newsletter

Here is a picture where Michel Martelly Meeting was meeting with leaders of FUSION, Kontra Pèp, INITE and Ayisyen pou Ayiti at Hotel Kinam

On December 17, 2014, the Haitian President Michele Martelly held a meeting with the opposition leaders to find a way out to avoid the impending political crisis to which the country is heading in the absence of a long overdue legislative election. Haiti was supposed to hold this election in October 2011 for a majority of Senate seats, the entire Chamber of Deputies and local offices and such failure has continued to foster political uncertainty and had deterred the right to political participation. One third of the Senate seats have become vacant in last October and the fate of another one third has become uncertain because of some conflicting interpretations of a 2008 electoral law by the political parties. In a consequence, out of 140 elected posts in the municipalities, 129 posts have expired in October 2011. The Martelly administration had filled these posts with political appointees in 2012. President Martelly, under the pressure of the United Nations and other international actors convoked a special session of Parliament on November 22 to prepare a draft electoral law for regulating the overdue elections but that has remained unsuccessful.

Permalink | Comments

Here is a picture of US Marines boarding the U.S.C Connecticut july 1915 as they are heading to Haiti

In the beginning, following the assassination of Jean Vilbrun Guillaume Sam, a Pro-U.S Haitian President, the U.S President Woodrow Wilson sent a first team of U.S Marines into Haiti on July 28, 1915. They were sent to restore order and maintain political and economic stability in the country. However, in the wake of the First World War, the President Wilson at the same time also wanted to establish U.S dominance in the region by keeping the German settlers away from Haiti. Because, the peasant guerrillas (cocos) from the northern Haiti were heavily burdened with German loans and they wanted the Germans to invade and restore order in the country.

Thus the 19- year U.S. occupation in Haiti began with the landing of 3,000 Marines at Port-au-Prince under the leadership of Admiral William B. Caperton and that continued until 1935. However, prior to that in December 1914, in the fear of foreign intervention, Wilson administration sent U.S. Marines to Haiti who removed $500,000 from the Haitian National Bank for safe keeping in New York.

Permalink | Comments

Here is a picture of Thomas A. Shannon, the Counselor to U.S. Secretary of State Kerry who is in Haiti in preparation of John Kerry's Visit. He is in a meeting with President Michel Martelly and Ambassador Pamela A. White.

As the country prepares for the official visit of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who will hold talks with the government to help Haiti see its way through its election crisis, Counselor of the Department Thomas A. Shannon, Jr. will travel ahead of Secretary Kerry to make preparations. Shannon, who is slated to arrive on December 24, has an illustrious past that includes an education at Oxford, an ability to speak English, Portuguese and Spanish, and a past working closely with Secretary Kerry, along with his own tenure as U.S. Ambassador for almost four years.

Permalink | Comments

Francois Presley who has been working as a security guard in front of Chez Le Bebe Restaurant in Little Haiti was found dead Monday night(December 8, 2014). The testaurant is located on Northeast 54th Street

Police who is investigating the crime has no suspects or motive for the shooting.

The shooting death of 50-year-old Francois Presley, outside the Little Haiti restaurant where he worked, Chez Le Bebe Restaurant, has left the community shaken and his family asking for public assistance to apprehend the person responsible. Presley had been employed to the company for a year, and was found in his uniform, shot dead while sitting in his car. As of yet, the police have no suspects, nor a motive, for Presley's killing, leaving his grieving widow to question why the act was committed.

Permalink | Comments

Frantz St. Fleur a resident in Toronto Canada, wants to teach his real estate broker and the police they will never forget. He is currently suing them for racial profiling

Toronto man Frantz St. Fleur alleges he was a victim of racial profiling in the case of his April arrest for fraud after trying to cash a check at his long-time bank. St. Fleur went into the Scotiabank branch he'd used for ten years to cash what he says was a refund check of $9,000 for a condo deposit, as the development project had fallen through. He was questioned in a private office before being left there for the police to arrive and arrest him. St. Fleur now sues the police, his real estate broker, and the bank for $250,000.

Permalink | Comments

There is life after Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe. The executive and the legislative power understand that clearly. This is a meeting between Deputy Jacques S. Thimoléon, M. Simon D. Desras and President Michel Martelly consulting to form a new government.

Consultative Commission Urges Opposition to Declare a Truce

President Martelly has abided by a special commission's recommendation that Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe be asked to resign. Lamothe offered his resignation Sunday December 14th.

Demonstrators have demanded the Martelly-Lamothe government be ended when the holding of general elections in October did not occur.

The commission is asking the opposition to declare a truce so both sides can agree to hold elections before Parliament closes down and Martelly rules by presidential decree.

