Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 27 aout 2019

 HATIANS WILL NO LONGER NEED A VISA TO TRAVEL TO RUSSIA

August 24, 2019. - The Haitian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edmond Bocchit, announced, in the newspaper Le Nouvelliste, that soon Haitians will be able to go to Russia without needing a visa and it will be the same for Russians wishing to visit Haiti. Minister Edmond Bocchit made these statements after meeting with the Russian Ambassador, Vladimir Fedorovich Zaemsky, accredited in Haiti and whose residence is in Caracas (Venezuela).

LACK OF FUEL

August 23, 2019. - For nearly two weeks, there has been a shortage of fuel in the Nippes Department, particularly in the municipality of Miragoâne, where the few service stations that have fuel are not ready to serve customers. Motorbike taxi drivers quickly adjusted the price of their fare, due to the scarcity of gasoline seen through service stations.

A YOUNG ARTIST CHARTS THE JOURNEY FROM HAITI TO HOOD

By Doreen St Félix in The New Yorker

Daveed Baptiste’s mother could not secure the proper paperwork allowing her to travel from Haiti to America, so she made the painful but not uncommon decision to send her three children without her.

But, in his self-directed maturation, distanced from the choke of tradition that parents pass down, Baptiste loosened himself from the mantra placed on Haitian children, the three Ls: lekol, legliz, lakay. School, church, home. His mind wandered to New York City and its downtown saints. He watched “Paris Is Burning,” and documentaries on Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat, who himself was born to a Haitian father. He grew infatuated with Destiny’s Child. His brother loved 50 Cent. “You’re thrown into the American version of blackness,” Baptiste told me recently, over the phone. “You learn to be a Negro.”

“Haiti to Hood” is a theatrical series, focussed on the nostalgic power of materials. And the nostalgia is not simply personal; Baptiste’s models appear in two sets, a living room and a bedroom, which are cluttered with objects that symbolize the activity of surviving under empire. “Before my father had dipped out on us,” he told me, “we spent a lot of time indoors, inside the house. I was trapped in the crib.” Baptiste loves spending time in the homes of other people, intuiting their personalities not only from the objects accrued but from their juxtaposition. He thinks about the politics of food, how one’s tastes convey class, and culture—for Haitian families, jugs of Tampico juice and bags of Madame Gougousse rice. He also thinks about cultural consumption; on the puckered walls of his bedroom scenes are posters advertising “Grand Theft Auto,” barbershop cuts, Pokéman cards, and sneaker colorways. Above a table, a photograph of John F. Kennedy smiles, and Destiny’s Child poses.

The photographs, at first glance, seem like they could be documentary. In fact, they are heavily constructed. Baptiste is a tinkerer of surfaces. “Haiti to Hood” was shot in his studio at Parsons, where he is studying fashion design. According to his artist’s statement, he used textiles such as “denim, wool, and cotton satins to make furniture slipcovers, floor textures, and table cloths,” giving the photos a dimension of tactile trompe-l’oeil. The walls are made of dyed felt; he digitally rendered patterns and printed them on fabrics that are fashioned to look like curtains and sheets. “Nothing is thrown away, everything is used until it breaks,” he told me, referencing the duct-taped chairs in his living-room still-lifes.

What excites me about Baptiste is his prismatic approach to disciplines, his cyclical twining of the mediums of photography, direction, and fashion design. When we spoke on the phone, he was in Turkey, attending a three-week residency. He was spending eight hours in a factory learning about denim production. He worried that if we got into the bloodied history of cotton and indigo production, he would keep me on the phone too long. In truth, I could have talked to him for hours.

Haitians seek to ban ‘Sweet Micky’ from appearing at New York’s West Indian Day Parade

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AUGUST 22, 2019 07:06 PM, UPDATED AUGUST 23, 2019 07:24 PM

• It is where Caribbean culture and celebration intersect with American life.
• Every Labor Day, hundreds of thousands of revelers, carrying their nations’ flags, crowd New York City’s Eastern Parkway for theWest Indian Day Parade, dancing to the beat of steel drums and carnival rhythms behind extravagant floats and elaborate foot bands adorned in colorful sequined costumes, feathers and masks. 
• But this year, there is one carnival performer some Haitian Americans don’t want to see: former Haiti president Michel Martelly, also known as “Sweet Micky,” the name for his anti-establishment, raucous alter-ego stage performer.

• In an open letter to Democratic presidential hopeful and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Haitian activists and organizations are asking that Martelly be banned from participating in all activities surrounding this year’s West Indian Day Parade. As New Yorkers, they say, they should not be subjected to the former president’s foul-mouthed incendiary speech and misogynistic performance antics that include attacks on women, and his political enemies and critics.
• “His presence at the West Indian Parade is dangerous for women and goes against the values that make New York City a good place to live,” the signers of the letter, written in English and French, said. “In the era of #MeToo, the participation of Michel Martelly in activities that celebrate diversity in a city that values gender equality and mutual respect appears indecent and incoherent.”

This is not the first time that Martelly, who served as president of Haiti from 2011-16, has faced opposition to his controversial performances. 

Last year, two major Haitian cities banned him from their pre-Ash Wednesday Carnival celebrations after women’s groups, religious leaders and human rights activists protested his appearance following an unfiltered, foul-mouthed rant against his critics at a January concert in Port-au-Prince.

Then earlier this year, Haitian Quebecers in Canada, citing misogynistic statements and alleged complicity in the corruption scandal surrounding his presidency, launched a similar protest. They wrote to both Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante asking that Martelly be blocked from performing in Montreal.

Three days before the scheduled March 22 concert, Martelly released a video on social media saying that his performance had to be canceled due to two of his musicians facing visa problems. 

The most recent protest against Martelly’s “Sweet Micky” alter ego comes as Haitians in New York are increasingly flexing their political muscle and winning public offices, and as the ex-president’s own popularity appears to be waning. 

Martelly’s concerts and appearances, which once attracted crowds, are receiving a lukewarm reception in some quarters as Haitians everywhere grow increasingly frustrated and exhausted with their country’s dismal reality: no working government, increased gang violence, fuel shortages, soaring food prices, 18 percent inflation and a rapidly deteriorating domestic currency, to name a few. 

