Haiti
Prime Minister denies attempting to bribe senators
Prime Minister Fritz William Michel has been formally denying bribes to some senators for the ratification of his policy statement.
In an interview with Radio Métropole on Friday, Michel said he had working sessions with members of all political blocs in the two branches of parliament. Continue reading
Tension rises in Port-au-Prince
Tension rises in Port-au-Prince, where unions and social movements are calling on the population to protest to express their fuss over the fuel crisis that has lasted for three weeks. Barricades of burning tires are appearing again in several neighborhoods.
Former Prime Minister Jean Michel Lapin said he is sensitive to the problems caused by the fuel crisis an reiterated that a large cargo of petroleum products is expected today in Port-au-Prince. Continue reading
“There is still money being distributed for the ratification of Prime Minister,” said Senator Kedlaire Augustin
Senator Kedlaire Augustin who was featured in the “Guest of the Day” program Friday, denied having received money from Prime Minister Fritz William Michel to give a favorable vote to the statement of general policy of the latter.
“Before I arrived, I do not know if we had talked about money. I left the meeting before its end, nor do I see if it was discussed after my departure. I challenge everyone, I put Sorel Jacinthe and PM Michel to prove that I received money. Senator Jacinthe must publish the videos and sounds that he says he has,” he said. Continue reading
Savior Pierre Étienne puts his finger in the wound of elections in Haiti in new book
Professor Sauveur Pierre Étienne has just published a new book on the elections in Haiti. This book titled Haiti: the funny electoral war 1987-2017 is the radiography of the electoral process in the country. The former presidential candidate goes back to the colonial period to show that the choice of the people’s representatives has never been a democratic process. The elections organized in the country at a more or less regular rate since the fall of the Duvalier regime follow this trend.
“The organization of elections in Haiti during the last three decades (1987-2017) has become a trap for cons, because it is not the candidate most able or the one gathering around his name the majority of the votes goes to, but rather the one enjoying the combined support of the foreigner and the politico-financial establishment of the Republic of Port-au-Prince, the candidate whose personality guarantees the maintenance of the multiple interests of those who have always directed the country by proxy,” writes Pierre Étienne.
According to the former leader of the OPL, no one needs to be a lucid analyst of the Haitian political scene during the last three decades to know that the verdict of the polls is a bonus to violence, to the fraud and hidden sources of funding. According to him, the elections in Haiti during these last thirty years constitute a joke, even a tragi-comedy. Continue reading
Beijing targets Haiti as bid to isolate Taiwan from its diplomatic allies heads to the Caribbean
The Caribbean nation of Haiti has become the latest target for Beijing as it seeks to isolate Taiwan from its dwindling diplomatic allies around the world.Haiti is one of just 17 countries that maintain diplomatic relations with the self-ruled island following a three-year campaign by Beijing to lure away its partners – launched after Tsai Ing-wen, from the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, was elected president in 2016 – that saw five nations switch allegiance.Haiti is one of just 17 countries that maintain diplomatic relations with the self-ruled island, five fewer than in 2016 when Tsai Ing-wen, from the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, was elected Taiwan’s president and Beijing started luring away Taipei’s allies. Continue reading
Lists & Guides
Herstory: 11 Haitian Women to Celebrate During Hispanic Heritage Month
Without the Haitian Revolution, there would be no Latin America today. Although Haiti was central to the creation of Latin American states, the fight for abolition of slavery and regional liberty from colonial oppression, few of those who consider themselves Latinx today know the role Haiti played in helping them overthrow the chains of Spanish oppression. Continue reading
Beauty & Style
Bed-Stuy boutique owners sell ethical, handmade Haitian-American clothing
A clothing boutique in Bed-Stuy is run by two Haitian-Americans who combined their innate love of fashion and their desire to give back to their country. Continue reading
Caribbean
Haitian Salvation Army Officers Denied Entry into Bahamas
Two Haitians living in Jamaica, who were hoping to join the early hurricane relief efforts in The Bahamas, were left stranded in Florida last week. Immigration officials insisted that they needed a Bahamian visa to enter the country. Continue reading
South Florida
A Giant Little Haiti Project is Met with Cautious Approval
Leonie Hermantin wants to do anything she can to make the Miami neighborhood of Little Haiti better for its residents and for the rich culture symbolized in murals — even if it means having a loose alliance with a giant commercial and residential project and losing friends in the process. Continue reading
Arts & Culture
Haitian Jazz and US Jazz: Historical Connections and Specificities
Where does U.S. or “American” jazz get its inspiration? This question may sound simple but, it is a complex one, since it has allowed scholars and researchers to produce a broad range of interdisciplinary scholarly works. Some argue that we cannot understand at all the genesis of U.S. or “American” jazz without devoting a keen attention to the contacts, connections and exchanges between the native Americans and the first immigrants who arrived as “refugees” in the United States of America, since the XV century, which coincides with what Immanuel Wallerstein typifies as a “global world economic system.” Continue reading