So, for the past week Haiti has been descending into lawlessness and chaos and nobody noticed. Note there were protests and what Wikipedia calls a "massacre" in 2018, but I believe these are separate if related, in that people are asking where did all the Chavez-shekels go.
Haiti to Unveil Economic Measures to Quell Violent Protests
Haitians say they will keep protesting until President Jovenel Moise resigns despite his announcement of upcoming economic measures to quell more than a week of violent demonstrations across the country.
By EVENS SANON, Associated Press
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haitians on Friday vowed to keep protesting until President Jovenel Moise resigns, despite his announcement of upcoming economic measures designed to quell more than a week of violent demonstrations across the country.
Moise said during a televised address late Thursday that he would not surrender the country to armed gangs and drug dealers, and he accused people of freeing prisoners to kill him. It was the first time Moise had spoken since the demonstrations began, and he made another call for dialogue with the opposition.
"I heard the voice of the people. I know the problems that torment them. That's why the government has taken a lot of measures," he said. "I asked the Prime Minister to come and explain them and implement them without delay in order to relieve misery."
He said Prime Minister Jean-Henry Ceant would share details of the new economic measures Friday, but none were announced as protesters once again clashed with police in the Port-au-Prince neighborhood of Delmas. Unrest also was reported in cities including Gonaives and Mirebalais, while opposition leaders said they would join in and head to Moise's home.
Protesters remain angry about skyrocketing inflation and the government's failure to prosecute embezzlement from a multi-billion dollar Venezuelan program that sent discounted oil to Haiti. Few believe the government will take any steps to alleviate the crisis.
Widler Saintil, a 35-year-old shop owner, said he has been forced to reduce the amount of food he eats because he can't afford to buy as much milk, bread, sugar, rice or beans as before. He also has been unable to work or send his two children to school.
"The situation has gotten worse," he said, adding that he will take part in the demonstrations until Moise resigns.
Protesters also continued to block roads across Haiti as food, water and gas became scarce and schools, businesses and government offices remain closed. Louis Didie Herold, who oversees Haiti's National Ambulance Center, told Radio Vision 2000 that the center would likely not be able to provide service after Friday because of gas shortages. Meanwhile, a hospital in Desjardines north of the capital said it was running out of oxygen and medicine.
Moise was sworn in as president in February 2017 for a five-year term and promised to fight corruption and bring investment and jobs to one of the least developed nations in the world. His swearing-in marked Haiti's return to constitutional rule a year after ex-President Michel Martelly left office without an elected successor amid waves of opposition protests and a political stalemate that resulted in suspended elections.
Moise is a businessman from northern Haiti and had never run for office until he was hand-picked in 2015 to be the Tet Kale party candidate by Martelly.
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of State issued a travel advisory warning people not to travel to Haiti because of crime and civil unrest. It recalled all non-emergency U.S. personnel and their families and warned that it had limited ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in the Caribbean country.
The U.S. government said in a statement that it supported Moise's call for dialogue and urged people to express themselves peacefully.
"We also encourage the full implementation of sound economic policy measures for the benefit of the Haitian people," it stated, adding: "We urge the government to redouble its efforts in fighting corruption and in holding those implicated in the PetroCaribe scandal accountable."
Meanwhile, the Canadian embassy in Port-au-Prince has been temporarily closed, and officials said they're trying to fly Canadians home, including 113 tourists staying at a Haitian resort.
Some tourists and missionary groups along with foreign doctors and nurses have been unable to leave Haiti because protests and barricades have blocked access to the airport, according to social media posts.
Chris Bessey, with Catholic Relief Services in Haiti, said in a phone interview that their offices have remained closed since Feb. 8 as a result of the demonstrations and that non-Haitian staffers have flown home.
"Essentially, we're stopped in terms of our program, which is devastating because the need is even greater than it was before," he said..
Haiti president recalls top envoy amid ongoing violent protests, calls for resignation
By Jacqueline Charles
February 13, 2019 08:45 AM,
Updated February 13, 2019 08:45 PM
Haiti’s man in Washington, an ambassador with seven years of experience defending his country’s image, has been recalled by his government effective immediately.
At a time when Haiti is facing a deepening economic and political crisis that needs representation before the Trump administration, Paul Altidor received a letter informing him that his services will no longer be needed.
