Konbit Pou Ayiti

IN THIS REPORT:
- Haitian Senators Push to Oust Prime Minister Michele Pierre-Louis
- Playing politics in Haiti - Miami Herald OUR OPINION: Haiti headed for disaster in effort to oust prime minister
- Lucrative charcoal spurs Dominican- Haitian crime cartels
- Haitians Making Charcoal Killed in the Dominican Republic
- Dominican Government condemns "abominable" killing of 4 Haitians
- OAS Group of Friends of Haiti Meet
- Activists Frustrated with Obama Over No TPS for Haitians
- Miami Herald Editorial: Haitians shouldn't be left in limbo
- Haitians with HIV Fight for Increase in PEPFAR Funding

Haitian Senators Push to Oust Prime Minister Michele Pierre-Louis:
With Haiti poised to enjoy the economic benefits of long-elusive stability, foreign diplomats are scrambling behind the scenes to keep it all from unraveling as several lawmakers demand the ouster of the country's prime minister. A small but powerful group of senators is seeking the removal of Prime Minister Michele Pierre-Louis -- and possibly several of her ministers -- on charges that she has moved too slowly to solve Haiti's problems. "The situation is critical,'' said Sen. Jean Hector Anacasis, who is among the six senators behind a recent summons for Pierre-Louis to appear before Haiti's Senate on Thursday. Under Haiti's constitution, the Senate can fire a sitting government.

"We are the ones on the ground who hear the people's cry, who hear them criticizing us, the government, saying nothing has been done. We have to replace the woman,'' Anacasis said. "If they are accusing us of inviting a crisis, then we are inviting a crisis to avert another crisis.'' The internal political maneuvering comes just three weeks after former U.S. President and U.N. Special Envoy to Haiti Bill Clinton led a historic trade mission here, triggering optimism that this land of seemingly missed opportunities may finally be turning around. Before a gathering of 600 investors -- 200 of them foreign -- Clinton championed Haiti's stability, promising that the risks were the lowest they have ever been in a crisis-prone Haiti. Now, both Haitian and foreign observers fear that political differences could trigger a crisis and send potential investors packing.

"They cannot afford to do this. It is not good for investments,'' said one diplomat who asked for anonymity because of the sensitivity of what is viewed as a domestic matter. "It is all so frustrating.'' On Monday, diplomats spent the day shuffling between meetings with President  René Préval, and discussions with Pierre-Louis. The matter even warranted a weekend phone call to Préval from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Clinton spoke of her concerns and reiterated U.S. support for Pierre-Louis, according to several sources privy to the conversation. Préval, in turn, told Clinton that he was not behind the move to oust Pierre-Louis and has no control over the lawmakers. Critics disagree, pointing out that following the recent Senate elections, marred by fraud allegations and low turnout, Préval now controls two-thirds of the chamber, and that most of the six senators leading the charge are from his Lespwa (HOPE) political coalition.

Still, some are asking whether he's willing to spend the political capital to prevent the ouster of Pierre-Louis, a one-time friend and confidante who accepted her appointment as a storm-battered Haiti was gripped by political gridlock after the Senate fired then-Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis following food riots then failed to ratify two of Préval's choices. Neither Préval nor Pierre-Louis responded to interview requests from The Miami Herald. In a taped message to the nation Monday night, Pierre-Louis defended her government's record and explained her reasons for taking the job. Since her appointment a year ago, Pierre-Louis has appeared often before parliament but this is the first time she has been summoned, a move that usually signals a no-confidence vote. Pierre-Louis has mustered considerable support abroad from her many trips, including stops in South Florida. But she has failed to win over supporters in parliament. Her dismissal, in effect, would topple her government.

Initially, senators were seeking to dismiss the ministers of finance and justice, both of whom are close to Pierre-Louis. But after three days of meetings at a hotel near the palace, senators decided to issue the summons to Pierre-Louis, Anacasis told The Miami Herald. A majority of the 29 senators have indicated they would vote to fire Pierre-Louis, Anacasis said. Pierre-Louis was in Europe on business, and returned to Haiti Sunday night where she was greeted by a small group of protesters waving signs saying, "We are tired of changing governments.'' In her defense, a handful of lawmakers and supporters have pleaded with the group of six to cancel Thursday's hearing.

