Haiti Observer Blog

The adorable Naomi Osaka discusses her victory over Serena Williams in Grand Slam final.

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The only Haitian-American Senator in Florida, Daphné Campbell who has been Senator of District 38 (North-East of Miami-Dade) for 8 years, lost her seat during the elections held in Florida on August 28.

She lost to former Attorney Jason Pizzo, who won 54.2% of the votes.

Haitian-American Daphné Campbell, Senator of District 38, Lost Her Seat

On Tuesday, August 28, 2018, Haitian-American Daphné Campbell, a Democratic member of the Florida Senate District 38 of the North-East of Miami-Dade, lost her 8 year old seat to former Attorney Jason Pizzo. Pizzo is a wealthy former prosecutor, received 54.2% of the votes. Pizzo walked away easily with nearly a 9% victory margin. Northeast Miami-Dade district includes the largest Haitian population in the country which extends west from the Beach to the west of I-95, and includes cities like Aventura, Miami Beach, North Miami, and portions of the City of Miami. Pizzo spent more than a million dollars of his own money on his election campaign emphasizing public safety, climate change and a living wage for workers.

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The problem of Domestic violence will not likely go away soon in Haiti. Unless many people in the society change their attitude, husband will continue to beat their wife for burning the food, arguing with him, going out without telling him, neglecting the children or refusing to have sex. This is what the Mortality, Morbidity and Utilization Survey (EMMUS-VI) revealed.

According to the report, the percentage of Haitian men aged 15-49 who think it is justified for a husband to beat his wife or partner is as follows:
15-19 years old: 15.2%
20-24 years old: 12.8%
25-29 years: 10.2%
30-34 years: 7.9%
35-39 years: 7.9%
40-44 years: 7.1%
45-49 years: 6.8%

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In just a few years, it is expected that cotton could become Haiti's white gold providing millions of pounds of organic cotton for clothing, shoes, shirts and other clothing sold in the US and other countries.

the revival of cotton production in Haiti is a project supported by Brazil and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in a trilateral cooperation,

An attempt to promote the production of Cotton in Haiti was made in the 1950s by some Brazilian firms. The project was abandoned in the late 80s due to parasitic problems, especially the cotton weevil.

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The former Minister of Public Health and Population between 1999-2001 and the former president of the Haitian Red Cross in Haiti, Dr. Michaëlle Amédée Gédéon died hours after a vehicle hit her car. She was returning from the Grand'Anse Department.

Dr. Michaëlle Amédée Gédéon was rushed to a hospital in Les Cayes, but she was not able to receive proper emergency care. She was then transported to Bernard Mevs Hospital where she actually passed away.

Isn't It Ironic to see that someone who has worked all her life protecting the life of others ended up dead due to a lack of care.

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This is a sign that the time has changed. American Airlines is reducing his flights to Haiti. Effective November 3, 2018, the airline will reduce its daily flights from six to four. All flights will be departing from Miami International Airport and fly direct to Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, including one to Cap-Haitien.

Airlines will no longer fly direct to Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport or New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

American Airlines is reducing its number of daily flights from six to four departing Miami International Airport for Port-au-Prince and Haiti's second largest city, Cap-Haitien. With effect from November 3, 2018, there will be 3 daily direct flights from Miami to Port-au-Prince and 1 daily flight to Cap-Haïtien.

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The Chilean Government recognizes the importance of Haitian workers to their economy. They are encouraging more immigration of Haitian citizens with the establishment of a family reunification program that has been in place since July 2, 2018.

How does it works?

The application process begins in Chile where the Haitian citizen living and working there must write a certified letter requesting family reunification. Then, the applicant in Chile needs to contact the office of the International Organization for Migration (IOM in Haiti) to follow up.

Here is how to contact IOM in Haiti:
- Phones : 2947-7746/ 2991-0362 /2997-7566
- Email : haiticavc@iom.int

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The President of the Chamber of Deputy, Gary Bodeau, does not seems to be intimidated by recent accusations on members of the Haitian parliament. These accusations consist of having the legislative power working for their self-interest instead of the interest of the entire population.

The president of the Deputy Chamber, Gary Bodeau, said that he is not afraid of being involved in the appointment of ministers under the new government. He further argued that it would be preferable that important positions of the public administration are entrusted to competent personalities. The evaluation of competence will likely be done by people like him and his peers.

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Four years ago, the SLS South Beach Hotel in Miami was hit with a lawsuit by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for alleged discrimination against their Haitian workers. Seventeen Haitian dishwashers employed there were forbidden from speaking Haitian Creole. The Haitian workers were also asked to drag heavy items up the the 13th floor of the hotel by stairs. For the Hispanic workers, not only they were free to chat Spanish, they also did not have to carry any heavy items anywhere.

One time, a Haitian worker asked his manager to fix the broken service elevator in the hotel, the boss stated:

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Frantz Pierre, a Haitian-American Commissioner in North Miami Beach Florida was indicted Wednesday July 25, 2018, charged with accepting bribe from a strip club owner.

According to Miami Herald, Commissioner Frantz Pierre and his non-profit organization received more than $20,000 from the owner of Dean's Gold strip club in North Miami Beach in exchange for his vote for a special operating license allowing the club to serve alcohol after-hours. He offered his commission vote in exchange for money to a strip club owner in an attempt to renew a business license.

He was charged with one count each of bribery, unlawful compensation, organized scheme to defraud and grand theft and seven counts of money laundering.

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