to accompany families in Haiti out of poverty through good, dignified jobs. Our organization’s founder along with one of our early supporters ran the Sahara Race of the 4 Desert Series the previous year to raise money for our work. It's a 5-day self-supported 155-mile course. Both of them completed the race with about a toenail left each, and in the end, we raised $55,000 to support the families we serve in Haiti.

The set-up is simple. Runners run across the entire country of Haiti, north to south, coast to coast. Total mileage is about 200 miles (approx. 320km) over 7 days. We do about a marathon a day and a double marathon on the final day, one town to the next.

Each day begins at the hotel or guesthouse we stay at the previous night and ends at the next spot where our team rests. They line up at the starting line at 5am each morning, with the exception of the double marathon, which kicks off at midnight with a 12-hour turnaround from the previous marathon. It’s really an 80-mile finish in 36-hours, but splitting it up sounds slightly more manageable.

This is a run that’s fully supported by a crew of volunteers and staff members. It’s not a race, but an adventure run to gain perspective on a country that not very many people know much about.

We decided not to turn this into a race because we wanted to provide our runners time to take it all in, to let Haiti wash over them. When you see a country on foot, at 5-miles an hour, you gain a whole different perspective than sitting in a caged truck with bodyguards. You get to talk to people and make friends along the way. You see, smell, and hear things that you wouldn’t otherwise. You come up with a whole different set of questions to explore. You build more empathy by getting a little closer to the day to day struggles and milestones.

"You see the good, the ugly, and everything in between. It’s unfiltered.

Our runners get to tell their own stories, share their own versions of Haiti"

Having taken over 600 guests to Haiti, we’ve heard a myriad of questions and viewpoints. Most people know what they know about Haiti through the articles they’ve read. It’s the place that had the disaster. It’s really poor, right? Isn’t it next to the Dominican Republic? If so, why is it so much worse than its neighbour?

We get it. We’ve read these articles as well, but we’ve seen another side of Haiti that we’ve not read much about. It’s a side that involves people we now call friends and family, landscapes that we dream of returning to, miles and miles of glorious fields where people are working to make a living, beautiful mountains beyond mountains, a sunrise that would leave you breathless.

The media feeds us so much on a day to day basis, and this run offers an opportunity for individuals to build their own perspectives about the country we’ve come to love.

Runners have trained for months to get to this day. We’re up at breakfast by 4am, out on the coast by 5am to finally get started on the journey. It’s a rude awakening, a morning of dodging traffic and whatever that comes your way.
A little over 20 miles in you hit your first big mountain, with over 1,500 ft elevation within a few short miles. It’s hot, dusty, and brutal, but it offers some of the best views ever.

"Approximately mile 26-ish I saw many families and many kids. Some of the kids ran up to me and some ran side-by-side to me. All of them had smiles. I immediately felt pure freedom and joy from this as much they did too.

My mantra/fuel for this segment to Plaissance was ‘run freely and live simply’”

JOSEPH KIM

Plaisance is mountain filled with voodoo culture. You’ve hit a certain amount of elevation where it’s misty and foggy until day breaks. You start the day in the dark, running your first 7 miles on more switchbacks until you summit. As your joints and muscles get used to the climb, you get 7 miles of downhill that just feels like a hammer to nail on your entire body. You’re rewarded with a beautiful hotel in Ennery after camping out at a local high school the previous night.

• 1
• 2

This day is mad hot as we move our way out of the mountains and into our first city center. Gonaives is the agricultural capital of the country. You’re greeted by markets big and small, and they’re packed. Large groups of people are seeing foreign runners speed by as they’re selling produce and meat. You’re squeezing between cars and people, some friendly, some not, and you’re also getting the worst of the fumes from cars and trucks. Most people, even seasoned runners, aren’t use to running more than 2 back to back days. Today, the fatigue and the doubts appear.

The Long Day.

