Breaking News

Haiti: Aristide and the removal of Alexis

Anthony — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 20:46:10 -0400

ttp://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/4_13_8/4_13_8.html
HIP - Port au Prince, Haiti — The situation in Haiti was thrown into further confusion on April 12 as the Haitian parliament passed a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis. Led by rightists in Haiti's parliament such as Senators Youri Latortue, Adris Riche and renegade Lavalas party Senator Roudy Herveaux , the vote of censure was passed on April 12, 2008 at 11:55 am EST.
President Rene Garcia Preval, following controversial U.N.-sponsored elections in 2006, appointed Alexis as Prime Minister. Alexis served for an administration touted as a coalition government backed by the United States and the international community that included members of the so-called opposition that forced former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide into exile in 2004. Alexis' administration gave the final appearance of a legal veneer to the ouster of Aristide and his political movement known as Lavalas by co-opting former grass-roots leaders into his government.

Haiti Coup Anniversary: FEBRUARY 29TH ACTIONS PLANNED WORLDWIDE

Anthony — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:27:10 -0500

HAITI LIBERTE
"Justice. Verite. Independance
* THIS WEEK IN HAITI *
February 20 - 26, 2008
Vol. 1, No. 31
FEBRUARY 29TH ACTIONS PLANNED WORLDWIDE
by Kim Ives
Thousands around the world will mark the fourth anniversary of Haiti's
February 29, 2004 coup d'etat and foreign military invasion with picket
lines, marches and conferences.

"Four years after US Marines seized control of Haiti's capital and installed
a US-appointed coup regime, Haiti is still under foreign military
occupation, by a UN force that replaced the Marines in June 2004," writes
the "Feb. 29th Organizing Committee" in a call to action for the Third
International Day in Solidarity with the People of Haiti. "It is an
occupation marked by rapes and wanton killings of the poor."

The "Feb. 29th Organizing Committee" proposes united actions for a "single
worldwide mobilization" around seven demands: 1) End the US/UN Occupation -
Respect Haiti's sovereignty; 2) Free the political prisoners - No more

Haiti's wealthy prosper while the poor decline

Anthony — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:10:14 -0500

Haiti's wealthy prosper while the poor decline
http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/1_29_8/1_29_8.html
HIP - Port au Prince, Haiti — Cite Soleil, a seaside shantytown of more than 300.000 people residing in homes made of cinder blocks with tin roofs, has been described as poorer than India's infamous slums of Calcutta. On any given day it teems with the life's blood of Haiti's poorest citizens.
Despite the twists and turns of what residents describe as several foreign interventions, members of the community still recount with pride how they served as a launching site for former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide's first election campaign in 1990.

Yannick Jean, a frail 70 year-old woman whose longevity itself is a testament to hope, spoke in hushed tones as she washed her clothes in a ditch of dirty water, "We were the ones who presented Aristide to Haiti when he ran for president. He was our greatest hope. I am waiting for him again."

UN Occupiers Accused of Human Rights Violations in Haiti

Anthony — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:21:07 -0500

UN Troops Accused of Human Rights Violations in Haiti
by Maria Luisa Mendonça | January 21, 2008
Americas Program, Center for International Policy (CIP)
http://americas.irc-online.org/
The UN Security Council decided in October 2007 to extend the mandate of the MINUSTAH (United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti) through Oct. 15, 2008. The Brazilian Government is responsible for coordinating the MINUSTAH forces that include approximately 9,000 troops. Yet there is very little discussion in Brazil about the country's role in the occupation of Haiti, and especially, about the accusations leveled against the UN troops for their participation in human rights violations.

Halifax: Hip Hop for Haiti Event

Anthony — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:17:46 -0500

'Hands off Haiti' CD release party
featuring
The IMF & Rez Villain
Friday, Jan 25th @ Ginger's Tavern, Halifax
$5 at the door, or free if you buy a CD.
The show is a release party for the 'Hands off Haiti' hip-hop CD compilation. The CD is a project of the Canada Haiti Action Network and features some of the top hip-hop and urban artists in Canada including DL Incognito, Mood Ruff, LAL, the Dope Poet Society, EMC and the Legendary Haitian Folk singer, So Ann Auguste.

Funds raised from the CD will go to support human rights organizations working in Haiti.

This event is brought to you by Haiti Action Halifax with much support from CKDU Radio

More info:
www.myspace.com/handsoffhaiti
www.thac.ca
www.canadahaitiaction.ca

Pentagon's troubling role in Haiti

Anthony — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 13:53:27 -0500

Pentagon's troubling role in Haiti
HIP - Port au Prince, Haiti - Most people do not know that the Pentagon is directly involved in funding pacification programs in Haiti due to the presence of a large UN mission in that country. A reminder of the Defense Department's role in Haiti came Friday when protesters burned tires outside of Cite Soleil's mayor's office to call attention to a $20 million program called the "House of Justice" initiative.

One of the protesters who spoke via telephone on condition of anonymity stated, "We are taking this action to draw attention to the fact that our country is now being run almost completely by the US government. Although the UN may cover for them, it has always been the US who called the shots."

Human rights activists under fire in Haiti

Anthony — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 13:52:00 -0500

Human rights activists under fire in Haiti
HIP - Port au Prince, Haiti - Amnesty International released it's third human rights alert this month on behalf of community-based human rights advocates in Haiti. It comes five months after the abduction of psychologist and human rights leader Lovinsky Pierre-Antoine last August 12.

Wilson Mesilien, the interim coordinator of Mr. Pierre-Antoine's group the September 30th Foundation, was recently forced into hiding. Mr. Mesilien and his family left their home for an undisclosed location on December 19 after receiving numerous threats according to Amnesty International.

Human rights defender forced into hiding in Haiti

Anthony — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 19:05:07 -0500

Human rights defender forced into hiding in Haiti
December 27, 2007
HIP - Port au Prince, Haiti - A human rights worker whose colleague was abducted last August has been forced into hiding after receiving new threats. Wilson Mesilien has been serving as the interim head of the September 30th Foundation, a human rights organization based in Port-au-Prince. He assumed the role of interim director of the organization after the abduction and disappearance of the it's founder Lovinsky Pierre-Antoine over four months ago.

Confédération des travailleurs haitiens: Launches Website and New Campaigns

Anthony — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 21:04:45 -0500

November 24th, 2007
Confédération des travailleurs haitiens: Launches Website and New Campaigns
By: Nazaire St Fort and Jeb Sprague - HaitiAnalysis.com
The Confederation of Haitian Workers (CTH), which is made up of eleven labor federations and three national commissions, has officially launched a website according to its General Secretary Paul Chery. Haiti, just south-east of Cuba and bordering the Dominican Republic, is host to a long thriving labor movement.

One Lavalas official freed in Haiti, second remains missing

Anthony — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 18:52:41 -0400

One Lavalas official freed in Haiti, second remains missing
Haiti Information Project
October 31, 2007