Haiti
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Donald Trump has yet another legal issue to deal with. A Haitian nonprofit organization has filed a lawsuit against him for his false pet eating claims.
As reported by News 5 Cleveland, the Haitian Bridge Alliance has a submitted a claim against the former President and his running mate JD Vance. Their executive director Guerline Jozef expressed their reasoning in a formal statement. “Over the last two weeks, both Trump and Vance led an effort to vilify and threaten the Haitian community in Springfield, Ohio,” Jozef wrote. “Together, they spread and amplified the debunked claim that Haitians immigrants in Springfield are eating cats, dogs, and wildlife.”
The organization’s attorney Subodh Chandra detailed how Trump and Vance’s claims have forever negatively impacted the Haitian community in Springfield. “If anyone else had disrupted public service, made false alarms, and engaged in telecommunications harassment in the manner Trump and Vance did with their relentless and persistent lies—even after the governor and mayor said what they were saying was false, they would’ve been arrested by now,” he said in a written statement. “They must be held accountable to the rule of law in the same way any of the rest of us would be.”
During the recent presidential debate Donald Trump made some baseless claims that immigrants were stealing pets and cooking them. “They’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats,” Trump when asked a question about immigration. “They’re eating the pets of the people that live there, and this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame.” JD Vance also promoted the false narrative and would later admit that on CNN that he is not above spreading falsehoods in order to sell in his agenda.
Neither politician has yet to formally respond to the matter. According to the Haitian Bridge Alliance’s website they advocate “for fair and humane immigration policies and provides migrants and immigrants with humanitarian, legal, and social services.” You can read more about their organization here.
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Actress Garcelle Beauvais released a video in response to the defamation of Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, by Republicans and others.
The recent false claims about Haitian Immigrants eating dogs and cats perpetuated by Republican politicians including former President Donald Trump have put that community at high risk. Veteran actress Garcelle Beauvais, who is of Haitian descent, took to social media to make a plea for the attacks to stop. She released a video on her Instagram account Monday, Sept. 16, writing in the caption: “I have been holding this in for a week, hoping, praying it would go away, but it hasn’t!!! Anyone who knows me, knows that I speak my mind! This madness has got to stop.”
“Staying silent in the face of racism and hate is something that I refuse to do,” The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star began. “This past week, the lies that have been spewed about the Haitian community — about my community — have been disgusting, deeply hurtful, and dangerous. Now, this is not about politics. It’s about humanity. We must condemn this kind of hatred, this kind of racism, for anyone,” Beauvais continued. “And I will not sit by and let people talk about my community in any way they want for their own gain.”
She ended the video by imploring her followers to vote, reiterating the message in Haitian Creole. “The power we have is the power to vote, to register and vote and stop this madness, this chaos. I am not going to sit by. It’s just not okay to treat people like this. We’re supposed to be uplifting each other, from our leaders to our neighbors. This has got to stop, and we have to do something about it.”
Beauvais has always been proud of her heritage. The actress, who was born in Saint-Marc, Haiti, made her debut in the classic film Coming To America in 1988. Since then, she has built a strong career with prime roles in The Jamie Foxx Show and NYPD Blue, in addition to being a sought-after fashion model and the author of a 2022 memoir, Love Me As I Am: My Journey from Haiti to Hollywood to Happiness. “I love my country and I’ve always been proud to say I’m Haitian,” she said in an earlier interview with the Grio. Even when there were negative connotations back in the day, I never shied away from saying where I’m from and being proud of it.”
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Joseph Vincent, a former informant for the Drug Enforcement Administration, has pleaded guilty to his involvement in a plot to assassinate President Jovenel Moïse of Haiti. Vincent, who claims both Haitian and American citizenship, was the first citizen of the United States to plead guilty in the matter.