Although the same amount of distance as the first day, because you’ve already traversed close to 70 miles, this day feels exceptionally long and impossible. It’s also incredibly flat and straight. The majority of the course is on the major single lane highway that offers little space for running, no shade from the sun, and ends with a 2-mile stretch across the entire town of Saint Marc at the busiest time of the day. It’s brutal.

The day before the holiday! Faces are long on this day. Everyone is hurting and they just want to make it to rest day. They’re focused but tired, and know how much they need to recover to make the final 80 mile run to the finish line. You’re running in parallel to the ocean. It teases you with the most faint sounds of waves as you make your way to it. Despite the location, there are no cool breezes, and those blisters don’t do so well on this day.

Ah, if you’ve made it this far, you do whatever it takes to get to that finish line. We make a trip to our communities, Menelas and Molea, to meet the families we’re running for and help our runners get some much needed inspiration.

Our Haitian crew members show off their homes and introduce their families to the whole team with so much pride, knowing how far they’ve come and how much each year’s run has contributed to their progress.

Runners also get a tour of the country’s largest open landfill, Molea, where 2,000 people live. There, we’ve formed what’s called the First Mile Coalition, an initiative to end undignified child labor. The team takes in the impact that has been made by previous Run Across Haiti teams and learn about the work they get to continue.

The nerves set in, not because there’s 27 miles ahead of everybody, but because there are only 12 hours to rest before the monster day to the finish line. It’s a simple math game. The faster you get to the finish line today, the more time you get to rest. The only thing standing between you and the recover is 27 miles of heat and cars speedy by inches away from you.

This is not a day our runners drop out, this is a victory day where runners are greeted by the families they met the previous day at the finish line and they know they’re so close to completing 200 miles.

The Monster Day. We start at midnight running in pods. It’s pitch black, and putrid smells fill the air as we run through Port-au-Prince. It’s that leftover raw fish in the fish market smell, the end of the day burned garbage smell, the dogs chasing you in the middle of the night, and the stomach being rumbled by nerves kind of run. It’s not fun. Runners drop out early on this night. You get through the first half marathon with your pod and off you go to the final finish line.

The first half of the run is flat. You run to the base of the mountain that takes you over and down to Jacmel. You run up the mountain, 4,500 feet up, 4,500 down. Somewhere along the up, you’re rewarded with the sunrise and songs from small churches. Some parts of the mountain are so steep, the only thing left to do is to slow down and hike. You keep thinking that there’s no way for the roads to go up, but up you go. You review your miles in your head and you can start to see the town of Jacmel, but still, up you go.

Hallucination sets in, you feel like you can no longer stand the pain, and with every muscle and joint aching, you start to run down the mountain. Finally, you made your way down, and there are about a million turns through the town to get to the finish line. A final test of character. You made it, not just with your feet, but with your heart, right into the southern coast of the country.

One of the most frequently asked questions is why would we run so damn far? If we want to just do a run, why not run a 5K, or a 10K, like civilized people do? Truth is, we know it’s crazy, but running a ridiculous amount of miles in a country that’s not known for running gives us a platform to talk about the things we want to talk about, and that’s ending abject poverty.

Doing 200 miles in one go is somewhat symbolic to the work that we do. There are no silver bullets to ending abject poverty. We roll up our sleeves and work together to find resources to solutions that our families spend their day to day thinking about. When we accompany a family, we stick with them until they no longer need us.

"As a runner, you spend a lot of time in your own head. Instead of thinking of the difficulty of running this last day, I found myself thinking of where I had been and what I had accomplished.

I feel very appreciative that I was given a chance to come to Haiti, to raise and donate money, and to be part of something that I think is going to reap a harvest for many people in Haiti"

CAM STAUFFER

Do you have what it takes to run across Haiti? Apply for the 2019 Run Across Haiti here.

Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 23 mai 2018

Can Haiti turn the page from charity to business investment?

