Photos

Here is a picture of Lionel Moise who is a news co-anchor at WBBM-TV/CBS 2 in Chicago

The Chicago based CBS owned WBBM-TV/CBS 2 television channel has announced the name of Lionel Moise as the co-anchor for weekday morning news, beginning Monday, September 21. Moise will join Erin Kennedy behind the anchor desk. This would be his first appointment in Chicago. Service has always been a central part of Lionel's life. Earlier, he has worked at WLTX - News 19 in Columbia, South Carolina, with similar responsibility of a morning newsreader. He was a reporter/producer at WXIA in Atlanta, GA. In Atlanta he started through Gannett's Talent Development Program. Prior to joining his news career, Lionel worked with President Clinton's Haiti Team. His Haitian-American root involved him on the development work following the 2010 earthquake. This insightful and energetic broadcaster has also served as an adjunct professor in visual storytelling at the University of South Carolina and completed his MBA at USC in June this year, earned an undergraduate degree in broadcast journalism and psychology. Moise is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists and the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and won two Emmy Awards for his work at WXIA.

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Here is a picture of the former Boston police detective Yves Dambreville.

Yves Dambreville, a 33-year veteran of the Boston Police Force was brutally gunned down by some unknown hooligans on August 26, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Dambreville has left behind a legacy of cultural outreach who would be remembered as a man of many identities. He served as a liaison to the city's Haitian community and other immigrant neighborhoods. This retired Boston police detective was one of the most visible and influential members and held as a pioneer in the Boston's Haitian community for decades. He was the first Caribbean community's official link to Boston City Hall and the Mayor's Office who arranged for educational and job training opportunities for hundreds of people. Dambreville settled in Boston in the late 1960's. He was the city's second Haitian-American police officer after his brother Manny. He served as a trusted advisor to two former Boston Mayors, Ray Flynn and Tom Menino, a responsibility overlapping his police work.

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Here is a picture of the new interim Chancellor, Lener Renauld who is also also Minister of Defense

Mr. Lener Renauld, the Haitian Minister of Defense and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship was installed as the new Interim Chancellor by the President Martelly. He replaced Duly Brutus, who announced his resignation on April 5 to run as a candidate for the presidential election. Renauld was severely criticized recently when the foreign embassies in South Africa and several other places failed to pay their regular payments like rent and salary. Some sources indicated that the foreign minister of Haiti has not forwarded any money for these embassies. As a Haitian Minister of Foreign Affairs, he should have set up a budget at the beginning of the year; the lack of funds appears to be a mystery. Some even suggested that the Haitian government is bankrupt due to the election. In last July, to prevent a humanitarian crisis, Renauld invited the intervention of the OAS and other international communities on the issue of repatriations of Haitians living in an irregular migratory situation in the Dominican Republic.

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Here is a picture of Haiti President Michel Martelly with Ecuador President Rafael Correa.

Following a request from President Martelly to his Ecuadorian counterpart Rafael Correa, the Ecuadorian government has adopted a new policy measure from August 4, 2015 which would regularize the residential status of any Haitian living in Ecuador without proper document before May 4, 2015. Under this provision, any eligible Haitian national may apply between August 11 and November 11, 2015, for a nonimmigrant visa type 12-XI, valid for a period of six months. Once the visa is obtained, the beneficiary becomes eligible to apply for a migrant visa. It has been estimated that the new immigration procedure will benefit over 20,000 Haitians who are presently living in Ecuador without proper documents.

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Here is the picture of Dr. Maryse Narcisse, presidential candidate for Fanmi Lavalas

On Friday, August 21st, Dr. Maryse Narcisse the presidential candidate from 'Fanmi Lavalas Party' was welcomed by a delegation at the Fort Lauderdale Airport before her 48 hour visit to meet and interact with people in South Florida. During her visit in Miami, Dr. Narcisse was accompanied by the Senator of Northeast, Jean-Baptiste Bien-Aimé and Lesly Voltaire, former Minister under the governments of Aristide. This medical doctor turned politician is perhaps one of the smartest people running for the presidential election who has seen how the country has been ruined by politicians over the past 4 decades. She left her thriving medical practice to join politics. People love her for her charming and humble personality and because of her status as a healthcare professional, she knows well how to get well acquainted and accepted in every section of the society, especially in rallies among common people, professionals, religious societies, businesses and other politicians.