His recall comes as Haiti continues its descent into chaos, marking its seventh consecutive day of protests Wednesday that saw one journalist shot, at least one person injured and opposition lawmakers leading protesters in their demands that the president resign from office.
“We are asking for President Jovenel Moïse to leave,” Sen. Youri Latortue said as he walked the hours-long stretch from the city of Croix-des-Bouquets, along the northeastern edge of the capital, to the Champs de Mars, the public square near downtown Port-au-Prince where the presidential palace sits. “We would never leave the people by themselves, so we are accompanying them in front of the National Palace.”
Divided into various branches, waves upon waves of protesters converged on the expansive public square waving tree branches. They were met by Haitian police in riot gear who had set up a perimeter protecting the palace grounds. When protesters tried to break through, police fired tear gas and at some point rounds to keep demonstrators away from the palace’s iron gates.
With gang members circulating with exposed rifles inside the protests, a strained Haiti National Police launched its highly specialized SWAT unit to provide backup. Meanwhile, other specialized police units were tasked with controlling looters. On Wednesday, they continued with the pillaging of businesses and the burning of gas stations. Several cars parked at the government-owned Television Nationale D’Haiti were also set ablaze.
In Petionville the scene was equally discouraging, as some residents dared to venture out to restock on groceries after six days of being holed up at home. Supermarket shelves were bare, with basics like drinking water, milk, bread and cooking fuel hard to come by, or available at a stiff price.
“We cannot sustain this much longer,” said Jerry Tardieu, a member of Haiti’s Lower House of Deputies who did not participate in protests but like many has been unable to get around due to the ongoing unrest. “Haitians live on a day-to-day basis. I am getting a lot of pressure from my constituents asking and warning me that they are running out of water, they are running out of food. They are panicking. We might not be very far from some sort of humanitarian crisis. This is real. This is serious.”
Given the state of affairs, many people were perplexed by the president’s decision to sack one of the government’s top envoys at a critical time.
“I can personally say that Altidor did more for Haiti’s image than past ambassadors,” said Dayanne Danier, a New York fashion designer who has hosted three pop-ups events featuring made-in-Haiti products at the Haitian embassy over the years. “He opened the embassy to Haitians of all generations and non-Haitians.”
Indeed, Altidor took Haiti’s diplomatic mission on Embassy Row in Washington from a place where Haitians only went to get passports and resolve document issues, to a welcoming cultural hotspot where visitors can bask in Haitian culture from art to cooking to artistry.
Altidor, 45, had submitted his resignation to President Jovenel Moïse a year ago. But the president had asked him to stay on, and in recent days Altidor found himself fielding calls from concerned U.S. lawmakers and their staffers about the ongoing violent demonstrations that have rattled Haitians and paralyzed major cities.
Since Thursday, Haitians have been taking to the streets in Port-au-Prince and other cities throughout the impoverished country to protest against skyrocketing prices, double-digit inflation, currency devaluation and corruption. In their anger and frustration, they’ve lashed out at businesses and demanded the resignation of Moïse, who has yet to address the public but insists that his five-year presidential mandate is not up for debate.
Altidor received his recall letter on Tuesday. That same day, protesters burned a popular Port-au-Prince street market and looted stores, while 78 prisoners broke out of jail in a small southern town. The European Union mission, concerned about the ongoing unrest, hired a charter olane to fly dependents to the neighboring Dominican Republic.
Meanwhile, the 15-member Caribbean Community, of which Haiti is a member of, appealed to all to engage in constructive dialogue and to respect the nation’s constitution, the rule of law and democratic processes so that issues can be resolved in a peaceful atmosphere. It also called for a cessation of the violence.
It was the sixth day of what’s being dubbed “Operation lock down Haiti,” in which the opposition has vowed to keep the country locked until Moïse resigns. On Wednesday, they reiterated their promise to keep schools, businesses and public transportation shut down across Haiti until Moïse leaves.
“The timing is very strange. He’s embattled down here. Why would he do this?” Georges Sassine, president of the Association of Haitian Industries, said about Moïse in reference to Altidor’s recall. “You don’t change a horse in the middle of crossing a river.”
Adding to those concerns is that the recall comes just days before Haiti Foreign Minister Edmond Bocchit is supposed to meet with Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton.