At the center of the blame in the growing socioeconomic and political crisis is Martelly’s hand-picked successor, President Jovenel Moïse. An inexperienced politician who had never held public office, Moïse survived an impeachment vote on Thursday by the Lower Chamber of Deputies, 53-3 againstimpeachment. 

But the victory could well be short-lived, as political allies in the upper Chamber of the Senate line up to sink his latest choice for prime minister — the fourth in three years — amid continued calls for his resignation. Anti-corruption activists and political opponents accuse Moïse of not governing and have cited a government audit implicating him in the Venezuelan aid corruption scandal surrounding Martelly’s administration.

Haiti President Michel Martelly, also known as 'Sweet Micky,' entertaining a U.N. delegation from the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) last May at Brasserie Quartier Latin in, Pétionville. 

By 

Though Martelly holds no official post in Moïse’s administration, some politicians and foreign diplomats say he still wields considerable power and influence, like deciding who should occupy what ministries in future governments. There is also belief that he is mounting his own presidential bid.

Martelly, who performed on Wednesday in Trinidad at the Caribbean Festival of Arts, CARIFESTA, could not be reached for comment. But on stage and in interviews, he has told critics to keep their hands off “Sweet Micky.” He’s always sought to separate his controversial, gyrating stage persona from the politician, dismissing his antics as being done in good humor. 

But Garry Pierre-Pierre, founder and former publisher of the New York-based Haitian Times, said that while some Haitians may still buy that argument, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to make that distinction given Sweet Micky’s lascivious public rants against enemies and recent music like his Carnival méringue “Ba’ l Bannann Nan” (Give her the Banana) deriding renowned Haiti journalist Liliane Pierre-Paul.

In the open letter to de Blasio copied to other New York politicians, the song’s lyrics are described this way: “This carnivalesque merengue presented the President as a doctor who called his audience to insert various objects in the private parts of Liliane Pierre-Paul.”

A critic of Martelly during his presidency, Pierre-Paul is a 1990 recipient of the International Women’s Media Foundation’s Courage Award in Journalism who is credited with helping champion press freedom in Haiti. During the Duvalier dictatorship, she was arrested, tortured and forced into exile. 

Attacking Pierre-Paul isn’t his only fault, the letter says. During Martelly’s appearance at the West Indian Day Parade last year he lashed out at a reveler who inquired about the squandering of billions of dollars in the Venezuelan aid corruption scandal overshadowing his administration and PHTK political party. He told the reveler that he had hid the money in the private parts of the reveler’s wife.

“It’s getting to the point where people are tired,” said Pierre-Pierre, citing other examples of Sweet Micky’s vulgarity. “It’s unbecoming of an ex-president. You would think that would command a certain level of responsibility and respect. But for him it’s the opposite.”

In a letter signed by the president of the West Indian American Day Carnival Association, and shared with the Miami Herald, association president Jean Joseph confirmed that registration had closed for participants. There are only four Haitian groups that are registered: T-Vice, Tony Mix, Kreyòl La and Banboche, a costumed band.

Edens Desbas, one of the signers of the open letter to de Blasio, said they needed stronger guarantees about the parade, which celebrates 52 years this year. Citing Martelly’s penchant for jumping on stage to join the party even when not on the billing, Desbas said they want de Blasio to “give an executive order to the police to prevent him from going on any of the floats.”

So far, no word from de Blasio, who himself has paraded down the parkway, albeit not in costume. His office did not respond for comment.

Miami Herald - Jacqueline Charles has reported on Haiti and the English-speaking Caribbean for the Miami Herald for over a decade. A Pulitzer Prize finalist for her coverage of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, she was awarded a 2018 Maria Moors Cabot Prize — the most prestigious award for coverage of the Americas.

First black woman nominated to be Marine brigadier general

By Sophie Tatum, CNN

Washington (CNN) Marine Corps Col. Lorna Mahlock has been nominated to serve as the first black female brigadier general, the Marine Corps media office said.

Mahlock was nominated by President Donald Trump, and Defense Secretary James Mattis announced the nomination on Tuesday.

According to his announcement, Mahlock is currently the deputy director of the Operations, Plans, Policies, and Operations Directorate at the Marine Corps headquarters in Washington. Her nomination was one of several by the President that Mattis announced Tuesday.

Last year, an infantry battalion at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina received the first female infantry Marines, who were set to serve in the 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, with specializations as rifleman, machine gun and mortar, 1st Lt. John McCombs, a Marines spokesman, said at the time.

Scientist who called out Bolsonaro on Amazon deforestation is fired

(CNN) Brazil has fired the head of a government agency that found a steep rise in deforestation in the Amazon, following a public spat with far-right President Jair Bolsonaro.

Ricardo Galvão, the director of Brazil's National Space and Research Institute (INPE), said he was terminated on Friday after defending satellite data that showed deforestation was 88% higher in June compared to a year ago.

Galvão said in a video statement on Facebook that the agency let him go after a meeting with Brazil's Minister of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications, Marcos Pontes.

He added that the scientific institute would continue to operate and it would now be up to Pontes to decide on his successor. An advisor to Pontes confirmed Galvão's comments to state news agency Agencia Brasil.

Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 4 septembre 2019

 AP Interview: Haitian president pledges to outlast troubles

CHRISTOPHER GILLETTE, Associated Press - President Jovenel Moise speaks during an interview in his office in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haiti's president says he will serve out his term despite rising violence, poor economic performance and months of protests over unresolved allegations of corruption in his predecessor's administration.

President Jovenel Moise pledged in an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday to respect the findings of a commission investigating the corruption allegations.

"It takes a lot of courage to stay in power, but I am pledging to you to have the courage to continue moving forward," Moise said, saying he would resist pressure to resign.

Moise was named in two reports resulting from a corruption investigation by judicial authorities into the spending of funds from Petrocaribe, a Venezuelan government program that provided subsidized oil to Caribbean nations. Protesters have repeatedly taken to the streets in recent months in demonstrations prompted by the findings of widespread fraud in government contracts awarded to contractors to build roads, buildings and administer social programs.

Moise was described as receiving potentially improper payments as a private contractor to build a road in northern Haiti before he became president.

