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BY: Anais Gushatt
TRUENEWSBLOG – For nearly two years, ARIEL HENRY has been the de facto prime minister of Haiti. A few weeks after President JOVENEL Moise’s gruesome assassination, the CORE GROUP (USA, Canada, France, etc. ) affirmed the choice of ARIEL HENRY whom former Haitian President MICHEL MARTELLY handpicked. However, ARIEL was neither approved by the Haitian parliament nor sworn-in before taking office.
Admittedly, the legality and legitimacy of ARIEL HENRY has always been in question. Aside from his de facto status, what makes HENRY unfit to continue as Haiti’s Prime Minister is his affiliation, payments and support to Haiti’s most dangerous criminal gangs. While many of his ministers, advisors and supporters have been sanctioned for affiliation to criminal gangs, HENRY remains the only gang supporter in chief that is conveniently being ignored by the United States and Canada.
In the last (6) six months, five ministers and two senior advisors and dozens of his supporters have been sanctioned for supporting and paying criminal gang leaders to kill, kidnap and terrorize opponents and perceived enemies.
Among members of Henry’s Cabinet who have been sanctioned are LISZT QUITEL, who served as HENRY’s Minister of the Interior – sanctioned for kidnapping, corruption, and gang affiliation.
BERTO DORCE, who was HENRY’s Minister of Justice and Public Security was sanctioned for kidnapping, corruption, and gang-related violence.
Additionally, BREDY CHARLOT, the current sitting Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources, was sanctioned for gang affiliation and banned from entering the Dominican Republic.
KESNER NORMIL, the current mayor of Petionville and supporter of HENRY, was sanctioned for gang affiliation and has been banned from entering the Dominican Republic. In addition, REYNOLD DEEB, a financial supporter of HENRY has also been sanctioned by Canada, for gang violence, drug trafficking, and corruption. He is also banned from entering the Dominican Republic.
RONY CELESTIN, along with HERVE FOURCAND and YOURI LATORTUE, three former PHTK (the political party of President Michel Martelly) senators, have been sanctioned by three countries (USA, Canada, and the Dominican Republic) for drug trafficking, gang affiliation, and corruption.
THOLBER ALEXIS and VICTOR PROPHANE, both senior advisors to HENRY are among those sanctioned for gang affiliation, and corruption. Both are also banned from entering the Dominican Republic.
VICTOR PROPHANE, a former deputy, has been cited by the Dominican Republic as the most prolific arms trafficker bringing military-grade weapons and ammunition to criminal gangs in Haiti. PROPHANE has a very close and special relationship with HENRY. He is the one who introduced HENRY to his current girlfriend GLENA.
WHY IS THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TURNED A BLIND EYE?
By virtue of sanctions against members of his cabinet, advisors and his most ardent supporters, the International community must know that HENRY is the criminal gang supporter in chief, how is it possible that everyone around HENRY is being sanctioned but not HENRY, the man in charge?
HENRY’s Minister of Justice/ Public Safety and Security had been working with gang leaders providing money and weapons to terrorize, kill and kidnapped opponents and their family members. HENRY’s most senior advisor and confident has been cited for trafficking weapons through the borders between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. But yet the international community acts as if HENRY is simply an innocent bystander to the violence.
Haiti has 14 famous gang leaders with their own Facebook pages, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram accounts. They routinely give interviews to local radio and television stations, yet HENRY’s government is either unwilling or refuses to arrest them.
HAITI’S FAMOUS GANG LEADERS AFFILIATED WITH ARIEL HENRY:
- Jimmy Cherizier alias Barbecue;
- Innocent Vitel’Homme alias Vitelom;
- Destina Renel alias Ti Lapli;
- Wilson Joseph alias Lanmo San Jou, (gang -400 Mawozo);
- Claudy Celestin alias Chen Mechan- (Gang Chen Mechan);
- Alexandre Ezechiel, alias Ze (gang Baz Pilat)
- Kempes Sanon (Baz BelAir);
- Chery Christ-Roi, alias Chris-La;
- Félix Monel alias Mikano;
- Jean Pierre Gabriel alias Ti Gabriel (Gang Gpëp);
- Alexis Serge Renel alias Ti Junior;
- Orlichen Emile alias Pe Lebren- (Gang Baz la).
- Carlos Petit-homme (Alias TI MAKAK)
- Germane Stephenson (Alias GASPIYAY)
HAITI’S VIOLENCE AND INSECURITY IS SPONSORED BY ARIEL HENRY
Gang violence is ubiquitous in many countries, including the United States, the Caribbean and Africa. Gang leaders are often in hiding from law enforcement and rarely give interviews to newspapers and other media outlets. The violence in Haiti is not the result of traditional gang violence but rather government-sponsored violence to intimidate opponents and help HENRY remain in power.
