Stenio Vincent - Haiti Observer Blog

The government of Haiti GOH) has passed almost as many constitutions as it has survived coup d'etats. Haiti's current Constitution, passed in 2012, is the 23rd one written into law.

The first Constitution of Saint-Domingue in 1801 appointed General Toussaint L'Ouverture as ruler for life. It also put an end to slavery, democratized hiring practices, and prohibited all religions except Catholicism. The 1805 Constitution allowed all forms of religious faith and approved reverse-race discrimination, calling all citizens black. The 1807 Constitution removed the reverse-race discrimination clause.

In 1816, the 1806 Constitution was revived, declaring President Alexandre Pétion President for Life. It also gave him unilateral power over Parliament. But under Jean-Baptiste Riché, the 1816 Constitution was put into effect again.

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Stenio Vincent was the 30th President of Haiti, from 1930-1941. Born of mixed-race parentage, he earned his law-school degree by his 18th birthday. He rose to prominence in the leadership role in the Chamber of Deputies before running for the presidency. As part of his political platform, he voiced extreme disapproval of the U.S. occupation of Haiti. Vincent won the National Assembly majority vote and assumed office in October 1930.

By 1934, after U.S. military forces pulled out, Stenio Vincent began oppressing opposition leaders, spying on and incarcerating them. Now a loyal supporter of U.S. democracy, he became signatory on a trade agreement with them. In 1935, he won the popular vote, keeping him in office until 1941.

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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.

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An on-going debate over whether the practice of voodoo is being threatened by the amended 1987 Constitution has stirred the embers of its practitioners' fears.

Voodoo, brought to Haiti by Congolese slaves, became entrenched in Haitian culture, early in its history.

In 1935, under the rule of Stenio Vincent, the 1935 Decree Law defined voodoo as a superstitious belief system and banned the practice of it. For over 50 years, the Decree Law was not tampered with. By 1987, though, the amended Constitution struck down the Decree Law with Article 297, invalidating the definition of voodoo as a superstitious practice. A presidential decree on April 4, 2003, further legitimized the voodoo faith. But in May 2011, Article 297 was annulled, and has given rise to fears that voodooists would suffer persecution for their beliefs.

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