Constitution Facts - Haiti Observer Blog

Charles Riviere-Herard seized power as Haiti's 5th president in 1843, after staging a coup. His reason was the amended 1843 Constitution, passed without his knowledge. Hérard ruled for one year, plagued by two civil uprisings, and failure to repossess the Dominican Republic (DR) as part of Haiti's empire.

During the battle to re-establish Haitian rule over the DR, insurgents were gathering in rural Les Cayes. Known as the Army of the South, they fought to capture Port-au-Prince in a coup attempt. But they did not succeed. In the meantime, another uprising was fomenting in northern Haiti, incited by opposition to Charles Riviere-Herard's government. Confronted with the latest effort to unseat him from office, he tried to maintain control by breaking up Parliament and banning the amended 1843 Constitution. After dissolution of his government, he fled from office and exiled himself to Jamaica where his life ended.

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Title I. Abolishes slavery, grants residents full citizenship rights, protects property, and administers the death penalty for murder.

Title II. Sets up organization of government, appointing Henry Christophe President and Commander-in-Chief of the military. Empowers him to appoint his successor, sign treaties, and declare war.

Title III. Establishes Council of State and its functions under the President. Creates an Office of the Budget, presided over by a Budget Finance Director.

Title IV. Budget Finance Director shall also handle administration of Navy and Interior.

Title V. Creates a Secretary of State responsible for all intra- and inter-departmental correspondence, preparation of official government documents, and co-signatory duties.

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François Duvalier, Haiti's 40th President, raised in a prosperous family and well-educated, obtained his medical degree from the University of Haiti. He was a compassionate public-health official, who brought relief to Haitians suffering outbreaks of tropical illnesses. This earned him the name Papa Doc. He retained it forever, using it as a tool of manipulation.

After Duvalier returned from exile (due to a coup of a political ally), he ran on a populist platform for the presidency. Supported by the Haitian Army, he attacked mulatto elites, aligning himself with black nationals. He won the election against Déjoie, a mulatto real-estate tycoon.

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The Constitution of Saint-Domingue Haiti was signed in 1801 by Governor-General for Life Toussaint L'Ouverture, the ruler of Hispaniola before Haiti became a republic.

Title I. Refers to the colony of Saint-Domingue, the seat of cities and neighboring islands, subject to French rule. Sets up the divisions of departments, arrondissements, and parishes.

Title II. Abolishes slavery, introduces anti-discrimination rules, and employment rights.

Title III. Establishes Christianity as the official religion of the colony. Forbids men of God from organizing for political reasons.

Title IV. Protects the legal rights of spouses as long as they remain faithful and their children born of their sanctified or civil union.

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