Roger Lafontant - Haiti Observer Blog

Four students were shot to death in the city of Gonaives by soldiers and Tonton macoute of the Duvalier regime in November, 1986. The security forces opened fire on an anti-government demonstration in the northern during several months. The government was desperate and made use of some of the most oppressive measures to stop the popular protest against Jean Claude Duvalier, including press censorship and jailing of opposition political figures.

One of the point that signaled the beginning of an end to the JeanClaude duvalier regime was his Cabinet Reshuffle of 1985. As the pressure was mounting from the population for Jean Claude Duvalier to get out of power, in a surprising 1:00a.m announcement, he announced a major Cabinet Reshuffling. He removed four principal Cabinet ministers following the shooting death of four school children in Haiti. The student were part of the general protest in the country demanding an end to the Duvalier regime.

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Herard Abraham was born on July 28th 1940 in Port-au-Prince. At a very young age he enlisted himself into the Haitian army. He rose in the ranks of the army and also had a short stint in politics. So he can be called an army man and a political figure.

Foreign Minister

Hérard Abraham rose to the position of Lieutenant General of the Haitian Force Arme D'Haiti and became a close member of the inner circle of the Duvalier family.

In spite of being close to the Duvalier Family, Herard Abraham joined hands with the new president Henri Namphy. He served as the foreign minister in the new government, his first political post.

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During an interview with Valery Numa at Radio Vision 2000 this week, former Haitian president, Ertha Pascal Trouillot, was showed little reserve. She managed to give us some important facts during her government.

She was very hard on another former Haitian president. Ertha denounced a conspiracy created by former President Jean Bertrand Aristide and the Lavalas group in the objective of murdering her.

She went into some details on the Coup D'etat orchestrated by the late Roger Lafontant one January 6, 1991.

Ertha Pascal Trouillot also blamed Jean Bertrand Aristide for not taking the opportunity he had at the time to reconcile the nation with itself and at the same time bring Haiti on the path of development.

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Roger Lafontant (1931-1991), known as the former leader of Tonton Macoutes, a death squad he founded. While at medical school, attempted a 1991 coup d'etat to oust Ertha Pascal-Trouillot's provisional government that later led to his death in prison.

A loyalist supporter of President François Duvalier, a despot whose family ruled Haiti for three decades, Roger Lafontant was appointed Minister of Interior and National Defense in 1972, under Jean-Claude Duvalier, the son of the elder Duvalier. But his personal ambitions caused Duvalier to re-assign him as consul in Montreal, Canada. However, hereturned to Haiti in 1983, and was promoted to higher office as Minister of State for the Interior and National Defense. Apparently, he had learned his lesson.

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This video will definitely mean something to many Haitians. It was a time when Haiti was under the dictatorship of Jean-Claude Duvalier. Some people have positive memories of the Duvalier the same way some have negative memories. For some people who will be watching this video, it will remind them of a time when things were good for them in Haiti. However for many, this can only remind them of abuse, repression, death and exile.

During the Duvalier era many names became popular; some in a noble aspect; but many, in unscrupulous ways. Some of the names during both Francois Duvalier and Jean-Claude Duvalier that became famous include the following:

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