A Haitian youth sees his reflection in a broken mirror as he combs his hair in the Jalousie neighborhood of the Petion Ville

Published September 5, 2014 at 6:20 PM

The International Monetary Fund agreed to give Haiti more time to get its fiscal house in order. The Haitian government has until the end of the year to make more reforms. CCTV America’s Mike Walter Reports.

Part of a $268 million payout from the IMF is at stake. That money is just part of the growing investment in Haiti.

After the devastating earthquake in Haiti in January 2010, crime soared, unemployment sky-rocketed, and investment dwindled. In the wake of that earthquake, Haiti was dubbed the “NGO capital of the world.”

The World Bank approved more than $900 million toward Haiti’s recovery and development. To date, a little more than half has actually been delivered. The big challenge now for Haitian leaders has been turning the page from charity to business investment.

The Haiti Renewal Alliance is a non-profit organization, on the front lines of creating jobs and building the Haitian economy. Its recent expo in Washington, D.C. brought together the brightest minds on Haiti.

One place the Haitian government is looking for investment is with the Haitians living abroad. The so-called Haitian diaspora contributes about two billion dollars annually to the Caribbean island. They also still have little influence on Haitian politics.

The leaders of Haiti’s government, all the way up to the President and Prime Minister, have been meeting with Haitians abroad, including in South Florida. CCTV America’s Nitza Soledad Perez reports.

Saturday, May 19 Rally at White House to Demand Residency for TPS Holders and to Denounce Trump’s Racism

The New York-based 1804 Movement for All Immigrants, in conjunction with groups from Massachusetts, Florida, and Washington, DC, will rally in front of the White House tomorrow to demand permanent residency for the 400,000 immigrants who currently hold Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and that President Donald Trump publicly apologize for calling Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations “shithole countries.”

The rally will be held on Saturday, May 19, 2018 from noon to 4 p.m. in Lafayette Park as well as on Pennsylvania Avenue.

The demonstration comes on the heels of the May 8 Washington Post story that the U.S. embassies in Haiti, El Salvador, and Honduras warned against ending TPS for some 300,000 immigrants from those countries, but then-Secretary of State “Rex Tillerson dismissed the advice and joined other administration officials in pressuring leaders at the Department of Homeland Security to strip the immigrants of their protections.”

The 1804 Movement for All Immigrants was formed by many Haitian grassroots organizations and sympathetic U.S. groups in direct response to President Donald Trump’s provocative statements during a meeting with Congressional leaders on Jan. 11. The Trump administration has also terminated TPS for six of the 10 nations that currently hold it.

The demonstrators will also demand that President Trump stop his warlike policies against Palestine, Venezuela, Iran, and Syria. The coalition calls for U.S. and UN reparations to Haiti, an end to police profiling and terror in the U.S., and the pull-out of the UN occupation forces deployed in Haiti since 2004.

“There has not yet been a major demonstration in Washington, DC to denounce Trump’s gutting of TPS as a part of his campaign to stop and expel black and brown immigrants from coming to the U.S.,” said unionist and teacher Marie Paule Florestal, one of the key organizers of the May 19 rally. “We are going to fill Lafayette Park and Pennsylvania Avenue with our banners, placards, and voices to tell Trump and the world’s media that his racist policies will no longer be tolerated. Our Haitian ancestors defeated Napoleon Bonaparte when he tried to reestablish slavery in Haiti. Today, we will stop Trump from turning back the clock to the days of Jim Crow, lynchings, and immigrant demonization.”

In November, Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) introduced the American Promise Act of 2017, to allow TPS holders, or those with deferred enforced departure (DED), to apply for permanent residency, if they do so within three years of enactment of the bill.

Trump says some unauthorized immigrants 'aren't people' but 'animals' who will be rapidly kicked out of the US

AOL - President Donald Trump on Wednesday (May 16) said some undocumented immigrants "aren't people" but "animals" who will be taken out of the country "at a rate that’s never happened before."