The audits revealed millions of dollars of aid money siphoned off by contractors for shoddy and substandard work, like an overpass built over busy Delmas avenue that cost more than $30 million, but should have cost around $2 million.

Once revealed, the extent of the corruption sparked widespread protests and street violence, and calls for Moise to step down.

Moise has refused to resign, though he promised to criminally charge anyone found by the audit board to have stolen funds from the government.

"Of course we must know the truth and the truth about this investigation must be released. That is very important. The investigation must reveal the truth so that justice can be served and the guilty jailed. Those who misspent the government's money, they should be arrested and locked up," Moise said Wednesday.

The protests, economic downturn and increasing insecurity and gang-related crime have made Moise's political future uncertain despite his determination to stay in power.

Moise said he was not concerned about more allegations of his involvement in potentially improper contracting, saying: "The judicial audit does not involve the executive branch. This is a concern of the judicial branch."

The president insisted that Haiti must move beyond the crisis and let the judicial process play out.

"We must go beyond talking about the survival of the government, because political stability in Haiti is the most important thing for us," he said. "If the opposition wants power they must participate in democratic elections and win the vote of the people."

HAITIAN NATIONAL POLICE

He caught one of Haiti’s most wanted criminals. Now the nation’s top cop is out of a job

A month after arresting one of Haiti’s most wanted gang leaders and exposing a troubling connection between gang leaders and a member of the nation’s parliament, the head of the country’s beleaguered police force is out of a job.

Haiti National Police Director Michel-Ange Gédéon was told on Monday by Haiti President Jovenel Moïse that he would not be staying on, and that his replacement would be announced as early as Tuesday morning.

The president did not say who the next chief would be. But those familiar with the decision said the choices come down to two individuals: Normil Rameau, Gédéon’s one-time No. 2 and former head of Haiti’s Central Directorate of the Judicial Police; and Noel Charles Nazaire, the head of the country’s prison system. Rameau, who is currently assigned to the Haitian embassy in Washington, was told last week by the presidential palace to report to Port-au-Prince.

“Under my tenure, bandits always had to be worried regardless of their political affiliation,” Gédéon, 46, said Monday, summarizing his three years as Haiti’s top cop.

In Haiti, he said, bandits are everywhere — in the city, in the countryside, the slums and the villas — and Haitians must continue to “fight mercilessly against bandits and traffickers of all kinds.”

Gédéon was appointed to the job in 2016 by interim Haiti President Jocelerme Privert and ratified by the Haitian Senate, but his mandate expired last week. Moïse, who has authority under the constitution to appoint the police chief, could have named him to a second term. Some observers in the international community, which funds most of the police force, wanted him to keep Gédéon on the job.

But despite months of lobbying by foreign diplomats in Port-au-Prince for continuity in the 15,937-member police force, Moïse decided to let Gédéon go and appoint his own chief.

The switch in command comes as Haiti continues to undergo a worsening political and economic crisis with no functioning government and Moïse continues to face calls for his resignation from political opponents and anti-corruption grassroots activists. It also comes as the United Nations prepares to permanently end its peacekeeping operation in October after 15 years.

Rebuilding the Haiti National Police and training police officers have been key priorities for the U.N.., which in its most recent report from the secretary-general to the U.N. Security Council warned that “without stronger support from the government and the international community, Haiti’s police force risks losing the gains” in professionalization it has achieved.

Some of those gains, Gédéon said, came under his tenure. He credits his administration with not only making the police more professional, but less political. Among some of the measures carried out under his leadership: adding more women to the force; providing more training opportunities for officers at the Inter-American Defense College in Washington and similar institutions in Chile; and promoting officers to middle management positions.

Another significant achievement, he said, was tackling corruption in the force. Under his leadership, the institution recovered 834 weapons from no-longer-active officers and recuperated thousands of dollars in money that was still being paid to fired or deceased cops.

But that’s not all, said Pierre Esperance, a leading human rights advocate in Haiti, who initially was unsure about Gédéon, the former police chief of west region — which includes Port-au-Prince. Gédéon had been dismissed by former Haitian President Michel Martelly and spent two years on the sidelines before being tapped by Privert.

“Our experience with Gédéon has been nothing but positive. Under him, the police had courage,” Esperance said, referring to two police investigations, one on the November 2018 massacre in the La Saline neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, in which two presidential appointees were implicated, and the other on gang leader Arnel Joseph, which exposed his relationship with Sen. Garcia Delva.

The first police chief to rise through the ranks and not the army, Gédéon is widely respected among officers who view him as an inspiration in a country where former police chiefs usually came out of the military.

Still, he and Moïse have a contentious relationship at best. Supporters of the president often wanted Gédéon to be repressive against protesters, and didn’t like his push back on their attempts to politicize the police. With few resources, he regularly led a force that was ill-equipped to intervene in gang-affected areas, or even regular policing.

“He’s a professional. He always listened to his officers. However, he was working with bare bones. People sometimes commend the job the police are doing but they have no idea under what conditions they do it with,” Esperance said. “Gédéon spent three exceptional years as the head of the police where the executive fought him for no reason. [Gédéon] was loyal to the authorities.”

If there is another trait that Gédéon should be commended for, Esperance said, it’s the fact he “doesn’t do repression against the protesters.”

Still, Gédéon has come under fire as Haiti has witnessed a resurgence in gang activities and insecurity in the past three years. Last July, when protesters shut the country down for three days, many questioned whether Gédéon and the police were up to the task.

“The [HNP] is often singled out for every spurt of acts of banditry because our society is facing a lack of training and information,” Gédéon said Monday. “The police cannot fight disorder alone and can only take social control; other actors and social groups must be involved. Security is a collective job.”

Gédéon leaves the job after his cops made two of the most highly celebrated arrests in recent memory: drug trafficker and rebel leader Guy Philippe, and Joseph, the wanted gang leader.

Philippe, a newly elected Haitian senator at the time of his capture by U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents and Haitian police, was arrested in January 2017, months after Gédéon officially took over. Joseph’s arrest came last month after a manhunt that lasted more than two years.

Joseph’s arrest briefly sparked a campaign among some in the population for a renewal of Gédéon’s term by Moïse.

Frustrated by his inability to control the police, Moïse told an audience in Miami at a public meeting he planned to ask his prime minister to invite him to a gathering of the police council so that he could give directives on security measures. Later his administration told Gédéon that he had to run all administrative changes by the prime minister first.

