Haiti: Nearly a Million People Took to the Streets.They Want the Western-imposed government out of

[loyola llothta]

The tragedy of Haiti

In 2000, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haiti’s first democratically elected president, was elected for a second term on a platform that explicitly rejected the neoliberal “free market,” debt and austerity policies imposed on Haiti by the U.S., the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

The U.S. responded to Aristide’s reelection by cutting off foreign aid to Haiti and setting up training camps in the Dominican Republic, where up to 200 U.S. special operations forces trained Haitian death squads to cross the border, assassinate Aristide’s supporters and terrorize the population.

In February 2004, these U.S.-trained death squads joined forces with a militia called the Cannibal Army in Gonaives, where they sacked the police station and took control of the city. Two weeks later, they seized Cap Haitien, Haiti’s second largest city.

As the U.S.-trained death squads threatened to march on the Haitian capital Port-Au-Prince, a U.S. embassy official and U.S. special operations forces entered the Presidential Palace and "persuaded" Aristide and his family to leave with them. A thousand U.S. Marines, plus French, Canadian and Chilean troops, invaded and occupied Haiti.

The U.S. flew Aristide to Antigua and then to the Central African Republic (CAR), where General Francois Bozize had just seized power in a Western-backed military coup. The Jamaican government rescued Aristide and his family from the CAR and brought them to Jamaica for a few months until they were granted permanent sanctuary in South Africa. Aristide was finally allowed to return to Haiti in 2011, and he is still widely seen as the only popular democratic leader Haiti has ever had.

Since 2004, when Aristide’s Fanmi Lavalas party was banned, elections in Haiti have been so obviously rigged and illegitimate that voter turnout has declined from at least 50% in 2000 (despite an opposition boycott), when Aristide won 92% of the votes, to 22% in 2011, 29% in 2015 and 18% in 2016, allowing every election to be won by openly corrupt U.S.-backed right-wing politicians and parties.

After the devastating 2010 earthquake, the 2011 election was won by Michel Martelly, a Haitian pop singer supported by Bill and Hillary Clinton. He was quickly mired in scandal over a $2.6 million bribe from a Dominican construction firm to whom he awarded $200 million in no-bid contracts for post-earthquake rebuilding work, triggering large anti-corruption protests in 2013, 2014 and 2015.

The latest election in 2016 was another fiasco. Evidence of massive election fraud triggered huge anti-government demonstrations before Jovenel Moise, the declared winner, even took office. Exit polls showed Moise only winning 6% of the votes in the first round, a small fraction of his official 33% share that won him a place in the run-off.

Now Haitian government auditors have released a 600-page report detailing how Moise has embezzled millions of dollars, mainly from the PetroCaribe fund. Under this program, Venezuela supplied Haiti with oil but deferred payment for 25 years so that Haiti could spend the money on badly needed infrastructure, hospitals and social programs. The audit revealed how Moise siphoned millions of dollars from these funds into his own personal bank accounts.

Haiti remains under UN military occupation to this day. UN troops have used force against the public and unleashed a cholera epidemic. The UN mandate for the remaining 1,275-member UN police force, supported by about 300 Indian troops, finally expires on October 15th, when it is due to be replaced by a 30-member UN political mission.

Neoliberalism Begets Resistance

Neoliberalism is an inherently corrupt system. It creates a vicious circle in which ruling classes can leverage their wealth to gain dominant political power and then use that power to cut taxes and rewrite laws to further enrich themselves. This is a powerful engine to generate ever more concentrated wealth and political power for the 1%, with impoverishment and political marginalization for everybody else.

Neoliberalism reduces politics mainly to a choice between politicians and parties who represent factions of the same corrupt ruling class, which retains a monopoly on power whichever party wins. But the fatal flaw in the neoliberal view of the world is the presumption that ruling classes can safely ignore the 99% of the population they disenfranchise, exploit or even kill.

This idea that only the elites in each country matter has led directly to the U.S. policy of “regime change,” in which leaders who resist neoliberalism are overthrown by whatever means necessary. It should be no surprise that the new governments installed by all these U.S. wars and coups are among the most corrupt regimes on earth.

But as U.S.-led occupation armies have discovered in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, and as we can see right now in Iraq and Haiti, ordinary people still insist on having their say about the future of the world we all live in. U.S. policy is largely responsible for the life or death predicaments now facing young people in these countries, so they deserve our solidarity as they rise up to resist.

