Eradication of Creole Pig, the biggest reason for Jean Claude Duvalier Downfall

February 7, 1986 will forever remain a historic day in Haiti. It was on that day that Jean Claude Duvalier dove with his family in their Mercedes to the airport where a pre-arranged US government flight took them to Paris for exile. The cause of his ousting from power was a combination of several issues: the deepening of poverty in Haiti, corruption and a lavish lifestyle initiated by the new First Lady, Michele Bennett.

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While life was beautiful at the National Palace in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian population was falling deeper and deeper into poverty. The biggest single event that caused the population to be fed up with the government was the eradication of Creole pig.

In response to an outbreak of African swine fever virus, American authorities instructed the Haitian Government seven years earlier prior to the the downfall of Jean Claude Duvalier to proceed on the total eradication of Haiti's pig population, better known as Creole Pig or "Cochon Creole". That decision caused an economic chaos among the peasant population, who bred pigs as an investment. The Creole pigs that require little to no cost for maintain were replace by some imported pigs that would require special food, something that most Haitian farmers were unable to afford.

By mid-1980s, as economic conditions worsened in Haiti, riots broke out in 1984. And by 1985, when some Tonton Macoute decided to open fire on school children and killed four of them in Gonaives, the the government became isolated

Jean Claude Duvalier on his final days declared himself to be as strong as a monkey's tail. We later realized that by that time plan was complete for his departure to exile.

Kreyol Pale, Kreyol Kompran

Anpil moun di se mariaj Michel Bennett la ki fè ke Jean Claude Duvalier tombe sou pouvwa. Yo di madanm sa te kwè nan fè ouè trop, ke li te gaspiye anpil lajan. Gin sa ki di si li pa te marye ak Michele, jiska prezan, Jean Claude te ape nan tet pouvwa.

Mon chè mwin di sa se pa vwe. Se pa lot bagay ki gete Jean Claude Duvalier, se decisyon ke Gouvenman Amerikin pran pou yo fè tiye tout Kochon Kreyol nou yo. Gouvenman-an pa te realize ke tout fortinn Abitan an Ayiti se nan Kochon Kreole yo mete li. Se kockon Kreyol sa ki Kess Bank yo, ki voye timoun lekol an Oktob. Se kochon Kreyol sa ki van lè ginyin yo ka maladi, yo ka lanmo

Ebyin, lè ke tout kochon sa yo vini disparet, Abitan-an vini pi pov. Yo paka voye ti moun yo lekol, yo grangoy.

Ginyin yon ti proveb ki di: "Lè'm Grangou Mwin Pa Jye".

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