Parliament member Jerry Tardieu, who introduced a law in 2016 to modernize Haiti’s police force, said if Gédéon and Moïse enjoyed a better relationship the police could have accomplished more.

“If I were the president, I would have rallied him to my side and given him all of the resources he needed,” Tardieu said. “I think his three years were diminished by the fact that the president never trusted him and did not allow him much margin to maneuver. He could have done more, but had to pay a price because of this ongoing suspicion on the part the president.”

Gédéon conceded that the “up-and-down” relationship had “counterproductive consequences for both the security governance and political governance.”

He added that while he has always stressed that the Haiti National Police needs to “remain apolitical and a public service institution,” few people are tolerant of individuals who adhere to this philosophy.

“In a society as polarized and confrontational as Haiti, the desire to have control over the country’s public force, be it the army or the police, has always tried almost every government.”

American Airlines, Spirit reduce service to Haiti just as tourism appears to make comeback

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AUGUST 13, 2019 12:13 PM, UPDATED AUGUST 13, 2019

Year: 2010. Passengers were waiting to depart with bittersweet feelings of returning to a home they may not recognize, and for some, going back to families no longer intact. AA has not been flying to Haiti since the January 12 quake. BY

Travelers bound for Port-au-Prince from Miami will soon face fewer options.

Starting on Aug. 20, American Airlines is once again reducing its direct flights from Miami to Port-au-Prince, cutting the number of daily flights from two to one.

The change is due to American Airlines’ cancellations of about 115 daily flights because of the ongoing grounding of the Boeing 737 Max jets, said American Airlines spokeswoman Martha Pantin.

The reduced Haiti flight schedule is supposed to last until Nov. 2.

Though not the only airline to fly to Haiti — Air France, Delta, JetBlue and Spirit all fly out of the U.S. — American has long been the dominant player in Haiti travel. It has its own second floor departure lounge at the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince and occupies six check-in reservation counters compared to JetBlue’s four.

Spirit Airlines, which flew its last flight from Fort Lauderdale to Cap-Haitien, the country’s second largest city, on June 18, said unrest and operational issues were behind its decision to suspend service. “We have not determined a restart date,” spokesman Derek Dombrowski said.

Haiti’s tourism market has been taking a huge hit since last July. First, mass protests and rioting over a proposed fuel hike led to temporary cancellations of international flights. Then in February, more anti-government protests and a nine-day shutdown of the country led the U.S., Canada and France to all raise their travel warnings. The decision prompted the booking company Expedia to temporarily remove all Haiti flights and hotels from its site.

The reduction in air travel options comes just as Haiti’s tourism market appears to be on the mend. In June, the U.S. State Department reduced its travel warning from Level 4 to 3. And last month, the diaspora, the country’s biggest market, began returning along with its musicians, who launched summer tours with packed street and bikini beach parties, and sold-out concerts.

“The more the Haitian community promotes Haiti or travel to Haiti, the more the airlines are reducing flights, canceling flights or overcharging on tickets to Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haitien airports,” said Wanda Tima, founder of the L’union Suite and the Haitian American, the largest Haitian American social media platforms. “So how are we supposed to boost tourism or vacation home if we keep losing flights and being forced to pay for pricier tickets.”

The only U.S. carrier with daily flights to Port-au-Prince, American competes only with Air France out of Miami. But where AIr France offers only one daily flight out of Miami International Airport to Port-au-Prince, American currently provides two options: 6:01 a.m. and 10:51 a.m.

“The early flight is very popular,” said Joubert Pascal, a former airline employee who works protocol at MIA on behalf of the Haiti consulate in Miami. “Business people can come for the weekend and leave on Monday early enough to get to work.”

Under the reduced schedule, Pantin said the daily flight will depart Miami International Airport at 2:39 p.m. and arrive at Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince at 4:46 p.m. The Miami-bound flight will depart at 5:46 p.m. and arrive at 8 p.m.

Pascal, like others, also raises concerns about the new time change given Haiti’s security issues and the fact that many of the Haiti-bound passengers do not live in Port-au-Prince and have to travel by public bus or car to their final destination. “I’ve spoken to the manager here in Miami about that. They told me the decision was made out of Dallas,” where American is based, Pascal said.

The new time change means some travelers may need to spend the night in Port-au-Prince, or forgo travel on American altogether where ticket prices are already high. Booking eight days ahead, a round-trip ticket for someone looking to travel on Aug. 20 with a return a week later would pay $1,484.

“Where’s the logic here?” said Georges Sassine, head of the Association of Haiti Industries and a frequent traveler from Port-au-Prince to Washington with a stopover in Miami. “All the flights from Haiti are already the highest passenger per mile ticket that we pay.”

“Why is that?” he said, before turning to Haiti’s ongoing political turmoil and lack of a functional government to answer his own question. “There is no one in the government to put their foot down and to say to American either they change course, or we get somebody else.”

This is the second time in a year that American has announced a reduction in its service to Haiti. Last August, American announced that it would no longer fly direct to Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport or New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The decision reduced the number of American Airlines flights to Haiti each day from six to four — with all four, including a daily flight to Cap-Haitien, departing from MIA. The cuts were part of a series of reductions, including the end of service into Scotland’s Glasgow Airport and Mexico’s Puebla International Airport, the U.S. carrier said at the time.

Richard Buteau, owner of the Karibe Hotel in Petionville, Haiti, said the travel warning is affecting the country's tourism industry and is unfair to the Haitian people.

By

Pantin said the latest reduction is part of a number of changes that have come into play at the beginning of August and throughout the fall. For example, there will be changes to Dominican-bound flights, with American reducing its five daily flights to Santo Domingo to four on Oct. 20. Other destinations in the country will also lose a flight each starting on Aug. 19.

The airline is also operating a reduced schedule to Cap-Haitien. Starting Sept. 4, American will operate four flights a week: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Then starting on Nov. 21, it will increase to five weekly with no flights on Wednesdays and Fridays, and will return back to daily service on Dec. 18, Pantin said.

“Changes are made after careful evaluation,” said Pantin, adding that American has been servicing Haiti for more than 45 years and “our goal is to minimize the impact to the smallest number of customers.”