"Since becoming prime minister, she has struggled with limited human and financial resources and with a structure of government that has been emasculated over decades of mismanagement and selfish politics,'' said Robert Maguire, a Haiti expert at Washington, D.C.-based Trinity University. "She has had to confront the narrow politics of self-interest imposed upon her ability to govern. And yet, she has persevered, building a solid track record of relief and recovery in the aftermath of Haiti's devastating storms of late 2008 and thereby contributing immensely to that spirit of Haiti's hope for a brighter future.'' It's unclear what has triggered the move, though some believe it revolves around Haiti's presidential elections. While still a year away, political jockeying already has begun, with some suggesting politicians may be seeking to position themselves and candidates for the scheduled November 2010 elections. Meanwhile on Monday, as politicians weighed whether Pierre-Louis would fight or resign, some supporters tried to persuade her to visit Préval to see if the two could reach a compromise. She has said she will fight, but has no plans to go before parliament and be humiliated. That has some wondering whether she would resign before Thursday.

Patrick Delatour, Haiti's tourism and acting commerce minister, said lawmakers should weigh the consequences of their actions carefully. "They should understand solving problems by any government is a process,  a slow process,'' he said. "Firing this government does not mean the next government will be able to solve the problems any faster. It definitely means the process of solving problems will stop and will have to start again.'' (Miami Herald, 10/27)

Playing politics in Haiti - Miami Herald OUR OPINION: Haiti headed for disaster in effort to oust prime minister
As the end of the hurricane season nears, it appears Haiti may avoid getting hit by a natural disaster this year. Not so for man-made disasters, however. A political maelstrom is brewing that could destroy the international effort to rebuild Haiti following a series of storms that ravaged the island last year. This menace takes the form of an effort in the Senate to remove Prime Minister Miche`le Pierre-Louis, who has managed the government capably in the 14 months since she was appointed by President René Préval. Ms. Pierre-Louis was ratified by the National Assembly after her predecessor was fired, ushering in a needless and prolonged period of political bickering over who would fill the position. All this followed years of instability and political violence that came to a halt only after U.N. peacekeepers arrived.

Now Haiti has a chance to turn the page. Only three weeks ago, former U.S. President and U.N. Special Envoy Bill Clinton led a historic trade mission to Haiti that held out the promise of new investment and new jobs, both of which Haiti desperately needs. Investors need to be reassured, though, that Haiti's leaders can manage their political affairs without needless upheavals and unrest. Removing Ms. Pierre-Louis for no good reason sends precisely the wrong message. Sen. Jean Hector Anacasis, a leading adversary, told Miami Herald Caribbean correspondent Jacqueline Charles that there is too much discontent among the populace because of the slow pace of recovery. That's a thin reed upon which to hang the current government. Recovery has been slow because of scarce resources, but that is not the prime minister's fault.

On the contrary, Ms. Pierre-Louis has apparently won the confidence of international groups and potential investors. Her removal would destroy momentum to rebuild Haiti with support from abroad. President Préval must try to halt this oncoming disaster by strongly expressing his backing for his prime minister. He has been too quiet through this whole affair, as if it does not concern him, yet he is the head of state, and his party controls the Senate. He has a responsibility to lead, and now is the time to show it. Ms. Pierre-Louis has been summoned to the Senate on Thursday, where she will surely be mauled by her adversaries, and then probably voted out of office.

What a shame. It would produce another round of musical chairs in which ministers leave office to be replaced by other ministers who barely have time to learn their jobs before another government falls and they, too, are booted. That's a recipe for unending political instability, the last thing Haiti needs. Haiti's 10 million people deserve better. Their leaders should think about them, for a change, instead of playing politics with Haiti's future. (Miami Herald Editorial, 10/29)

Lucrative charcoal spurs Dominican- Haitian crime cartels:
The business of charcoal obtained from burning trees has become so lucrative that organized rings of Dominican and Haitians compete for its distribution and marketing. The inhabitants affirm that the killing of three Haitians last week is the result of the traffic of charcoal made locally to sell in Haiti, and the activity is so profitable that it competes with that of drugs, guns, appliances, beverages, foods and other contraband. After Dajabón’s (northwest) Jimaní’s is the largest border market, where smuggling is the option for some groups. The rivalry for turf or areas where charcoal furnaces are often built sparks violence, although never to the point of multiple killings. Several intermediaries take part in the charcoal business, from the Dominicans who contract the Haitians to build the furnaces, to the Haitians who buy and then resell it in their country. A sack of charcoal costs 250 gourdes (around RD$1,000), but its price can reach as high as 1,500 pesos in Haiti.