"We have people coming into the country, or trying to come in, we’re stopping a lot of them, but we’re taking people out of the country, you wouldn’t believe how bad these people are," Trump said during a meeting with California lawmakers and officials who oppose their state's policies on sanctuary cities. 

"These aren’t people. These are animals, and we’re taking them out of the country at a rate that’s never happened before," Trump added. 

Trump, who has long condemned sanctuary cities, also said the US has the "the dumbest laws on immigration in the world."

The president's comments reportedly came in response to a California official's remarks on MS-13 gang members. 

Trump has previously referred to unauthorized immigrants involved in gang activities as "animals." He also famously launched his presidential campaign with a speech in which he said Mexico was sending "rapists," criminals and drug dealers across the border. 

The president's rhetoric on immigration has been widely condemned, but his hardline stance on the issue has also generated a significant amount of support for him in various parts of the country. 

Deporting 300,000 TPS recipients will devastate Haiti and Central American countries

BY ANDRÉS OPPENHEIMER

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May 09, 2018 05:51 PM

Updated May 10, 2018 09:15 AM

President Trump’s decision in recent months to deport more than 300,000 Central American and Caribbean immigrants will create havoc in some of Latin America’s most troubled countries, such as El Salvador, Honduras and Haiti.

It’s a short-sighted policy that — alongside Trump’s shameful campaign to deport about 700,000 “DREAMers,” young people brought to the country as children by undocumented parents — almost surely will backfire. A destabilized Central America and Haiti will only produce more illegal immigration, drug trafficking and greater violence in the region.

Even Trump’s own State Department officials have warned against the president’s moves to deport more than 57,000 Hondurans, 195,000 Salvadorans and 46,000 Haitians who enjoyed Temporary Protection Status, or TPS, according to State Department cables first disclosed by The Washington Post this week.

Many of these TPS recipients have been living in this country and paying taxes for two decades, and have more than 270,000 U.S.-born children. They will now be separated from their children and forced to return to their native countries within the next 18 months.

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-New Jersey, whose office disclosed the existence of the State Department cables, told me via e-mail that Trump’s decision to deport TPS recipients “runs counter our national security.” It will exacerbate these countries’ security and economic challenges, he said.

Manuel Orozco, a migration expert with the Washington D.C.-based Inter-American Dialogue, told me in a telephone interview from El Salvador that, “The return of these people to Central America and Haiti would have a devastating impact.”

These impoverished and violence-ridden countries cannot absorb the current number of youths who enter their labor markets every year. According to Orozco’s estimates, El Salvador and Honduras together create jobs for only about 10 percent of the 120,000 youths who join the labor force every year.

Play Video

“Imagine what will happen if they now get tens of thousands of deportees. It will be an atomic bomb,” Orozco said.

El Salvador, Honduras and Haiti also depend heavily on remittances from their relatives in the United States. Even if the Trump administration can’t enforce all planned deportations, a decrease of remittances would badly hurt these countries’ economies.

Why is the president deporting hundreds of thousands of mostly law-abiding immigrants at a time when the U.S. economy is doing great, unemployment is at its lowest level in recent years and illegal immigration is at near historic lows?

The answer is simple: It’s vintage Trump populism. Much like Trump’s vow to build a wall on the border, it’s a measure aimed at pleasing his xenophobic — if not racist — base.

Trump is deceiving the world by saying — contrary to official U.S. government statistics — that there is an avalanche of illegal immigrants and that the U.S. border is out of control. That’s blatantly deceptive.

While there has been an increase in illegal migration over the past few months, the flow of undocumented immigrants to the United States is a very small fraction of what it was decades ago.

Apprehensions of undocumented immigrants along the Mexico border last year totaled 310,000, compared to 416,000 in 2016, 876,000 in 2007, and 1.7 million in 2000, according to U.S. Border Patrol statistics.

Sending hundreds of thousands of deportees to Central America and Haiti will only make things worse.