Haiti travelers, however, don’t see it that way. The decision, they say, means that only those with deep pockets or part of American Airlines’ loyalty points program will be able to afford the steep prices that will ensue as a result of too little supply and high demand.

Guy Francois, Haiti’s former minister for Haitians living abroad, said American appears to be handing over the market to JetBlue, which has added flights out of Fort Lauderdale in addition to maintaining direct service from New York and Orlando.

Francois said last month he was forced to fly into Santo Domingo in the neighboring Dominican Republic from Miami aboard American because the airline was charging $1,000 for a one-way fare to Port-au-Prince compared to $199 to Santo Domingo. The Dominican Republic and Haiti both share the same island of Hispaniola.

This week, Francois said, he was faced with a similar dilemma after one-way fares aboard American were between $1,200 and $1,600 because the two daily flights to Port-au-Prince were full.

“They knew demand would be up during the summer and they didn’t add a flight,” he said, noting that two extra flights were added on the Santo Domingo-Miami route.

As for the recent decision, he said, he’s baffled and said it’s not without consequences.

“I don’t see why they are reducing it to one flight,” Francois said “A lot of American Airlines customers have started to fly JetBlue now. They are going to allow JetBlue to take over the market.”

Coast Guard intercepts 146 Haitians at sea. But 90 more made it to the Turks and Caicos

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AUGUST 14, 2019 02:14 PM, UPDATED AUGUST 16, 2019

• Haitian migrants intercepted by the U.S. Coast Guard on the deck of the Cutter William Trump. BY

One Haitian freighter arrived in the Turks and Caicos on Saturday, ferrying at least 26 men and 11 women. Then on Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted another freighter at sea, this time with 146 people on board, including several children.

And on Monday, a third boat made landfall in the Turks and Caicos with 53 migrants aboard.

The unusual surge of 236 migrants coming from Haiti in recent days created enough alarm that the Turks and Caicos minister of immigration is threatening to shut down legal migration from Haiti to his British Overseas Territory.

“Enough is enough,” Immigration Minister Vaden Delroy Williams said Wednesday, noting that it may be time to consider “stopping the first-time work permits for Haitian nationals if this continues.”

“While I understand what’s going on in Haiti and what the Haitian people are experiencing there, we must protect the Turks and Caicos Islands for future generations.”

The territory, located 137 miles from Haiti’s north coast and 372 miles from Miami, has become a popular stepping stone for desperate Haitians trying to flee their nation’s economic and political turmoil. It is also one of the few islands in the Caribbean that offers legal migration from Haiti through a work-permit process.

Williams called on Haitian nationals living in the Turks and Caicos to discourage their families and friends from seeking entry by illegal vessels.

“This process will not work for you,” he said, directing his comments at Haitians illegally migrating. “If this continues, you will never be able to work or live peacefully or to become legal. We will find you, deport you and place you on the Stop List, so you will never be able to enter the TCI ever again. We will no longer allow individuals who break the law to come into these islands to become legal residents.”

On Wednesday, Williams said there are 119 individuals being housed in the islands’ detention center in Providenciales, the country’s main tourist hub. The center has a maximum capacity of 165 people. At least 90 of the individuals — all Haitians — arrived over the weekend after Turks and Caicos immigration and police officers discovered two wooden Haitian sloops, approximately 30 feet long each.

The first vessel arrived Saturday morning, and landed within the Malcolm Beach area of Providenciales. After a search of the area, officials found 37 Haitians, including 11 females.

Two days later on Monday, another vessel transporting 53 Haitians, including 12 females and a child, was intercepted by the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Marine Branch.

But that’s not all.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard confirmed that it, too, had picked up Haitian migrants at sea: 146 of them traveling in a 40-foot sail freighter.

The Coast Guard said its William Trump cutter intercepted the boat with 120 men, 22 women and four children aboard on Sunday, about 69 miles north of Ile de la Tortue on Haiti’s northwest coast. The Trump (named after a World War II veteran and no relation to President Donald Trump) loaded the migrants onto the Coast Guard Cutter Resolute, which then took them back to Haiti on Tuesday.

That’s at least 236 Haitians who have attempted to flee their politically volatile nation in three days.

A Haitian-American activist who has helped more than 3,000 migrants since May talks about the tragic stories behind their treacherous journey.

“A strong message has to be sent to the Haitian immigrants who are coming here and to those who are helping them to come here and stay here,” said Williams.

He said he plans to meet with immigration enforcement officials and police so they can figure out how to find Haitians who illegally entered the island chain and were not apprehended.

“We simply cannot allow them to come here illegally, live here illegally and work here illegally. We have to find them and deal with them,” he said in a statement.

While the U.S. Coast Guard has returned its boatload of migrants, those apprehended in the Turks and Caicos remain in custody and will be repatriated back to Haiti.

Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 12 septembre 2019

 Haitians among Dorian’s victims in the Bahamas

Among the missing persons, there are many Haitians. The two islands of the Bahamas most affected are “mostly [populated by] fishermen, manual workers and many Haitian immigrants”, writes Loophaïti. This media outlet based in Port-au-Prince tells that in «Saint-Louis du Nord, one of the communes (located in the northwest of Haiti) with the most immigrants in the Bahamas, families are desperate». Many Haitian nationals lived in the slum of Marsh Harbour, on the Abaco Islands. This neighborhood, commonly known as The Mud, was completely devastated.

The Miami Herald published on the front page of its website a photo of a Haitian woman with her arms crossed in front of what remains of her home. The reporter described “wet mattresses, gutted buildings, torn clothing, broken toilets, dead dogs… and miles and miles of mud”. This area of Marsh Harbour, this pocket of poverty, has not yet been visited by the rescue teams. Residents report seeing bodies, which have not yet been removed. “Haitians here,” says the Miami Herald, “have long complained about discrimination and lack of opportunity. Now they fear they will be the last to get help”.

The water in this area is now probably contaminated. This is certainly the working hypothesis of the Minister of Health of the Bahamas, who is quoted by The Nassau Guardian. “We assume,” he says, “that all the aquifers, all the water in the community, are contaminated. Contaminated with open latrines, decomposing animals, anything that may have entered the supply system”.