At the border village Tierra de Nadie “No-man's land,” so called for its location in the middle of two Customs posts, hundreds of sacks of charcoal are stored awaiting shipment to Haiti. One of the traffic’s main reasons is that most Haitians don’t have stoves and charcoal is the only way to cook food. According to a United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) 2002 study, Haiti tops the list of the most deforested countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. It also found that in the last 50 years 18 percent of Hispaniola’s forests has been eliminated by its inhabitants who chop down trees for fuel and wood. The profit from the sale of just three sacks of charcoal is more than the monthly wage of a forest ranger, the very person responsible for its protection. (Dominican Today, 10/26)

Haitians Making Charcoal Killed in the Dominican Republic:
Haitian police say protesters have set up roadblocks near a border crossing with the Dominican Republic to protest the decapitations of four migrants. Police commissioner Vanel Lacroix, of Malpasse, says the migrants were killed Tuesday while burning trees to make charcoal in the adjacent Dominican border town of Jimani. Their heads were cut off and bodies burned in the coal pit. A fifth man was shot but survived. Haitians suffer discrimination in the Dominican Republic, where the decapitation of a Haitian earlier this year set off protests in Port-au-Prince. Dominicans blame Haitians for cutting trees there to make charcoal, a practice that contributes to deforestation, erosion and flooding in Haiti. (AP, 10/23)

 Four Haitians were killed and a fifth wounded this week in an attack by gunmen near the southwestern Dominican city of Jimani, authorities said. The lone survivor, Mesilis Desil, is recovering in a Barahona hospital after surgeons removed bullets from his stomach, Jimani prosecutor Ruddy Perez Medrano told the press. The 41-year-old undocumented immigrant was wounded Wednesday in the Madre Fresca community by gunmen who appeared as the five Haitians were burning vegetation to produce charcoal. Mesnil said that he only remembers when a group of men showed up at the place where he and the others from his country were gathered and opened fire. Perez Medrano said that at the place where the shooting occurred, the charred bodies of four people including a minor were found. The prosecutor said that according to preliminary investigations, after the Haitians were gunned down their bodies where thrown into the ovens they had been using to cook the charcoal.

He said that a team of pathologists will go Sunday to Jimani where they will carry out autopsies on the bodies, adding that the Dominican authorities are tracking the perpetrators of the multiple homicide. The Dominican Republic and Haiti share the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, with Haiti in the western portion. Though both countries are poor, Haiti is destitute, and Haitians cross the border to do work that many Dominicans will not do, such as harvesting sugar cane. Haitians have been the target of mob violence numerous times in recent years, and the Dominican government has been widely criticized for its treatment of the migrants. (Latin American Tribune, 10/23)

Dominican Government condemns "abominable" killing of 4 Haitians:
Dominican Republic’s Foreign Relations Ministry today condemned the killing of four Haitians in an incident in the western border community Jimaní and affirmed that the country’s judicial authorities will proceed immediately against the aggressors. Expressing the Government’s consternation from the tragedy Carlos Morales said the Dominican people repudiate acts as this nature. “We condemn and reproach these deaths and I hope that justice acts quickly against the unscrupulous ones who committed it." The killings occurred in the isolated section Loma El Bejuco, between the communities Boca de Cachón and Pinos del Edén, of Jimaní, Independencia province, where the victims were chopping down trees to make charcoal, said Judicial District prosecutor Ruddy Perez Medrano. “It’s the Government’s interest that the corresponding authorities act of quickly and adequately so the people responsible for this abominable fact are sent to court as quickly as possible to pay this offense to society." Moales said, and affirmed that when an incident like this occurs “the only thing it deserves of the Government and Dominican society is its firm rebuke and the commitment to take all necessary measures to prosecute those responsible." (Dominican Today, 10/23)

