Government - Haiti Observer Blog

The Haitian government is led by a president, who shares his/her executive power with the prime minister. Once elected by popular vote, the president will run the country for five years. After the term, the president could not run in the next election. He/she has to wait for five years in order to seek a second term. Haiti presidents can only serve for a maximum of two terms.

Not everyone can run for president as there are certain qualifications and requirements to be eligible for the seat. Only candidates with Haitian citizenship by birth can run for the position, as well as those who are at least 35 years of age. Jail sentence, loss of civil rights and lack of property ownership and residency can make a candidate ineligible to assume the position.

Read more →  

Haiti's court system is basically designed after the French system of civil law, the Roman Law and the Napoleonic Code. It is divided into four levels. The highest level is the Court de Cassation, which is also known as the Supreme Court. Under it are the Courts of Appeals, Courts of First Instance and Justice of the Peace Courts. Each level hast its own kinds of cases to hear and deal with.

The Court of Cassation is composed of a president, vice-president and ten judges. The Supreme Court president is usually chosen and appointed by the country's president. There are certain requirements for Supreme Court judges. One has to be at least 30 years old and should have a decade of law practice. Only judges who have served as a judge or a public lawyer for seven years are qualified for the Supreme Court seat. The highest court deals with matters involving law and decree unconstitutionality.

Read more →  

Haiti is run by a government with a bicameral legislature, which is composed of the Upper House (Senate) and the Lower House (Chamber of Deputies). These two houses make up the National Assembly, which is also known as a joint session of Parliament.

Based on the constitution, the National Assembly must be convened for specific reasons and purposes. When the National Assembly sets a meeting, important topics affecting the entire country are touched on. Such meetings are presided over by the Senate president, who is assisted by the president of the Chamber of Deputies. The secretaries of both houses, meanwhile, also serve the same role for the National Assembly.

Read more →  

The Haitian Prime Minister heads the country's government and shares executive powers with the head of state. The holder of the Prime Minister post is appointed by the incumbent president and gets approval from the National assembly.

The Prime Minister has the responsibility of law enforcement vested upon him and works alongside the president to ensure national defense.

Previous Haitian Prime Ministers:

February 9, 1988 - June 20, 1988 - Martial Célestin

June 20, 1988 - February 13, 1991 - Post abolished

Read more →  

A cabinet reshuffle is commonly the only way to solve economic and social challenges faced by any country.

A cabinet reshuffle makes a way out for non-performing ministers and replaces them with fresh leadership. The action may also have ministers reassigned to different ministries. The exercise is done to get a non-performing nation back on course.

Prevailing leadership problems are as a result of the absence of proper management and vision in the government of a country and putting in place a new team helps regain confidence.

Read more →  

Haiti's Carnival has a dark side when it comes to music played during its annual celebration . At the festival, revelers respond to messages contained within song lyrics, and what they suggest sometimes makes the government of Haiti (GOH) uneasy. Some songs encourage festival celebrants to act out their resentment at the GOH.

During Carnival '97, the monster hit of music group Koudjay, "Si Yo Vle", urged Haitians to hang amoral politicians then in power. In response, many symbolic hangmen's nooses whirled above the crowd. Although the GOH refrained from commenting on the song, they responded with a direct show of force. Forty SWAT officers were deployed to brandish their semi-automatic rifles at the crowd with gestures that intended serious injury.

Read more →  

I am not kidding!

The current Haitian president, Michel Martelly, admitted that Clifford Brandt kidnapping network was so powerful in Haiti that it has the ability to overthrow the Government.

The declaration came while the Haitian president was in Europe. Martelly made the declaration at a meeting with the EP Committee on Foreign Affairs, jointly with the Committee on Development and in association with a Delegation to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.

"We Need help"

According to Michel Martelly, "This is the first time in Haiti we dismantles a network of bandits of this magnitude".

Read more →  

Over the years, Haiti has dealt with several disasters. The latest calamity it had to face was Hurricane Sandy, which claimed the lives of more than 50 people. The hurricane also destroyed houses, farms and infrastructure when it battered the country for days. Threats of cholera outbreaks and other diseases also loom over the country as about 350,000 people lost their homes.

With the situation, the government under President Michel Martelly called on the international community for help. Together with the United Nations, the government asked for additional $74 million in relief aid, which will be used to rehabilitate farms and reconstruct homes, among others. Basically, the government is depending on foreign assistance to deal with the disaster's aftermath. The call for help was not ignored, as foreign charity organizations such as Oxfam and the United Nations relief agency have been working to help people affected by the hurricane.

Read more →  

Former head of presidential security, Mr. Carel Alexander will now serve as the director-general of Haiti's Ministry of Defense. During a ceremony on Tuesday, Defense Minister Jean Rodolphe Joazile announced Alexander's appointment. As the new director-general, Alexander will coordinate, monitor, and liaise all the ministry's technical and external services. He will closely work with Joazile.

In his speech, Carel Alexander, a former commander of the Corps of Intervention and Maintenance of Order and former head of presidential security, expressed appreciation over the appointment. He said that being named as the new Defense Ministry director-general is a chance for him to serve the country once again. He vowed to commit himself to the efforts of the Defense Ministry to protect the country and ensure peace and order. He promised to utilize his skills, knowledge, and capabilities to support the ministry's initiatives and to carry out the tasks given to him.

Read more →  

This is the end of an era once again in the history of Haiti. The Government announced that the non-profit aid group of Sean Penn will oversee the demolition of the wrecked National Palace, free of charge. According to Government spokesperson, Lucien Jura, Penn's J/P HRO group will begin the demolition in the next 10 days. Sean Penn holds the title as ambassador-at-large for Haiti.

The crumbled Haiti National Palace has symbolized the level of destruction that took place in the Port-au-Prince area following the 2010 earthquake. Thousands of buildings were destroyed and over 200,000 people died.

Read more →