Bocchit has been seeking support for the Moïse administration in Washington ever since Haiti agreed to break with a longtime ally, Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, and recognize acting opposition leader Juan Guaidó as president. The discussion topics have included getting U.S. support for the purchase of subsidized rice for Haiti and help with getting Qatar to assist it in buying its $2 billion debt from Venezuela linked to its Petrocaribe discounted oil program, say sources familiar with the discussions.
Bocchit, who last week visited the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the State Department with influential Haitian businessman Andy Apaid, would not comment on the planned Bolton meeting. Apaid, a Moïse supporter, led the civil society movement that forced the ouster of president Jean-Bertrand Aristide from power in 2004 amid a bloody revolt.
Bocchit said Altidor’s recall “is part of a rotation principle.” Haiti’s ambassadors to the United Nations, Denis Regis, and Mexico, Guy Lamothe, were also recalled but will be given new responsibilities. Former Haiti Defense Minister Herve Denis will be the caretaker in the Washington embassy until the president chooses a new ambassador, Bocchit said. The timing of the decision to recall Altidor, Bocchit said, “is not really an issue.”
A former adviser for the World Bank’s International Financial Corporation and vice president of the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, Altidor came into the ambassador’s role with no public diplomacy experience during president Michel Martelly’s administration.
Determined to change the narrative of his crisis-plagued country, he opened up the embassy to congressional lawmakers, fellow ambassadors and Haitians. Among those who have visited the mission: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Georgia Democrat Rep. John Lewis and media executive and entrepreneur Cathy Hughes of Radio One.
“We opened the embassy up to the outside public,” Altidor said, noting that instead of going to meet members of Congress on Capitol Hill, they often came to him. And very often those meetings were held not in the top floor office, but in the bottom-floor kitchen where Altidor often invited lawmakers to join him in a meal of Haitian cuisine as they discussed topics relevant to Haiti.
One memorable meeting occurred in September 2017 as the Trump administration weighed whether to extend Temporary Protected Status for Haitians. Between meetings with U.S Department of Homeland Security officials and immigration advocates, Altidor hosted an intimate dinner for about a half-dozen Democratic lawmakers to craft a new strategy he hoped would convince the White House to extend the temporary program that has allowed thousands of Haitians to work and live in the U.S..
The strategy didn’t work, but the dinner accomplished something else.
“We have institutions coming to our doors, people who would not be otherwise interested in Haiti,” said Altidor, a graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology who also pursued graduate studies in law and economics at the University of Paris.
In January 2018, Altidor was in the U.S. spotlight again when it was reported that Trump referred to Haiti and other African nations as “shithole countries.” He was the first and only Haitian government official to respond to the remark, saying he vehemently condemned it and would use the publicity to continue to introduce a new narrative around Haiti.
That narrative has involved getting Americans to see Haiti as a country that is capable of luring investments, and to see Haitians as hard workers who contribute to the fabric of America.
“I made a point to ensure that the U.S community get a glance of the Haitian package, not just some of the bad things like we are seeing right now,” Altidor said, “but from the the history to the culture. Folks should know about that. And we’ve made significant progress.”
His efforts weren’t always appreciated. Critics accused him of spending too much time on community relations rather than diplomacy while lobbyists and want-to-be lobbyists sometimes went around him. The move often created confusion over who was speaking on behalf of the government.
Even DHS officials once questioned Altidor’s credentials, insisting that he was speaking more on behalf the Haitian diaspora than the government when he pushed for TPS renewal on behalf of Haitians in the United States. Altidor went as far as writing a letter on behalf of the Moïse administration on TPS when Port-au-Prince refused to do so.
Altidor, who points to his embassy’s 24-hour turnaround for Haitian passports among his accomplishments, said he’s proud of the fact that he’s managed to generate conversations around non-political issues he felt needed to be addressed.
“The embassy became a relevant institution in the Haitian conversation in Washington D.C. and beyond,” he said. “We accomplished a lot here.”
Amid violence in Haiti, Canadian government delays deportations
Canada Border Services Agency spokesperson did not indicate how long moratorium may last
CBC News · Posted: Feb 15, 2019 4:54 PM ET | Last Updated: 6 hours ago
The Canadian government has temporarily halted deportations to Haiti as violent protests continue to grip Port-au-Prince, the country's capital.