The Miami Herald reports that Joseph Vincent, a native of South Florida, was the fourth of 11 defendants charged in the federal case that is unfolding in Miami, with Vincent, 58, admitting to a role in the plot to assassinate Moïse. Moïse was killed after his residence was ambushed by over two dozen mercenaries, some of whom were reported to be from Colombia. According to court findings, 26 of 28 gunmen were reportedly Colombian with two suspects hailing from the United States.
Vincent told the court that he met with a group of individuals in Haiti on the night before President Moïse’s assassination, which occurred on July 7, 2021, in the wee hours of the morning. Vincent, who is entering a plea deal, shared that he wore a U.S. State Department pin on his outfit to appear as an important figure to his Haitian co-conspirators according to Vincent’s statements.
Adding to this, Vincent said he was part of a plan to ignite protests across Haiti against Moïse and use the disturbance as a cover ploy to kidnap the president. Vincent was not part of the gunmen group but did admit to riding with other co-conspirators to Moïse’s residence during the ambush by the mercenaries.
Joseph Vincent is pleading guilty to conspiring to provide material support in the assassination, providing that support, and conspiring to kill or kidnap a person outside the United States. His sentencing hearing takes place on February 9, 2024, and he faces up to life in prison.
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Guy Philippe, a leader of a rebellion in Haiti and a convicted drug trafficker, was deported from the United States to his homeland this week. Philippe is just one of thousands deported to the troubled nation since President Joe Biden was sworn into office back in 2021.
The Miami Herald reports that Guy Philippe, 55, was deported on Thursday (November 30) from Alexandria, La. along with over a dozen other individuals. Philippe was a former commander in the Haitian police force who led an armed rebellion in 2004 to overthrow President Jean Bertrand Aristide. From there, Philippe got involved in a scheme with Colombian cocaine traffickers, assisting in a money-laundering operation for the group.
In 2017, after dodging capture by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Philippe was sentenced to nine years in prison for his role in the scheme. Philippe pleaded guilty to the charges but claimed innocence.
Philippe’s return to Haiti has been in process since September after he was released from a federal facility and moved into immigration custody. According to the Herald‘s report, Philippe attempted to get his sentence reduced since the sentencing.
The turn of Guy Philippe is a cause of concern for some as the country has yet to rebound from the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. Philippe, despite his criminal record in the United States, won a seat in the Haiti Senate in 2016 while campaigning alongside Moïse. Just before he was set to be sworn in, Philippe was arrested and handed over to the DEA.
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As gang violence increases in Haiti, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has issued a warning to American citizens and residents against traveling to the country.
According to reports, the directive from the FBI comes after a surge in violence enacted by warring gangs in the Caribbean nation, putting stress on the embattled national police force. It issued the warning to U.S. citizens and permanent residents, particularly those living in South Florida. The bureau’s office in Miami cites a major uptick in the report of kidnappings in Haiti it has received since the beginning of the year – an increase of 300 percent in the first three months of this year when compared to the same time period last year.
Haiti still has a State Department Level 4: Do Not Travel Advisory. “While we understand that there are strong ties between Haiti and South Florida, before traveling there one should consider the trauma and financial costs of being kidnapped not only to themselves but to their family and friends as well,” FBI Supervisory Special Agent Liz Santamaria said to the Miami Herald.
While the agency has not disclosed the exact number, it is believed that many of the victims kidnapped for ransom have ties to the U.S. The State Department has advised all citizens still in Haiti to leave immediately.
The violence between warring gangs has been prevalent in the capital city of Port-au-Prince since the beginning of the year. The assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021 was the event that fractured Haiti’s government infrastructure – the judiciary branch is viewed as inherently corrupt, there are no elected government officials still serving and the National Police Force has shrunk from 15,000 members three years ago to 9,000. Observers estimate that gangs now control between 60 to 90 percent of Port-au-Prince.
The warning also comes as the United Nations Security Council recently received a report that conditions in Haiti are now similar to countries at war. “The people of Haiti continue to suffer one of the worst human rights crises in decades and a major humanitarian emergency,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in his report.