Throughout Haiti’s sordid 240 year history, Haitian leaders have often used group violence against their own people in order to protect their hold on power. Papa Doc and Baby Doc used the TonTon Macoutes for nearly three decades to kill opponents and kept the populace from getting out of order.
Former Haitian President Jean Bertrand used the groups “Rat pa Kaka” and “Lame Rouge” to kill opponents and terrorized critics of his government.
President MICHEL MARTELLY was the latest Haitian leader to promote the legalization of gang violence by promoting “BANDIT LEGAL” or legal Bandits. Under his administration gang leaders supportive of his government were given money and guns and the authority to control certain populated areas of Port-Au-Prince, especially during election times guaranteeing that the people in these areas would vote as they were told.
It is unsurprising that as gang violence becomes more common in Haiti, no members of HENRY Government have been kidnapped, no members of the elite, especially those who support ARIEL HENRY, have been kidnapped.
A few weeks ago, BARBECUE publicly celebrated his birthday in Port-Au-Prince with great media fanfare and Haitian police protection. Meanwhile, there has been an arrest warrant against BARBECUE since 2019, but ARIEL HENRY and his police chief seem unable to find BARBECUE.
The United States State Department, in conjunction with the Justice Department, issued arrest warrants against many gang leaders for the kidnapping of 16 Americans. Yet, these gang leaders are circulating in Haiti under police protection, and no arrest has been made. It is inconceivable and defies logic for anyone to believe that ARIEL HENRY is not supporting criminal gangs.
Given Haiti’s violence level and the proliferation of criminal gangs, ARIEL HENRY could not have survived unless he was paying the gangs to protect the status quo. This is government-sponsored violence for HENRY to stay in power as long as he can.
The international community has been telling the Haitian community that Haitians must solve Haiti’s problem, but how is that possible when the person in power is using criminal gangs to terrorize the people and prevent them from speaking out? The opposition has been arguing that elections cannot be held until the country is secured. This argument plays well with HENRY, especially when he is the main sponsor of the violence.
The opposition argues this point because they believe that HENRY is setting the stage to conduct a fraudulent election with the assistance of criminal gangs. So either way, HENRY wins. If he organizes elections amid this atmosphere of insecurity and violence he will control all the popular areas through his gangs. On the other hand, if the opposition continues to push out elections because of insecurity, HENRY wins by remaining in office. The violence and insecurity help HENRY, so why would he do anything different except supporting the gangs that help him to keep power.
This phenomenon is not new. The Duvaliers remained in office for three decades with the assistance of the TonTon Macoutes. Former president Jean Bertrand Aristide stayed in power for awhile because of his criminal gangs who killed many opponents amongst them the famous journalist Jean Dominique. MICHEL MARTELLY was able to elect JOVENEL MOISE and in the process killed several opponents through his own criminal gangs. ARIEL HENRY will continue to run Haiti to the ground until someone decides to take on the gangs the force behind HENRY’s power.
How many people have to die before the United States takes action? ARIEL HENRY took power after the U.S. State Department sent a tweet recognizing him as Haiti’s prime minister. Perhaps another tweet is in order, but this time it is to save the lives of innocent women and children whose only sin seems to be having been born in hell-on-earth.
Haiti has no legitimate president, prime minister, senators, or deputies. HENRY has been ruling Haiti without checks and balances, which gives him absolute authority to do as he pleases. He is a quasi-dictator.
The situation in Haiti is created by HENRY; while insecurity reigns, the economy is sinking. Oil shortages increased after HENRY doubled the price of gasoline; inflation is above fifty-percent; food insecurity threatens the lives of more than five million people. The value of the “gourdes” Haiti’s local currency has plummeted to more than fifty percent. When HENRY took power, the value of the gourdes against the U.S. dollar was 100 gourdes to $1.00. Today it is at 180 gourdes to $1.00. Officially, Haitian banks are forbidden to dispense more than $1,000 US dollars regardless of how much U.S. dollars one has in the bank. This is a total collapse of the Haitian economy under his tutelage.
ARIEL HENRY has remained one of the most unpopular leaders ever in Haiti. The country needs a new interim government headed by someone who have the respect and trust of the people both in Haiti and in the Haitian Diaspora. This new interim government must be ready to eradicate the country of criminal gangs and organize free and fair elections.