A spokesperson for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) said the decision was made Friday, but did not indicate how long the moratorium may last. People who are under removal orders could include those accused of crimes or those who are in Canada illegally.
A number of Canadians are also stranded in Haiti, unable to get out safely.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau commented on the situation during a morning event in Ottawa.
"Many Canadians have family members and friends in Haiti that they are, of course, worried about, and our hearts go out to them and we are offering our support," he said.
Trudeau said Global Affairs Canada and the country's diplomatic corps are working to keep Canadians who are trying to return home from Haiti informed.
But Katherine O'Neil, a registered nurse from Montreal, said she has received very little information from the government, especially now that the embassy has been closed for days.
She left the city Feb. 6 for what was supposed to be a week volunteering in a clinic in Petit Paradis, a town south of Port-au-Prince.
"We didn't receive an email, a phone call, a text message, nothing. What we would have appreciated was for them to reach out and say we're closing, this is your contact person, they will be in touch with you, they will let you know how to proceed. But we didn't receive that."
The Canadian government has temporarily halted deportations to Haiti as violent protests continue to grip Port-au-Prince, the country's capital.
A spokesperson for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) said the decision was made Friday, but did not indicate how long the moratorium may last. People who are under removal orders could include those accused of crimes or those who are in Canada illegally.
A number of Canadians are also stranded in Haiti, unable to get out safely.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau commented on the situation during a morning event in Ottawa.
"Many Canadians have family members and friends in Haiti that they are, of course, worried about, and our hearts go out to them and we are offering our support," he said.
Trudeau said Global Affairs Canada and the country's diplomatic corps are working to keep Canadians who are trying to return home from Haiti informed.
But Katherine O'Neil, a registered nurse from Montreal, said she has received very little information from the government, especially now that the embassy has been closed for days.
She left the city Feb. 6 for what was supposed to be a week volunteering in a clinic in Petit Paradis, a town south of Port-au-Prince.
"We didn't receive an email, a phone call, a text message, nothing. What we would have appreciated was for them to reach out and say we're closing, this is your contact person, they will be in touch with you, they will let you know how to proceed. But we didn't receive that."
And while she can communicate with family members now, she is worried that cellphone and internet service will eventually go down.
"We won't know when it's safe to proceed to the airport. We won't be able to get messages to our families that we're safe. And for me, that's scary."
Over the past eight days, at least seven people have died as Haitians protest against high unemployment rates and skyrocketing inflation.
They are demanding President Jovenel Moïse step down, which he has refused to do.
When asked whether Canada would continue to support Moïse's presidency, Trudeau would only say that Canada will "continue to provide assistance to the people of Haiti."
Still stranded
Protesters are blocking roads in and around Port-au-Prince, making it dangerous and, in some cases, impossible for some Canadians to get to the airport, which is in the capital.
Groups from New Brunswick, Alberta and Quebec say they are stranded across the country and waiting for the OK to travel toward Port-au-Prince.
A group of 26 high schoolers and four adult chaperones from Victoriaville, Que., have been in Haiti since last week. They were there on a humanitarian mission and are scheduled to return Feb. 20, according to Radio-Canada.
Quebec Premier François Legault said Friday that Air Transat is working with local authorities, the Canadian embassy in Haiti and the Canadian government to charter three helicopters to transport 113 vacationers from a resort northwest of Port-au-Prince to the airport, then fly them to Montreal.
O'Neil and her colleagues — a nurse from Nova Scotia and six from Ontario — are scheduled to return to Canada Monday aboard an Air Canada flight, but she is not sure whether that will happen.
Manned barricades are preventing her group from getting to the airport.
She said she heard another group staying nearby tried to travel to the airport, ran into barricade and had the windows of their vehicle smashed.
"There's been unrest in Haiti forever, so that did not come as a surprise, but the escalation of the violence, the escalation of the unrest, is something that we didn't expect."
On Thursday, the Global Affairs Canada website warned against non-essential travel, but the notice was updated Friday morning, warning the "security situation could further deteriorate quickly" and people should "consider leaving by commercial means while they are available."
This isn't the first time such delays have been put in place — in November, CBSA stopped removals to Haiti due to protests over fuel price hikes in Port-au-Prince.
