politic - Haiti Observer Blog

The Video that says it all: Division in Fanmi Lavalas. The supporters of Moise Jean Charles would not let Maryse Narcisse talk. Can this division actually take down Fanmi Lavalas?

Here is the video that will explain all that. D

What do you think will likely happen?

Will Moise Jean Charles and Arnel Belizaire be reinstated in the Fanmi lavalas to avoid any further problem/

What do you think Jena Bertrand Aristide should do at this point?

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A gesture that has been making quite a story on the net. President Barack Obama is seeing shaking the hand of Raul Castro during the memorial service for Nelson Mandela.

So what is the big deal with this handshake? Was this a pre-planned encounter

Mwin pa konnin pou rou, min mwin konnin ke pa ginyin anpil "akcidan nan politik. Si nou kwè ke sa te yon coinsidans, se zafè pa-ou. Mon Chè sa te fè pati de plan-an tande. Obama tap cherche okasyo sa

Eske tap gin yon pi bel opotinite pou Prezidan Obama pou li tava piblikman montre le mond ke li vle travay avek Raul Castro?

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Is the popular and famous slogan "Tet Kale" that contributed to the election of Michel Martelly is now turning against him? One might think so if you have been listening to the opposition lately. Michel Martelly had so much success with the slogan "Tet Kale", he recently made the decision to form a new political party named "Tet kale"

One thing I am sure Michel Martelly did not think about in selecting the popular slogan "Tet Kale", is how easy it would be to turn it to a critic against his own government.

Maybe the opposition should thank the Haitian Creole language for its various abilities, one of which is the ability to completely the meaning of words by just switching their position. The slogan "Tet Kale" has been working so well for Michel Martelly, that is until people started calling it a government of "Kale Tet".

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This is something that you can expect to be big in the next several day.

Lawyer André Michel who filed the corruption complaint against First Lady Sophia Martelly and her son Olivier Martelly was arrested in Martissant

The arrest came after the Human Rights Lawyer André Michel parked his car near a police sub-station in Martissant. He had requested the presence of his attorney. As a large crowd began to protest the arrest, an impressive detachment of CIMO agents barricaded the police station in Martissant not to allow anyone to enter and did not take time to start firing tear gas on the crowd. Subsequently, André Michel was taken away.

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Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haiti's 54th president, served as one of a handful of full-term rulers since the island's independence was won in 1804. Controversial, misunderstood, maligned, and a pawn for foreign interests' agendas, he was driven from office at the end of his second term in 2004. Exiled to Africa where he remained until 2011, he continued to exert influence through his party Fanmi Lavalas.

Through his contacts with foundations outside Haiti, he received an endowment to start the Aristide Foundation for Democracy (AFD). With this endowment and other funding from the government of Haiti, Aristide built the Aristide Foundation University (AFUNI). The mission of AFUNI is the advancement of social-justice principles as part of the ethos of AFUNI's purpose.

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Repons Peyizan (RP), a citizens' progressive political-policy group, is preparing for legislative and local elections to happen sometime in 2013. They have appointed new members of the National Coordination (NC) and Executive Committees (EC). NC Coordinator, Fednel Monchery, retained his office, while Henry Èliahou Patrick and Philippe Pierre Giordany won Deputy Coordinator and Executive Secretary positions. EC elected a new Secretary, Francis Thézé and new members Robenson Bléhus, Wilson Bernier, Mirlène Duval, and Nativita Désinor.

EC Secretary Thézé acknowledged EC would be at the Permanent Electoral Council headquarters and local precincts to monitor the ballot-counting to ensure free, fair, and transparent results. RP has ten incumbent senators vying for re-election at the national level.

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Haitian society has long been challenged by the problem of gang violence, said to be one of the main causes of instability on the island. Gang violence encompasses a broad spectrum and stereotypes do not apply. The international community has been studying this problem, and the non-government organization, International Development Research Center, has released its latest report defining gang organizations and their members.

Four main types of gang groups operate in civil and political life in Haiti. The most recognizable of them are street gangs, who give themselves colorful names like "Rat" and "Sans Teté". These groups are not well organized, and carry crude weapons. Another gang category consists of ex-military and soldier-of-fortune members. Closely allied with them are paramilitary groups and goons. Criminal activities include drug trafficking, loan sharking, and union violence. The most professional gangs belong to mobs, who engage in racketeering, sales of arms, and gambling.

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Rosalvo Bobo became a Haitian revolutionary and government official as America and Europe entered World War I. Although educated as a physician and attorney, his strong political views and dominant personality led him to seek power in Haitian politics.

In 1914, Haiti had been a free republic for a decade, having won its independence from France. But it had not been successful as a stable government, having witnessed a turnover of three presidents in less than two years.

Near the end of 1914, Rosalvo Bobo led a military invasion on a prison holding detainees, which failed, forcing him to find sanctuary at the German embassy. After five days secreted, Bobo reappeared, announcing he was leading a rebellion to unseat President Oreste Zamor from office. He was successful and Davilmar Theodore came into power. Theodore named Bobo Secretary of State of the Interior and Commander of the Haitian police. However, both Bobo and Theodore's time in power was cut short.

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Throughout the history of Haiti, only a few political parties have had a strong organizational structure. In the 1870s and the 1880s, the Liberal Party and the National Party were the two dominant political parties in Haiti reflecting the social and class division that exists in the country. On one side, you see the Liberals party composed mainly of the wealthier and better-educated mulatto minority in Haiti. On the other hand, the Nationalists Party, made mainly of the lower-and middle-class black majority.

Following the United States occupation (1915-34), the nationalist parties organized around the issue of resistance to foreign occupation. The political parties in Haiti started multiplying during the presidential campaign of 1946. Many candidates were participating, including: Parti Socialiste (PSP), Parti Democrate Unifi (PDU), Mouvement Ouvrier Paysan (MOP) and many more. During the Duvalier reign, most political leaders had been silenced.

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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.

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