Crises in Iraq and Haiti Expose the Failure of Militarized Neoliberalism

 

[Bawon Samedi]

Moise gonna go into hiding again.

 

[loyola llothta]

Friday Oct. 12 2019

Journalist Gunned Down, Persons Close to President Jovenel Moïse Suspected

Journalist Nehemie Joseph was shot multiple times and killed by unidentified individuals on the evening of Thursday, October 10, 2019 in the commune of Mirebalais, Centre Department.

Mr. Joseph was a journalist for local radio station, Radio Panic FM. He was the host of a weekday show called Tambour Vérite (Drum of Truth). He was also a departmental correspondent for major

Port-au-Prince-based radio station, Radio Mega. He was known for bringing moment by moment reporting on the unrest by citizens in the department.

Before his death, Nehemie Joseph spoke of death threats he was receiving from members of the Tet Kale regime and those close to the Jovenel Moïse administration. In cryptic messages to friends and posts on social media, he said if anything were to happen to him, two are responsible.

Former Mayor of Mirebalais, Elionel Casseus, who is allegedly seeking to become delegate for President Jovenel Moïse in the Centre department, working in concert with Senator Rony Célestin (PHTK - Centre), is who Joseph was particularly concerned about and said would be responsible.

The Facebook post said:

*what you should know*

There is the former Mayor of Mirebalais ELIONEL CASSEUS, who is vying to become Delegate of the Central Plateau. He called Senator Rony Celestin to tell him that there are journalists in Mirebalais that continue to incite the people to take to the streets. Among the names he told the senator was Nehemie Joseph, this one is the worst and its him that caused the people to burn the vehicle you saw burned here.

The senator called some chauffers in Belladère and gave them the name Nehemie Joseph as the person who is causing all the actions that are going on. There's a great plot among the chauffeurs in Belladère now who are trying to see how they can assassinate Nehemie.

I've already put a lot of people on notice yesterday, Saturday, during the broadcast Tambour Verite about all that has been happening to me. My family, my friends, it's on Elionel and Senator Rony Celestin.

*Nehemie says their plan is foiled/known*

Elionel Casseus and Rony Celestin
Former Mirebalais Mayor, Elionel Casseus and Senator Rony Celestin

were cited by the victim as two individuals putting his life and the lives of otherjournalists in the region at risk.

Link:​

Journalist Gunned Down, Persons Close to President Jovenel Moïse Suspected​

 

[loyola llothta]

Nehemie Joseph Facebook
September 29, 2019 at 1:40 PM
Joseph puts any harm that may befall him on Elionel Casseus and Rony Celestin.

 

[Bawon Samedi]

Real Zoe shyt.... @loyola llothta @Fatboi1 @For Da Bag

 

[Secure Da Bag]

Real Zoe shyt.... @loyola llothta @Fatboi1 @For Da Bag

 

[Bawon Samedi]

 

[Bawon Samedi]

 

[loyola llothta]

 

[loyola llothta]

Haiti: Multiple groups of protesters across the capital are headed toward Petionville - demanding president resign. Protests also reported in towns outside capital - including St. Marc, where local press reports a 16-year old was shot and killed by police. https://rezonodwes.com/2019/10/11/manif-du-11-octobre-a-saint-marc-un-jeune-de-16-ans-tue-par-balles-et-un-autre-blesse-par-la-police/ …


2:03 PM - Oct 11, 2019

 

[loyola llothta]

 

[loyola llothta]

Meanwhile, in DC, the @StateDept and @EmbassyOfHaiti are downplaying the situation to members of congress. They don't want oversight.

 

[Bawon Samedi]

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Crises in Iraq and Haiti Expose the Failure of Militarized Neoliberalism

It should be no surprise that the new governments installed by all these U.S. wars and coups are among the most corrupt regimes on earth.

by Medea Benjamin, Nicolas J S Davies

Not only are they reeling from protests against government corruption and austerity programs, like Ecuador and Algeria, but in both Haiti and Iraq, their corrupt neoliberal governments were imposed on them by the use of U.S. military force. (Photo: Iraqi Protesters/ AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)



Crises in Iraq and Haiti Expose the Failure of Militarized Neoliberalism

Very good read.

 

[Bawon Samedi]

 

[loyola llothta]