According to Loophaiti, videos are circulating on social networks. They show angry Haitians. They “say they are on their own.” The outgoing Haitian Minister of Foreign Affairs had however communicated emergency numbers for residents in the Bahamas. But «despite the many attempts of Loophaïti none of its numbers was reachable», at least not from Haiti. A delegation from the Haitian embassy in the Bahamas is scheduled to travel to Grand Abaco this Friday.

HAITI SENDING AID TO BAHAMAS

The first plane load of aid out of #haiti🇭🇹 to the #bahamas🇧🇸 is ready to fly. Onboard, there are water purification machines that have the ability to provide safe drinking water to thousands of people daily, thanks to Joe of Air Mobile Ministries. Also flying to the disaster zone are MRE food rations, blankets, hygiene kits, shoes, cases of medications and hospital/clinic/EMS supplies, and more urgently needed survival provisions. Very special thanks to @hopitalbernardmevs for a generous donation to this mission, and to everyone else in Haiti who sent over supplies and plane fuel funds.

URGENT DISASTER UPDATE: After being pummeled by Hurricane Dorian for 48 hours, approximately 60% of Grand Bahama Island may be submerged in water and 76,000 people are in need of lifesaving assistance. Our emergency response team is on the ground to aid survivors, but they can’t do it without supporters like you.

Our goal is to raise $25,000 in humanitarian aid by midnight, but we’ve got a long way to go: Will you rush a donation to help Mercy Corps deliver critical humanitarian relief in the Bahamas and around the world?

Send emergency aid to families in need

Mercy Corps is responding in the Bahamas following Hurricane Dorian's landfall as one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes on record.

Our team has reached the Bahamas and is rushing to help survivors and meet the needs of families and communities affected by this devastating storm. Reports are starting to come in about the scale of damage, and we are hearing that thousands of homes have been destroyed and entire communities may be under water.

As we determine the most pressing needs, we need your support. Please make an emergency gift to our Humanitarian Response Fund today. Every $1 we receive from generous people like you helps provide more lifesaving aid for people facing disasters like this around the world.

Prime Minister Hubert Minnis Urged to put a Moratorium to all deportations and an Easing the Rule for Refugees and Immigrants to Access Services

Family Action Network Movement (FANM) and a growing list of immigrants, faith, and social justice organizations urge Prime Minister Hubert Minnis to put a moratorium on all deportations and to waive any and all requirements to prove immigration status in order to access assistance for all immigrants and refugees in this time of grave crisis.

In a letter to Prime Minister Hubert Minnis, released this morning, FANM reports receiving SOS from Haitian immigrants who fear seeking assistance because they were reportedly asked for immigration papers. 

Marleine Bastien, Executive Director of Family Action Network Movement (FANM) stated:” Access to hurricane relief efforts after a natural disaster is a fundamental human right, seeking these services should never lead to intimidation, detention or deportation.” Consequently, We, the undersigned organizations urge the Prime Minister to put a moratorium on all deportations in addition to waving the legal documents’ requirement for life-saving and other pertinent services.  This is the humane, compassionate, and sensible thing to do under these grave circumstances.

Haitians in the US, including some FANM employees, have been having a hard time locating families in the Bahamas. They fear the worst, especially since there seems to be a blackout on their very existence and the troubling news of being asked for immigration papers to access vital services.

Family Action Network Movement (FANM) formerly known as Fanm Ayisyen Nan Miyami, Inc)/ Haitian Women of Miami is a private not-for-profit organization dedicated to the social, economic, financial and political empowerment of low to moderate-income families to give them the tools to transform their communities.

Rhenie Dalger, 786-280-9062, Cette adresse e-mail est protégée contre les robots spammeurs. Vous devez activer le JavaScript pour la visualiser.

Supporting Organizations 

Ira Kurzban, Immigration Attorney

Kurzban Immigration Sourcebook

Alana Greer, Community Justice Project

Leonie Hermantin, Sant La Neighborhood Center

Isabel Vinent, Florida Immigrant Coalition

Marcia Olivo, Miami Workers Center

Andrea Mercado, New Florida Majority

David McDougal, Miami Climate Alliance

Jonatan Fried, We Count

Resilience Force/ National Guestworkers Alliance 

Thomas Kennedy, FLIC Votes

Tessa Painson, Haitian American Community Development Corporation

Archdeacon Jean Fritz Bazin, Episcopal Diocese of S Florida

Bud Conlin, Friends of Miami-Dade Detainees

Stephanie Phadael, Families Rights Network

Rosie Appolon, Bethel Church

Jimy Mertune and Tina Lorquet, Vwa Ayiti

Brax Tinkler, Power U

Lourdes Villanueva, Redland Christian Migrant Association

Jonathan Alingu, Central Florida Job with Justice

Trenise Bryant, Miami Workers Center

Jack Lieberman, 350 South Florida

Progressive Jewish Action

South Florida Labor Community Alliance

71-year-old man tells 8-year-old he’d ‘kill her’ if she told anyone he raped her, cops say

Sexual violence is a social and public health problem in the U.S. The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey says nearly 1 in 2 women and 1 in 5 men experienced sexual violence victimization other than rape at some point in their lives. BY CDC

Joseph Cherima, 71, took an 8-year-old girl into a dark bedroom, forced her onto the bed and raped her, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.

When someone in the home came looking for her, the girl screamed for help, but he held the door closed for about 10 minutes before letting her out, deputies said.

When the unnamed person asked what was going on, the girl replied, according to a police report: “He put his thing in my thing and this is not the first time it happened.”

The girl then told deputies the Aug. 31 incident was the fourth time the man had raped her, according to the sheriff’s office.

Cherima was arrested Monday on four counts of sexual battery on a child under 12 years old. He was being held Friday with no bond.

According to the report, the inappropriate encounters happened in a West Palm Beach home. The girl didn’t remember exact days and times, but told investigators that the first time he raped her, her grandmother was at church, a detective wrote in the report. Another time, she was playing with her baby sister and one time she was outside hanging up laundry, detectives said.

In one case, the girl told investigators he took her into the bathroom and “put her on the floor,” according to the report.

THE FORMER PEARL OF THE ANTILLES RANKS AMONG THE TOP 10 COUNTRIES TO AVOID OUT OF 140 COUNTRIES.

