Haiti’s new prime minister has revealed a surprise announcement that threatens to split the recently formed transitional council tasked with choosing the gang-riddled Caribbean country’s new leader.
On Tuesday, four of the seven voting members of the city council announced that they had elected Fritz Belizere as prime minister, surprising many Haitians with the declaration and unexpected political alliance.
Council appoints new prime minister as Haiti continues to face deadly gang violence
Council members opposed to Belizere, who served as Haiti’s sports minister during President René Préval’s second term from 2006 to 2011, are currently considering options such as opposing the decision or resigning from the council. ing.
The unexpected move undermines the council’s political agreement, with some council members considering other options for prime minister, said a person with direct knowledge of the situation, speaking on condition of anonymity as negotiations are ongoing. He said that
Edgarde Leblanc Fils (left) and Smith Augus prepare for a group photo with the interim council after it named Fils president on Tuesday, April 30, 2024 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Mr. Ting. It is necessary to maintain the country’s presidency until February 2026, when presidential elections can be arranged before dissolution. (AP Photo/Oderin Joseph)
The council was scheduled to hold an election on Tuesday to elect a chairperson. But two hours later, after profuse apologies, one city councilor said that not only the city council president had been chosen, but also the prime minister. A buzz rippled through the room.
In a statement late Tuesday, the Montana Compact, a civil society group represented by voting members of the city council, condemned what it called a “conspiracy” plotted against the Haitian people “in the middle of the night” by the four members. .
“The political and economic mafia forces have decided to take control of the presidential council and government so that they can continue to control the state,” the Montana Compact said.
Haitian politics has long been characterized by backroom deals, but many fear the country cannot afford to descend into further political instability as gangs siege the capital Port-au-Prince and its surrounding areas.
“People change political parties like they change shirts,” says François Pierre-Louis, a political science professor at Queen’s University in New York and a former Haitian politician.
He spoke during an online webinar Tuesday night.
He said he, like others, believed that influential politician Jean-Charles Moïse, a former senator and presidential candidate, was behind Belizere’s nomination.
“Interestingly, among politicians, Mr. Moïse is the most decisive,” Pierre-Louis said.
However, Mr Moyes is not a member of the council. His party, Piti Dessalines, is represented by Emmanuel Bertilaire, one of the four city councilors supporting Belizere.
The others are Louis-Gerard Gilles, Smith-Augustin and the council’s new president, Edgard Leblanc-Fils.
No comments were received.
A document shared with The Associated Press and signed by the four council members who chose the new prime minister says they unanimously agreed to make the decision. The title of this document is “Configuration of the Indivisible Majority Block within the President’s Council.”
In response to the move, the Funmi Ravalas party said on Wednesday that the PHTK is a “disguise” and a “conspiracy” to ensure that “thugs and their allies remain in power and continue their tradition of corruption.” issued a statement saying.
“The Lavalas family strongly rejects the scandal of betrayal that occurred on April 30th,” the party said.
Fils is the head of 30 January, a political organization made up of political parties such as PHTK, whose members include former president Michel Martelly and slain president Jouvenel Moïse. Meanwhile, Mr. Augustin is the representative of the EDE/RED party founded by former prime minister Claude Joseph, and Mr. Gilles is the representative of the December 21 agreement linked to the recently resigned former prime minister Ariel Henry.
Henry was on an official visit to Kenya to promote the United Nations-backed deployment of police from the East African country when Haitian gangs launched a coordinated attack on Feb. 29.
They torched police stations, opened fire on the main international airport, which has remained closed since early March, and stormed Haiti’s two largest prisons, freeing more than 4,000 prisoners. Violence continues unabated in certain areas of Port-au-Prince, including the area around the National Palace.
Haitians are demanding that security be a top priority for the council tasked with selecting a new prime minister and cabinet and preparing for an eventual general election.
But some Haitians are wary of the council and its decisions.
Jean Selce, a 57-year-old electrician, pointed out that most city council members are long-time politicians and said: “Their past is not very positive.”
“I hope their mindset changes, but I don’t think that will happen,” he said. “They don’t really love this country. Who is dying now? It’s Haitians like me.”
Robert Fatton, a Haitian political expert at the University of Virginia, said some of the political parties represented on the council are responsible for Haiti’s current turmoil.
“That’s a contradiction,” he said. “Every time we think there’s going to be a crisis, we reappoint the same people and hope they change their ways, and they don’t.”
Raising the same criticism is Michael Deibert, author of Notes From the Last Studies: The Struggle for Haiti and Haiti Will Not Perish: A Recent History.
In a recent essay, he said the council is “controlled by the same political currents that have driven Haiti off a cliff for the past 25 years, exploiting poor youth in the slums and using them as political bludgeons.” . Proceeds from kidnapping, extortion, drug trafficking, and other criminal enterprises – these groups have outgrown the needs of their patrons. ”
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More than 2,500 people were killed or injured across Haiti between January and March, according to the United Nations.
Additionally, more than 90,000 people have fled Port-au-Prince in just one month due to relentless gang violence.