Permalink | Comments

In an attempt to follow the recommendations of the executive committee to find a somution, President Michel Martelly is meeting with the CSPJ President, Me Anel Alexis Joseph. As you may recollect, one of the recommendations of the committee is the resignation of Me Anel Alexis Joseph as head of the CSPJ

Appointments to the Supreme Court and Permanent Electoral Council prepare Haiti for Elections

President Martelly appointed Me Anel Alexis Joseph to be the new President of the Court of Cassation that has been operating without one dating back to 2004. Martelly also appointed another judge, Jean-Louis Maecenas, to the COA, leaving four seats to be filled. The appointments have been held up because the Senate has submitted names of questionable character.

One of Joseph's first tasks was witnessing the swearing-in of nine new members of the Transient College of Permanent Electoral Council (CTCEP), who are replacing nine departing members, asked to tender their resignations, according to the Consultative Commission's recommendations. This turnover of the CTCEP fulfills one of the demands of the opposition, who want a new CTCEP to organize free, fair, and democratic state and local elections. After the swearing-in, the new members from the legislative, executive, and judicial branches will travel to the CTCEP in Petion-Ville to begin the task of organizing elections quickly.

Permalink | Comments

Here is a picture of a protest taking place on December 12, 2014 against the Government of Michel Martelly. One thing that was very different in this protest, instead of security being provided by Haitian police, this time it was reinforced by UN peacekeepers who did not hesitate to fire on the protesters.

This was taking place as the government is trying to calm the situation. Haiti's opposition parties are pleased Prime Minister Lamothe has agreed to step down. President Martelly made the decision to ask for Lamothe's resignation, following the Consultative Commission's (CC) recommendation he leave to help break the political impasse so far irresolvable.

The crisis the government faces is the possibility Martelly could rule by decree in January, if Haitians can't go to the ballot box and vote by January 11th. Failure to hold elections by then means the Senate will lack a quorum of 16 senators, and cannot hold sessions, effectively dissolving Parliament. The CC recommends a consensus government be put in place, partially made up of opposition members, and breaking up the electoral council. Lamothe appeared on a national broadcast to announce his resignation and point to his accomplishments: a reduction in poverty and cutting the crime rate in half.

Permalink | Comments

Here is member of the Presidential Commission who did not expect for Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe to resign as Prime Minister. In an open letter, Mrs. Odette Roy Fombrun described report that she also signed as "Mission Impossible".

Here is the content of Mrs. Odette Roy Fombrun's open letter:

"Dear friends,

I have a very heavy heart, because a great injustice has been committed this weekend and will have serious consequences for both the executive and the country.

At the analysis, I describe our report of 'Mission Impossible' with few chance of follow up. Prime Minister Lamothe, should resign only when he negotiations would have allowed to find a replacement. But voila, we just add a new institutional vacuum to that provided we wanted to avoid 12 January 2015. The country is the first victim, as many of the work undertaken by the outgoing Government are at risk of being stranded.

By signing the document of the Commission, while I had expressed serious reservations about the path taken by the majority, I was convinced that the President was going to favor the path of the inter-institutional dialogue with other powers, as we had recommended him to reach identify viable compromise with all parties. Above that, personally, I recommended him the way of wisdom and prudence by entrusting to 'a National Arbitration Commission', inspired by Article 289 of the Constitution, therefore representative of all sectors of the nation, the task of deciding on the best way to go about the elections, the CEP, Governance, amendments, the Constitution. A single constraint: no extension or renewal of the mandate of the President, which hand over power on February 7, 2016. The work of the Arbitration Commission should lead us to democratic elections, as expected.

I was convinced that this was the best way to follow to hope to find a solution to of the crisis, avoid the institutional vacuum while ensuring the continuity of the State and prevent further clashes in the country.

Today we can only pray and hope with all our heart not to have to do unfortunate findings, namely, for whom sounded the death knell December 14, 2014."

Permalink | Comments

Haitian protest against the Government of Michel Martelly has taken a new phase. The opposition wants it to become an international matter. On Saturday, December 6, 2014 protesters called on Russian President Vladimir Putin for help as they accused the US of supporting the Government of Michel Martelly

Haitian Protesters Called On Russian President Vladimir Putin For Help

On December 6, 2014, thousands of anti-government protesters, hit the streets and had clashes with the police in the Haitian capital. They were demanding President Martelly and Prime Minister Lamothe to resign and long-overdue elections to be held. Opposition politicians regularly accuse that Martelly is deliberately postponing the election as he prefers to rule the country by order of decree. Haiti is a protectorate of US with all its 'free trade zones'. Some of the protesters were blaming the US for supporting Haiti's leadership. They were carrying pictures of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the placards and called on for his help. Many of them succeeded in reaching the National Palace. For the last two years citizens were not allowed to cross in front of the National Palace. One protester, who identified himself as Reginald, had said, this is a victory against President Martelly who is destroying our country.

Permalink | Comments