According to the latest report of the World Economic Forum on the Competitiveness of Travel and Tourism (The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2019), published in early September, Haiti, the former “Pearl of The Antilles” is ranked in the TOP 10 of the worst countries to visit (just ahead of Angola and behind Burkina Faso) out of 140 countries analyzed by in the study.

The study analyzes all the factors and policies that allow the sustainable development of the travel and tourism sector in each country, Haiti ranks among others (on more than 17 segments analyzed) 108th for its Travel and Tourism Policy; 133rd in terms of the competitiveness of travel and tourism; 120th for the prioritization of travel and tourism; 109th in terms of security; 126th in terms of transport infrastructure and 115th in terms of tourism infrastructure….

TOP 10 countries to visit:

1 - Spain

2 - France

3 - Germany

4 - Japan

5 - USA

6 - England

7 - Australia

8 - Italy

9 - Canada

10 – Switzerland

TOP 10 countries to avoid:

131 - Sierra Leone

132 - Burkina Faso

133 - Haiti

134 - Angola

135 - Mauritania

136 - Dem. Rep. of Congo

137 - Burundi

138 - Liberia

139 - Chad

140 – Yemen

MILES DAVIS ON KASSAV AND AFRO-CARIBBEAN MUSIC, among other topics.

Click: View the entire interview here. 👉🏽 https://youtu.be/KllwtKMtYTA

Post By Jean Jean-Pierre

The American icon speaks of a colleague he sent to Haiti (1987-1988) who came back with the music of Kassav. As he discovered the Zouk, it is worth mentioning this music comes partially from Nemours Jean-Baptiste’s Compas Direct, without the congas. A fact confirmed by the cadence, the pulses of the rhythm and the format of the style and by musicians such as the pianist/accordionist from Martinique, Serge Alexandre, who eloquently wrote about the genesis of the implantation of Haitian musicians in Martinique and Guadeloupe in the early/mid 60’s.

THE SALE OF GASOLINE: A SCANDAL!

Motorcycle taxi drivers denounced last Friday (September 6), on the radio Preference of Petit-Goâve, the way fuel is sold at the service stations. They said that intentional favoritism was found in the sale of gasoline at the city’s gas stations. " Petit-Goâve may experience another rarity of petroleum products in the coming days, if nothing is done to improve the sale of fuel", warned one of the motorcycle taxi drivers who added that as soon as the oil products arrived, the stock is depleted.

Détails

Catégorie : What's up Little Haiti

Création : 17 septembre 2019

 ‘Give Paperless Haitians Temporary Asylum’

HAITIAN TIMES

HAITIAN Chargé d’Affaires Dorval Darlier wants the Bahamas government to grant temporary asylum to undocumented migrants affected by Hurricane Dorian.

This, he asserted yesterday, was the best way to assist devastated Haitians living in Grand Bahama and Abaco to rebuild their lives after losing everything to Dorian’s destruction.

His comments came days after North Eleuthera MP Hank Johnson was caught on video by a Florida reporter arguing about the picture being painted of how the Bahamas government is treating Haitian evacuees. Mr Johnson insisted migrant storm victims are being treated fairly and accused a group of Haitians evacuees of complaining.

Meanwhile, Mr Darlier appealed to the government yesterday to enforce a mandatory evacuation in Abaco, telling The Tribune some storm victims were refusing to leave despite mounting health concerns.

However, the chargé said he had no idea just how many people from various Abaco shanty towns were still alive or dead in the aftermath of the storm as the government had not yet communicated its findings regarding those communities.

But what he was certain of yesterday was the larger communities – the Mudd and Pigeon Peas – were completely wiped out, leaving many missing and families desperate to find loved ones.

“I’ve been to the Mudd and Pigeon Peas, that does not exist anymore. There is no Mudd, there is no Pigeon Peas,” Mr Darlier said.

“I go around down there. The reason I went is because they say Haitians shooting at people. It’s not true. I go around but I don’t see no one.

“It’s like a ghost town. My major concern is how are all those people going to be relocated? Some who have insurance, it’s easy for them to get back, but those who don’t, what is going to happen to them? What is the plan for them?

“I think both governments have to sit together to see what plan they can do just for them, especially for those who have nowhere to go.

Bahamas: Naomi Osaka rescues victims of Hurricane Dorian

Tennis woman Naomi Osaka has decided to help the thousands of victims of Hurricane of victims of Hurricane Dorian that devastate the Bahamas. The Japanese made the announcement on Twitter, without mentioning the details of the donations.

“I donate to the Red Cross to help relief in the Bahamas” tweeted the 21-year-old Grand Slam Champion Double. I invite other interested parties to do the same in order to assst those affected by an increasing number of victims. According to the authorities, more than 76 thousand people are affected in the Abacos Islands where Dorian destroyed 90% of the housing.

More than a week after the Bahamas was hit hard by Hurricane Dorian, which claimed 50 lives, several personalities and great fortunes have responded to the appeals for donations launched by humanitarian and religious organizations all over the world to relieve the victims.

That’s how the NBA legend, Michael Jordan, announced at the beginning of a week a donation of $1 million. The basketball player was followed by singer Lenny Kravitz who also announced donations on social networks.

It must be remembered that the search continues to find missing persons including many Haitians.

At the same time, Haitians continue to complain about the treatment they have been receiving since Dorian. «Since this morning, I have had only one cup of tea» complains Blondel Vincent, a Bahamian of Haitian origin. “I don’t know what to say and what to do. I need help,” he added.

Hurricane Dorian: Trump Administration Reportedly Won’t Extend Temporary Protected Status To Bahamians

WASHINGTON, HAITIAN TIMES – The Trump administration reportedly will not grant temporary protected status to Bahamians impacted by Hurricane Dorian, according to CNN and NBC.

Temporary protected status would allow Bahamians to work and live in the United States until it is safe enough for them to return. As CNN explained: “TPS applies to people who would face extreme hardship if forced to return to homelands devastated by armed conflict or natural disasters, therefore the protections are limited to people already in the United States.”

TPS has been granted after other natural disasters , including for Haitians following the devastating earthquake in 2010.

The chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus criticized the administration. “There are thousands of Bahamian families who deserve the full unquestioning and unwavering support of the United States government during this difficult time,” Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., said in a statement, adding This is a matter of life or death and this President is failing to lead.”

The reported development follows days of confusion as top federal officials have offered conflicting statements regarding Bahamians seeking refuge in the U.S. and the documentation they may be required to have.

Bahamas government denies reports it discouraged Dorian aid to shattered Abaco Islands

Ellison Barber

Death toll rises to at least 50 in the Bahamas

Hurricane death toll rises in the Bahamas; Ellison Barber reports.

The Bahamian government has denied allegations that officials are rejecting or stalling aid for the Abaco Islands in a bid to pressure remaining residents to evacuate.

Three sources working with nonprofits told Fox News on Tuesday that Bahamian officials encouraged them to hold off on delivering items like generators and water filtration systems to the Abaco Islands, which were devastated by Hurricane Dorian last week.

A spokesman for the Bahama’s emergency management agency, NEMA, told Fox News the claims are inaccurate.

Island of 50,000 People in the Bahamas Is 70% Under Water

An island in the Bahamas that’s home to 50,000 people is 70% under water after Hurricane Dorian battered it with record force for two days, according to the government.

There are “still many outstanding rescue missions,” on the island of Grand Bahama, Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Kevin Peter Turnquest said, in reply to written questions. “It’s not looking good as we expect catastrophic damage.”

Seaports and airports in Grand Bahama and the nearby Abaco Islands are flooded or damaged, complicating the task of rescuing people cut off by flood waters.

The National Emergency Management Agency sent out an “urgent plea” for owners of equipment such as flatbeds, jet skis, small boats, trucks and buses to assemble at a shopping mall on Grand Bahama to help with the rescue operation.

The U.S. Coast Guard and British Royal Navy sent ships to assist.

Unprecedented

The storm is now traveling northwest away from the archipelago at nearly 5 miles per hour, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said at 2 p.m. New York time.

It could potentially hit the East Coast of the U.S.

At least five people died in the storm, but National Security Minister Marvin Dames said this figure is likely to rise, and will include some children, according to a report in the Nassau Guardian, a local newspaper.

Humanitarian aid organizations estimate 13,000 homes have been damaged or destroyed in the Bahamas, according to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Grand Bahama and the Abaco Islands between them have about 2,250 of the 17,500 hotel rooms in the Bahamas, Resort Capital Partners, a real estate investment advisory firm that covers the region, said in reply to emailed questions.

The severity of the storm impact on Grand Bahama and Abaco over the last two days may be the greatest ever experienced by any populated area in the Atlantic basin, according to Ryan Truchelut, president of Weather Tiger in Tallahassee, Florida.

MICHAEL JORDAN PLEDGES $1M FOR HURRICANE RELIEF IN BAHAMAS

The spokesman admitted the distribution of aid to all of the islands has not been as consistent as people wish. However, he said that was partly due to the fact that most vehicles were destroyed by the storm.

Food and supplies were still flooding into Marsh Harbour Airport in the Abaco Islands, but for the most part, no locals were there to use them.

Fox News was told that rescues in the Abaco Islands are largely completed, as are most evacuations. Military aircraft are now flying supplies to the smaller surrounding cays, where more residents have chosen not to evacuate.

In Marsh Harbour, neighborhoods with names like “Pigeon Pea” and “da Mudd” are empty. All that appears to be left are piles of rubble and the bodies buried underneath them. On a nearby dock, pallets of emergency ready meals sat untouched for most the afternoon. 

Supreme Court allows Trump Administration to enforce toughest restrictions yet on Asylum requests

A lawsuit to stop the new policy is still working its way through the lower court.

By Pete Williams

The U.S. Supreme Court late Wednesday gave the Trump administration permission to enforce its toughest restriction yet on asylum seekers at the southern border, even though a lawsuit to stop the new policy is still working its way through the lower courts.

As a result, the government can now refuse to consider a request for asylum from anyone who failed to apply for it in another country after leaving home but before coming here. The order means, for instance, that migrants from Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador cannot seek asylum in the U.S. if they didn't first ask for it in Mexico.

Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor dissented, saying the court acted too quickly and should allow the case to work its way through the normal judicial process.

The administration said the new restriction is needed to respond to "an unprecedented surge" of people who enter the country illegally and seek asylum if they're caught. But officials said only a small fraction of them are eventually found to be qualified. "The rule thus screens out asylum seekers who declined to request protection at their first opportunity," said Solicitor General Noel Francisco. He said it allows immigration officials to concentrate on the asylum seekers who most need protection.

Immigration courts now face a backlog of 436,000 asylum requests. But given how few are actually granted, it's reasonable to ask whether those applicants "genuinely fear persecution or torture, or are simply economic migrants," Francisco said.

After the new policy was announced in July, a federal judge in California blocked its enforcement, ruling that it would violate existing immigration law and was improperly rushed into effect. The Justice Department took the case to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, but also asked the Supreme Court to let the government carry out the restrictions while the case is on appeal.

An earlier move by the Trump administration to restrict asylum remains blocked by the courts. It would have denied the protection to anyone who did not enter the US through a legal port of entry.

Dissenting from Wednesday's order, Justices Sotomayor, joined by Justice Ginsburg, said the new asylum policy "seeks to upend longstanding practices regarding refugees who seek shelter from persecution. Although this Nation has long kept its doors open to refugees—and although the stakes for asylum seekers could not be higher—the Government implemented its rule without first providing the public notice and inviting the public input generally required by law."

Activists break everything in the Haitian Senate to prevent Prime Minister’s policy presentation

Dozens of angry campaigners stormed the meeting room last Wednesday night to discuss the Prime Minister Fritz William Michel’s policy statement even as he and his cabinet members were in the Diplomatic Hall of Parliament.

The incident occurred after a day of high tension in the city center and around the parliament, where there were violent protests. It all started towards the end of the morning when a few dozen protesters, most of them armed, positioned themselves around the Legislative Palace despite an important security device deployed by the Haitian National Police.

Some of these gunmen who pretended to be political activists along with some opposition senators even managed to enter Parliament. By mid-day, the protesters were going to set fire to a bus carrying agents from the intervention and law enforcement agency (Cimo). Attempts by the police and the fire department to extinguish the fire have been in vain.