Instead of destabilizing America’s neighbors with phony claims of a threat of an “invasion” of illegal immigrants, the Trump administration should seek to expand free trade and investment agreements with Central America and Haiti, to promote economic development in the region. That would help these countries’ economies grow, reduce poverty and violence, and diminish pressure on their people to migrate.

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But Trump is not concerned with the long-term impact of his policies, even when his own State Department experts tell him they will hurt U.S. national security. Like all populists, he takes the short-term view, seeking quick applause from his Latino-phobic followers. It’s a mistake that will haunt America for many years.

WATCH THE “OPPENHEIMER PRESENTA” TV SHOW SUNDAYS AT 8 P.M. ON CNN EN ESPAÑOL. TWITTER:@OPPENHEIMERA

Haitian Entrepreneurs: Apply Now

to Participate in the Haiti Tech Summit

May 15, 2018

(Port-au-Prince) The United States Embassy in Haiti announces its sponsorship of the 2018 Haiti Tech Summit, June 21 – 23, 2018.  Haitian entrepreneurs interested in learning how to incorporate technology into their business model and marketing strategies are encouraged to apply now through May 30, 2018 atgoo.gl/KBW7Xh. As part of the Embassy’s on-going efforts to promote entrepreneurship and bi-lateral economic growth, the Embassy is seeking representation from creators and innovators across Haiti’s ten departments to participate.

Participants will be able to meet over one hundred speakers from Google, Airbnb, LinkedIn, Uber, and many others.  The Haiti Tech Summit is part of a thirteen-year initiative of the Global Startup Ecosystem. The goal of the Summit is to help entrepreneurs in Haiti catalyze innovation in their communities and in their country.

In April 2018, the U.S. Embassy hosted #TechCampOkay, bringing together over 30 entrepreneurs from the Grand d’Anse and Southern Departments with local leaders and experts from the diaspora, IDEO, and U.S. Embassy exchange program alumni.  The Embassy regularly engages the regional Chambers of Commerce as well as the American Chamber of Commerce in pursuit of this key priority.

His songs got him banned from carnival. Now Haiti's ex-president isn't welcome in Miami

BY JACQUELINE CHARLES

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May 17, 2018 06:47 PM

Updated 6 hours 18 minutes ago 

At Miami's Haitian Flag Day celebration on Friday, Haitian rights activists plan to protest a planned performance by Sweet Micky, the stage name of former Haitian president Michel Martelly, whose controversial lyrics got him banned from two Haiti carnivals earlier this year. 

The event is supposed to be a celebration of Haitian culture and the sewing together of the first flag on May 18, 1803. Martelly was invited to play for Sounds of Little Haiti, a free Haitian musical showcase that happens to fall on this Haitian Flag Day. 

The event is being organized by the Little Haiti Cultural Complex, 212 NE 59 Ter., and Sandy Dorsainvil, its former director who now runs a consulting firm. In a press release advertising Martelly's appearance, organizers said the "Haiti pop icon" will be there "to perform his most electrifying hits."

"We don't want him in Little Haiti," said Marleine Bastien, executive director of the Haitian rights advocacy group, Family Action Network Movement, or FANM.

In an open letter to Mayor Francis Suarez, activists say the Haitian American community is “outraged that city resources are being used to host a performance by Martelly. 

"President Martelly’s actions during his five years in office (2010-2015) brought disrepute to the office of president and inflicted lasting harm to the dignity of Haitians in Haiti and in Miami," read the letter posted on Facebook. "He is not an appropriate representative of Haitian culture and is a poor model for our youth."

Among their complaints, the former president's reputation for "degenerating" women, and accusations of corruption and the jailing of political opponents that surrounded his presidency. 

Martelly has denied the allegations against him. And earlier this year, he lashed out at critics in a new Carnival tune. He had been banned from carnivals in the cities of Gonaives and Jacmel after women's groups and other organizations protested.

