Montreal - Haiti Observer Blog

Le 7e Festival Fondu au Noir offrira une grande célébration du Mois de l'Histoire des Noirs à Montréal du 22 au 25 février 2018 à travers un programme alliant cinéma, humour, musique et discussions.

Le Festival Fondu au Noir, créé par la Fondation Fabienne Colas et présenté par la Banque TD, revient avec une 7e édition inspirante et diversifiée. 2018 étant une année mythique soulignant les 215 ans de l'indépendance d'Haïti, le Festival a choisi le thème hommage à Haïti et ses talents tout en commémorant, en clôture du Festival à travers le film The Rape of Recy Taylor, l'important mouvement planétaire #MoiAussi, qui inspire les femmes à se tenir debout et à s'exprimer.

Read more →  

Protesters in Montreal, Canada denounce the denationalization of Dominican of foreign descent

Demonstrators gathered on the streets of Montreal to condemn the Dominican Republic (DR) government's denationalization policy, affecting many hundreds of thousands Haitians and Dominican-Haitians. The DR's Constitutional Court ruled in 2013 Haitian migrants and their descendants, dating back to 1929, could no longer be considered citizens. The ruling also extends to Haitians who have Dominican ancestry.

Asma Heurtelou, Haitian-Canadian Caring Organization (HCCO) president, in a vague statement, says if there is an illegal situation concerning Haitian migrants, HCCO does not criticize the DR for it. However, the issue for HCCO is ". . . asking . . . their rights are respected", referring to Haitian descendants of migrants and Dominicans.

Read more →  

Unexpected decision by the Government of Martelly-Paul to remove the current Consul General of Haiti in Montreal. Many people who have been observing the current government have concluded that something must have happened for the decision.

On Friday, September 4th, Justin Viard, the Consul General of Haiti in Montreal was called back from his responsibility. He was removed from his office by the Martelly-Evans administration for some undisclosed reasons which were not communicated by the Government of Haiti or by the Consul General himself. Justin was neither transferred, demoted nor posted to any other position on the diplomatic structure of Haiti whether inside or outside the country; he was simply revoked. The announcement of the sudden revocation of Justin Viard, the Consul General of Haiti in Montreal, caused many reactions of misunderstanding within the Haitian community of Montreal. The exact cause of wrath that might have motivated the decision of Port-au-prince is still unknown, however, some sources indicate that it could lead to the use of diplomatic representation of Haiti by a third party for private commercial purposes.

Read more →  

Music promoter, Ewald Étienne, was gunned down last Thursday, December 17, 2014 in front of his home close to Maurice-Duplessis Blvd. in Montreal

Ewald Stephen who was 35 years old was also a cafe owner and bank employee. He has been described by many as a very kind and gentle person.

Haitian-born, Montreal-based show promoter Ewald Etienne became the 27th homicide victim for the city for the year when he was murdered in Rivière-des-Prairies, Montreal. The victim, 35 years of age, sustained at least one gunshot to the upper body in the incident that took place on 63rd Avenue, outside of a home near Maurice-Duplessis Boulevard.

Read more →  

Aeroports de Montreal (ADM) is working with the Republic of Haiti's Autorite Aeroportuaire (ANN), with funding provided by the Canadian Embassy in Haiti, to donate airport inventory, used at the former Mirabel terminal, to Cap Haitien International Airport (CHIA). The inventory includes 100 ticket counters, baggage scales, 2,000 luggage vehicles, and 500-plus lounge seats, all retrieved by ADM when Mirabel terminal closed. Now the equipment is being shipped to Miami and then back to Haiti to be installed at CHIA.

ADM CEO James Cherry says this first shipment of inventory to CHIA will start a process of eventually supplying all major airports in Haiti with adequate furnishings and equipment to make them more operable and tourist-friendly.

Read more →  

Emmanuel Dubourg, the Federal Deputy of Bourassa constituency in Quebec is a Haitian origin who is a politician, a teacher and a Chartered Accountant. He has paid a recent visit at the Haitian Embassy in Ottawa in Canada where he was received by the Haitian Ambassador Frantz Liautaud & the staff of the mission.

The Federal Deputy of Bourassa, Emmanuel Dubourg was a member of the National Assembly for the provincial electoral district between 2007 and 2013. He was the third black member of the National Assembly (MNA) of Quebec as deputy of Viau till he got elected as the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Montreal riding of Bourassa on 25 November 2013. He was a teacher of many renowned educational institutions like Université du Québec à Montréal, CEGEP Montmorency and Université du Québec en Outaouais. He has been honored with many awards and citations for his excellent contributions and innovative thoughts over the years, like, "Governor General's Medal" (for his vice-regal representation of the monarch), "Revenue Canada" in 1992 (for excellent administration of Tax Laws) and "Black History Month Award" in 2006 (for his work in the Black Community, awarded in remembrance of important African Diasporas).

Read more →  

Frantz Benjamin, member of the Montréal City Council (MCC), was designated as President of MCC by Mayor Denis Coderre. It is an auspicious appointment, being Benjamin is the first Haitian-American to hold the post. His appointment has sent a message to Montréal that minority politicians are a force to be reckoned with in the future.

Benjamin once belonged to the Union Montréal party but quit in 2012. He was a staunch supporter of then-mayor Gérald Tremblay, who was facing corruption charges at the Charbonneau Commission Hearings. Benjamin continued as a rogue councilor until 2013 when Denis Coderre won the Montréal mayor's office and Benjamin affiliated with Coderre's party.

Read more →  

A trade mission to four cities in Canada took place between November 19 and 23. Within the delegation were those wishing to strengthen the trade relations between Haiti and the North American country. 40 representatives of Haitian businesses and the wider public sector flew to Canada to be part of the effort.

The cities of Ontario, Quebec, Montreal and Ottawa hosted the members of the Haitian-Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HCCCI), which had its start nearly ten years ago, and continues to foster good business relations between the two countries. The hope of this trip was to stir up continued interest in the creation of business and partnership opportunities between Canada and Haiti.

Read more →  

The coming Bourassa by-election has shown that Haitian people are becoming more politically active. The soulful voice of Bran Van 3000 Stéphane Moraille, a mother, music lover and an experienced lawyer with expertise in copyright law has confirmed that she will seek nomination of New Democratic and use her voice for the exclusive use of the people of Bourassa. She further added that an MP should be in tune with the aspirations of all the citizens. The concern of a common family should be considered indifferently as the concern for the country as a whole. Her candidacy will be confirmed if she clears the highly competitive NDP nomination.

Read more →  

History of Haitian migration is pretty old. While millions cross the borders to become permanent residents of other countries, there are millions others who ride the same ferry but only to return after some time. Millions of Haitian people migrate and settle in Bahamas, Montreal in Canada, Cancun and Mexico City in Mexico, Cuba, United States and Dominican Republic. Other countries like French Guiana, French Antilles, France, Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire, Chile, Puerto Rico, Turks and Caicos and Jamaica also have vast numbers of Haitian diaspora.

As of date, it is estimated that around 1.2 million Haitian people live in U.S. with proper documents while there are many others that have entered U.S. borders illegally. Canada is reported to have 200,000 Haitians while Dominican Republic is estimated to have 2 million Haitians. Bahamas accounts for 80,000 Haitians while the reported figure for France is 90,000.

Read more →