“With the high number of fatalities and increasing areas under the control of armed gangs, insecurity in the capital has reached levels comparable to countries in armed conflict.” Guterres is expected to reiterate a demand for the creation and deployment of a special security force when the Security Council meets again today (April 26).
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The federal government announced that they had detained four men from Florida in for their alleged roles in the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse.
According to reports, four more men in Florida were arrested by local authorities working under the direction of the Department of Justice for their roles in the assassination of the Haitian national leader which took place on 2021. The arrests took place on Tuesday (Feb. 14th). These arrests bring the number of those involved up to 11.
“Today, individuals who we allege participated in the planning, financing, and orchestration of the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse will face justice in an American courtroom,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. Former Haitian Prime Minister Claude Joseph shared the news on Twitter, writing “Justice must prevail.”
Details from the filed court documents show that Antonio “Tony” Intriago, owner of CTU Security in Miami, Florida was charged with conspiracy to kill or kidnap a person outside the U.S. in addition to other offenses. Arcangel Pretel Ortiz, the company’s representative was also detained. Walter Veintemilla, a financier from the state has been accused of financing the operation. A fourth man, Frederick Joseph Bergmann Jr, was detained on suspicion of smuggling.
The documents state that the four were part of a plot originally designed to kidnap Moïse and supplant him with a new leader, Christian Emmanuel Sanon. Sanon is one of three Haitian-Americans who have been previously arrested. The plot turned from a coup to an assassination when it was found that Sanon wasn’t qualified to take over, with other suspects including James Solages who reportedly shouted that the CIA was involved to back down Moïse’s security detail at his private home during the attack.
On the Haitian side, proceedings have stalled, leaving the 18 detained Colombian mercenaries and 40 other suspects in a Port-au-Prince prison. Three judges have stepped down for fear of being assassinated themselves, while a fourth was dismissed outright. Martine Moïse, the president’s widow called for a special United Nations investigation last month.
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A special envoy with the United Nations has stated that the rising level of gang violence in Haiti is threatening the country’s stability, echoing statements by the Secretary-General in a new report.
According to reports, the last three months of violence perpetrated by gangs in Haiti have been some of the worst seen in decades. As a result, according to United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, their efforts to combat illegal trafficking and to help the country’s government maintain certain functions including the judiciary have been severely impacted. “The situation is grave,” he remarked in an internal report.
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“Years of hard-fought recovery gains are being undone, and Haitians are grappling with setting the country back on a path to democracy,” United Nations Special Representative Helen La Lime said as she briefed the Security Council on Tuesday (Jan. 24th). She would go on to state that there were 2,100 murders and some 1,300 kidnappings recorded in Haiti last year, with the battle for turf between the G-Pep and G9 coalitions causing havoc in neighborhoods like Petionville and Cité Soleil. This included rampant sexual violence against women, with 40 women being assaulted in one stretch in October in the Croix-des-Bouquets area. “This violence is part of well-defined strategies designed to subjugate populations and expand territorial control,” La Lime related. The international body estimated that gangs controlled 60% of the capital city of Port-au-Prince last December.
Secretary-General Guterres admitted that there is uncertainty concerning the nation’s electoral calendar for the year because of the impact of the violence, in addition to growing difficulties in helping schools to remain open and keeping roads open to facilitate the transport of needed food and fuel to northern districts because of gang blockades. “Amid the ongoing cholera outbreak, the lack of fuel has further undermined access to health services owing to restrictions on movement and to the impact of fluctuations in the supply of water and electricity on the functioning of medical facilities,” the report said.
Despite the gloomy news, Special Representative La Lime lauded the Council’s acceptance of enforcing new sanctions on those supporting criminal violence and activity in Haiti. She also reiterated a call for an international specialized force to assist the Haitian National Police, especially to aid the small progress the country’s made toward a stable electoral process for the next two years. “Haitians overwhelmingly want this assistance so they can go about their daily lives in peace,” she told the members.
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