Dorsainvil, who invited Martelly, defended the invitation in an emailed response to the Miami Herald.

"I respect what people might feel about his political platform as president. However, Sweet Micky is one of the most popular bands in the Haitian music industry and the night is an opportunity to celebrate that music during Haitian heritage month," she said.

Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 3 juin 2018

 Jovenel Moïse travels to submit his priorities to Taiwan

The president of the Republic flew to Taiwan last Saturday. The national palace has communicated too much or too little about what is taking Jovenel Moïse to Taiwan. However, a close advisor to the Head of State confided to the Nouvelliste that Jovenel Moïse is going to discuss the government’s seven priorities with the Taiwanese authorities.

Building infrastructures for energy, road and ports; increasing agricultural production and improving the environment; strengthening the hydraulic and sanitation infrastructures; reforming the state and maintaining political and social stability; transforming Haiti into a destination for investments; improving the infrastructure and quality of the education and promoting stability through social projects. These are the 7 priority axes of the government, which the Head of State was to address with the Taiwanese authorities.

The municipal order forbidding the casting of garbage on public roads or in public spaces takes effect

The municipal order forbidding people or businesses from piling waste on public roads or public places took effect last Thursday. The mayor of Port-au-Prince, Ralph Youri Chevry, accompanied with a representative of the government commissioner and Berson Soljour de la DDO, made the announcement.

To address the lack of sanitation problem in the Haitian capital, Youri Chevry informed that his municipality has the capacity to collect garbage which sprinkle in the various streets of the capital. The mayor informed that he has a fleet of 18 garbage trucks ready to clean up the capital and improve its image.

Agricultural plantations of the Artibonite, invaded by a colony of rats

Agricultural plantations in the Artibonite have been invaded by a colony of rats, indicated the president of the national Network of the agronomists (Réna), Pierre Michel Clercidor, to the media.

Réna, which is very concerned, pressed the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development (MARNDR) to undertake a pest control campaign in the Artibonite Valley.

The organization is asking authorities to carry out an investigation on this case.

When reached by telephone by AlterPresse, the Mayor of the municipality of Desdunes, Ernst Saint Phard, criticized government authorities for not having done anything yet to help the growers and the farmers facing this situation.

The population is also awaiting an intervention by the Organization of Development of the Valley of Artibonite (ODVA), informed the Mayor. He added that there is already a deficiency of rice in the zone where several rice fields of rice are under water.

Brazil rescues African and Guyanese migrants drifting at sea

SUNDAY MAY 20 2018

AFP - Brazilian fishermen rescued two dozen migrants from Africa and Guyana found drifting near the northeast coast of Brazil after 35 days at sea, officials and local media said Sunday.

The migrants came from the small South American country of Guyana and from Nigeria and Senegal on the other side of the Atlantic, the human rights department for Brazil's state of Maranhao said in a statement.

There were 25 migrants — all men — on the boat and two Brazilians, the navy said in a statement.

The Brazilian pair were suspected of being people traffickers, O Imparcial and G1 news sites reported. They had reportedly spent 35 days afloat but there was no immediate indication of what route they had taken.

A Haitian flag

The boat, a catamaran, was carrying a Haitian flag, the navy said.

On Saturday, local fishermen found the vessel drifting off the Brazilian coastal town of Sao Jose de Ribamar, south of the Amazon river, the navy said.

An attempt by the authorities to locate the migrant boat from the air failed, so the fishermen towed it to port, while also feeding the stranded voyagers, the navy said.

By the time they got in, the fishing captain reported he had "no more food and water to give, because provisions were ending," the navy said.

Legal situation

Once ashore, they were "given medical attention and food," before being taken for processing by the Brazilian federal police, the Maranhao human rights department said.

"The group will be put into temporary housing provided by the state," it said.

"The federal police will investigate the possible committing of crimes against the foreigners in relation to their arrival in Brazil and evaluate their legal situation in Brazil."

