Again, thousands of people in Haiti protested against President Jovenel Moise. The demonstrators in the capital Port-au-Prince yesterday (local time) accused the head of state of building a new „dictatorship“ and criticized the support of his government by the USA. The protests in the Caribbean state remained largely peaceful, but the police occasionally used tear gas and rubber bullets against demonstrators.
“Down with the dictatorship,” shouted the demonstrators in Port-au-Prince. „Despite all the kidnappings and massacres in poor neighborhoods, the US continues to support him,“ said protester Sheila Pelicier.
The opposition argues that Moise’s five-year mandate should have ended a week ago yesterday. The president, however, argues that he will be elected until February 7th next year. The US State Department shared this view ten days ago.
Moise: failed coup attempt
A week ago, 23 people were arrested, including a constitutional judge and a senior police officer. In this context Moise spoke of a failed coup attempt.
Moise was elected head of state in October 2015. The vote was canceled after major protests by the opposition and a review committee’s report on irregularities.
In the presidential election held a year later, Moise prevailed again. He was then sworn in in February 2017. The parliamentary and local elections planned for 2018 in Haiti have not yet taken place. Moise has been ruling by decree for a year because there is currently no parliament.