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Here is a picture of two former friends and political allies, Evans Paul, K-Plim and former President Jean Bertrand Aristide

Evans Paul, the present Haitian Prime Minister (born 25 November 1955) rose to the political prominence in the 1990s as an ally of the two time controversial former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. He is known to his comrades as K-plim (the pen), or Konpè Plim. When on December 25, 2014, Martelly recommended Evans, as a successor to Lamothe following his forced resignation on Dec.13, the nomination of Evans, a former Lavalas, appeared to many as an effort by the President to make consensus with his radical opposition. Evans was the former president of the Democratic United Committee (Komite inite Demokratik, KID); he was elected mayor of Port-au-Prince (with 88% vote) in the 1990 elections that brought Jean-Bertrand Aristide's 'National Front for Change and Democracy Party' to power; and he ran unsuccessfully for the Haitian presidency in the 2006 elections under the Democratic Alliance Party banner.

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The procession which departed from the gymnasium Vincent had marched through the streets of the capital to reach the Kiosk Occyde Jeanty (Champ de Mars) where everything was set for the beginning of gala cultural event of the Caribbean. The ten day program was scheduled to be held simultaneously in 5 different Haitian cities: Port-au-Prince, Jacmel, Les Cayes, Gonaives and Cap-Haitien. Earlier, the organizing committee had unveiled their official program of activities (which is a total of about 150 events and performances) for each city. The theme of CARIFESTA XII was 'Our Roots, Our Culture and Our Common Future.'

The Haitian President who was present in the opening ceremony has said he was very pleased to see that CARIFESTA XII is happening in Haiti. He expressed his gratitude to the CARICOM Secretary General and the members of the CARICOM States for helping to make it happen. President Desi Bouterse of Suriname, the host of CARIFESTA XI in 2013, has passed the CARIFESTA Baton to President Michel Martelly of Haiti, Host of CARIFESTA XII, 2015. From Saturday (August 22) onwards there was an exhibition "Shared Memories" at the Haitian National Museum (MUPANAH) and the opening of the Grand Market in Champ de Mars.

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On Friday, August 21, the streets of Port-au-Prince were crowded with thousands of Haitians. People were standing on the streets to witness the official start of CARIFESTA XII. The event began with the arrival of the participants from twenty two nations; they arrived in Haitian traditional vehicles, 'tap-taps'. They paraded on the streets in their traditional national dresses. It was a scene of pure excitement; the foreigners were all wearing costumes of vibrant colours-- Haiti in their pride and glory; Barbados was in a Kadooment theme; Guyana in its masquerade theme, full with band and dancers and Trinidad in their bright red, black and white with make-up and costumes. The two hour long parade on the streets of the Haitian capital virtually exploded into a cultural concert that all of the French-speaking nation can be proud of. Ms. Nicolette Henry, the Minister of Education, Guyana, has revealed that since Guyana has a rich legacy to upkeep in regards to the CARIFESTA, its government has sanctioned $65 million for its representing team. The dancers and musicians from Guyana did enrich the atmosphere of CARIFESTA XII with their typical music rooted in ethnic heritage under their theme, 'Rites and Rhythms of Guyana.'

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The Haitian rara music has become truely international. Due to its popularity, efforts have been made to make it even more popular by teaching the young Haitian the Rara music.

'Rara music' is one form of traditional Haitian festival music that takes place throughout the Easter Week and is performed mainly in street processions. Its songs are sung in Kreyòl that speaks about the African ancestry of the Afro-Haïtian masses and it blends the Voodoo and Christian influences with rhythms. To preserve this form of traditional culture, Little Haiti Cultural Center in Miami has created 'Rara Institute' where the teens can learn to make and play traditional Rara instruments in a formal classroom setting. Rara musical instruments generally consist of a set of cylindrical bamboo trumpets called vaksen (sometimes made of metal pipes), güiros or güiras (a percussion instrument), maracas, drums, and metal bells. Their summer workshop that culminated with the Haitian Heritage Festival in May 2015 is the start of a long-term program to incorporate Rara and other traditional Haitian music.

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All the preparation in place to start the voting process for the election season in Haiti in 2015. The Ballots to be used in the August 9, 2015 vote in Haiti to elect 118 Deputies and two thirds of the Senate just arrived in Airport Toussaint Louverture in Port-au-Prince from Dubai.

On Sunday, June 21, 2015, a delegation of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) composed of President Pierre Louis Opont, Secretary Ricardo Augustine, and the Director of the Electoral Register Philippe Augustin flew to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on a seven day inspection visit. They visited the firm responsible for printing the ballots for the upcoming parliamentary elections. The name of the firm responsible for printing was not disclosed; it was selected following an international tender decided by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which manages the budget of the elections. The ballots have been delivered at the capital city airport before the August 9 election. 12.8 million ballots were required for the first round of the vote for 1508 voting centers and 13,725 polling centers.

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