A Haitian Student Wins an Inter-Scholar Chess Championship in San Antonio, Chile

His name is Evenson Olitus and he is 13-year-old. He was the winner in the Basic Education category within the framework of the inter-scholar chess championship organized by the Puerto Institute of San Antonio, Chile, where five schools participated.

Evenson Olitus who attends eighth grade in the municipal school of Villa Las Dunas, brought pride to his school by taking it to the top. “It is a big success, because he demonstrates our work of integration. We also see how he has huge potential,” declared of his teachers.

Haiti-politics: organizations demand the departure of the Head of State, during a sit-in against the rise in prices of the fuel

Popular and labor-union organizations held a sit-in, on Friday, May 25th, 2018, in front of several of the country’s public institution to protest against the increase in prices of the fuel the pump, announced, by the government, for the next month, observes the on-line agency AlterPresse.

Gathered in front of Ministries of the Economy and Finance, Social Affairs and Labor as well as Justice and Law and Order, protesters asked for the departure of President Jovenel Moïse, who refuses to back down.

This battle consists not only in putting obstacle against the price increase of petroleum products, but also to force the Head of State to step down underlined the General Secretary of the Movement of Freedom, Equality of Haitians for the brotherhood (Moleghaf), Oxygenate David.

The demonstrators were very critical of the president and of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

This rise in fuel prices follows upon the approval, in February, 2018, by the Haitian government of the new program ("Staff-monitored Program") of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

This new program plans the elimination of the subsidy of petroleum products and electricity.

During the sit-in, messages on signs demanded a 1,000-gourd minimum wage (Editor's note: US 1.00 = 68.00 gourds, 1 euro = 85.00 gourds; 1 Dominican Republic peso = 1.60 gourd today), the non-privatization of the public institutions and the arrest of those who squandered the PetroCaribe funds.

Inoccupation of the country, the justice and the reparation for the victims of cholera, the social support and social housing for the most disadvantaged, are also among social demands of the protesters.

The Queen of Spain is going to build a hospital in DR for Haitians

The Queen of Spain, Laeticia Ortiz, who was on visit to the island at the beginning of last week promised to build a dermatological hospital in Jimani to receive mainly Haitian patients.

It is the Director of the Dermatological Institute of Barahona, Huberto Bogaert and that of skin surgery of the skin, Polybio Batista Matos who communicated the news in a radio program.

The queen made the decision to build this hospital during a meeting with nine organizations financed by the Spanish Agency of international cooperation for the development ( AECID) to discuss diverse projects.

After her visit, the queen praised the virtues of the Spanish cooperation in Haiti and in Dominican Republic.

According to her, her fellow countrymen can be "proud of their professionalism ".

Laetizia Ortiz was on visit on the island with the aim of getting acquainted with the projects developed in both countries by the Spanish cooperation in domains such as the gender equality, democratic governance and rural development.

Commentary: The queen should be informed, that the hospital will be for the Dominican Republic and the Dominicans.

In Miami's Little Haiti, one of the largest waves of evictions is currently underway

PRI's The World

May 23, 2018 · 3:30 PM EDT

By Nadege Green

Rollin Virgile walks through his store amid dozens of weddings dresses, white floral crowns, men’s tuxedo vests and baptism gowns. He greets customers in Creole: "Bonswa, koman nou ye?" (Good afternoon, how are you all?) Virgile has been in the same location, at Northeast 82nd street and Second Avenue — the heart of Miami's Little Haiti neighborhood — for 32 years. His store, Virgile's Tuxedo & Formal Wear, is a go-to for Miami's Haitian community, where customers can rent a tuxedo, robe bridesmaids or find first communion accoutrements.

But now the store must move. The commercial building and another across the street were recently sold to developer Thomas Conway, who also owns a nearby food hall and a co-working space. Conway has asked most of the businesses, nearly a dozen, to move so that he can transform the two strip malls. The business owners said Conway has given them about 30 days to leave.

On a recent afternoon, Virgile shared the news with customer Daniella Eugene, who drove up from Key West to show here.

“There’s a new owner,” he said. “And they want us out. It’s a shock to us all.”

Little Haiti, a once predominantly Haitian enclave, has seen a burst of new development and interest from real estate investors and developers because of its central location in Miami. New projects are underway in the neighborhood, rent prices are soaring and Haitian business owners, such as those in the two buildings Conway plans to rehab, said that they are being pushed out. Some residents also believe that the threat of climate change is a factor as well.

Conway did not respond to several requests for comment.

Many of the businesses were operating with month-to-month leases and, in Florida, a landlord is allowed to give a 15-day notice to terminate a lease.

Pierre-Richard Maximilien, who runs a travel agency in one of the complexes, said he wrote Conway a rent check, only to have it returned a few days later with no explanation. Then he got court papers saying he was facing eviction for not paying rent. “He’s just killing the Haitian businesses and what we’re doing for the community because we’re serving the community,” said Maximilien, who has been renting his space for nine years.

Maximilien said he asked Conway about returning after the mall rehab is complete and was told his rent would increase significantly. "I said, 'How much higher?' He couldn't tell me exactly."

Jorge Isaac, an attorney representing Conway, said his client denies claims that he did not accept rent payments from the tenants.

Several other business owners at the complex raised the same issue at a press conference in April, where they denounced one of the largest evictions of Haitian-owned businesses in Little Haiti.

One of the signs in Creole read: "We want to pay. Thomas Conway doesn't want to collect."

“To me, this is gentrification at its worst right now,” said Cartine Vilson, a community organizer with Family Action Network Movement, a nonprofit that works with Haitian businesses and homeowners in the area.

Vilson said Miami must decide how to save small businesses from commercial gentrification to preserve neighborhood identity and the financial livelihood of business owners who invested in communities before they became trendy. “Do we count or do we not count?” she asked at the press conference. “We count and we need to be heard. We matter.”

Some of the business owners said that they are struggling to find new commercial space to relocate.

Marie-Janine Desir owns a variety store that sells clothes, lotion, pots and produce. "I can't find anything in this area," said Desir, who lives in Little Haiti and doesn't have a car. She said that she walks to work; at lunch she leaves to check on her disabled daughter, who is in the care of an in-home nurse. She said if she doesn't find a place to rent she'll have to put her inventory in storage. "That will kill my business," she said. "I won't be making any money. How am I supposed to live?"

Virgile, the tuxedo and formal wear store owner, said it is heartbreaking to leave Little Haiti, the only place he has worked for 32 years. The most affordable space he could find was in North Miami, about 15 minutes away. He expects to lose some of his customer base in the move, he said.

“It’s a lot to deal with as a business owner, but I have to pack up and go,” said Virgile. “I won’t be in Little Haiti anymore.”

This piece originally appeared on WLRN.

FANM AYISYEN NAN MIAMI

As we commemorate the second year of the official recognition of Little Haiti, we invite local governments to work with community based organizations and concerned citizens to empower Little Haiti to become a sustainable and thriving community. Thus, @FANMORG recommends the following:

• • Award no new SAPs (Special Area Plan) until there is a comprehensive plan against displacement in Little Haiti.
• • Identify and secure commercial spaces for Little Haiti businesses that are being displaced.
• • Craft an Economic Development Plan for Little Haiti.
• • Develop a robust program to help low income and elderly home owners to get their homes up to code and reduce the risk of foreclosures.
• • Allocate resources from the Miami $100 million fund to develop and built affordable housing.
• • Insure that Little Haiti is designated as a Qualified Opportunity Zone and be included in any empowerment and enterprise initiatives.
• • Support FANM’s efforts to make Little Haiti 100 percent resilient.

#LittleHaitiisnotforsale #LittleHaiti