OAS Group of Friends of Haiti Meet:
Political stability, elections, and international cooperation in Haiti took center stage at the Organization of American States (OAS) Group of Friends of Haiti that met at OAS headquarters to review recent activities, as well as the country’s overall political and economic situation and the international community’s renewed commitment of support for this Caribbean country. OAS Assistant Secretary General Albert Ramdin, Chair of the Group, provided extensive information on the current situation in Haiti and highlighted the progress achieved in the implementation of the Inter-American Program for Haiti. As part of this new initiative, five inter-American institutions including the OAS, IICA, PAHO, PADF, and IDB will be launching an electronic platform for the exchange of information.

“This is the first structured collaboration among all the inter-American agencies providing support to that country. We expect that this will strengthen existing synergies and provide greater value added to the government and people of Haiti”, said Ramdin. The Permanent Representative of Haiti to the OAS, Ambassador Duly Brutus, who provided information on the political situation in Haiti, noted that “In light of constitutional provisions, a change of government may soon occur as the Senate summoned the Prime Minister to appear on October 29, 2009”. In this regard, Ambassador Ramdin, as Chair of the Haiti Group of Friends, during the meeting expressed the need for all to continue supporting the process of political stability and to support the demonstrated renewed interest of the international financial and business community to invest in Haiti. He also indicated that the OAS will continue monitoring the political developments as they unfold in Haiti.

Ramdin informed the group that the OAS recently completed a needs assessment mission to Haiti to determine how best the Organization may assist Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) in organizing the 2010 legislative and presidential elections. The OAS has accompanied elections in Haiti for the last 20 years. In this regard, OAS member States gathered at the meeting of the Group of Friends expressed the importance of maintaining political stability in Haiti and the need to continue promoting cooperation strategies that may contribute to the needs and priorities defined by Haitian authorities. The Permanent Representative of Mexico to the OAS, Ambassador Gustavo Albin, confirmed that his government will host a Hemispheric Conference on Coordination of International Cooperation in Mexico city, on November 4 -5. He stressed that this meeting, organized in concert with the Government of Haiti and the OAS, will add value to the efforts to coordinate cooperation with Haiti. Likewise, the delegation of Argentina announced that the Second meeting of Latin American coordination for Police cooperation with Haiti is scheduled to take place in Argentina at the end of November. (Caribbeannetnews.com, 10/29)

Activists Frustrated with Obama Over No TPS for Haitians:
Haitian-American and immigrant activists who greeted President Barack Obama's election with high hopes are growing frustrated with the administration's failure to deliver one of their top goals. Obama said in July he was "very sympathetic'' to the community's request to allow Haitian immigrants now illegally in the country to stay temporarily, but no decision has been announced. Some activists say their patience is wearing thin. "I feel they are stringing us along, and we are in an awkward position,'' said Randolph McGrorty, head of Catholic Charities Legal Services, who brought the subject to a head with a stinging e-mail sent to House, Senate and administration staffers last week. "Do we allow them to string us along because they are our allies or do we start calling them on the carpet for it?''

The unrest comes as Obama plans a trip to Miami on Monday to raise money for House and Senate Democrats. Presidential candidate Obama did not promise to grant undocumented Haitian immigrants temporary legal status in the United States -- a designation known as Temporary Protected Status, or TPS -- but activists said they believed the first African-American president would give the issue special consideration. Instead, former President Bill Clinton -- a United Nations special envoy to the country -- and the United Nations have taken the lead in rebuilding a storm-battered Haiti after last year's four back-to-back storms that killed hundreds and left nearly $1 billion in damages.

The issue of TPS poses a challenge for Rep. Kendrick Meek, a Miami Democrat who is depending on a robust turnout in the politically active Haitian-American community to boost his Senate bid. But critics say South Florida's congressional Democrats, including Meek, have not been as vocal about pushing the Obama administration on Haiti as they were during the Bush administration. Meek, who represents the largest group of Haitian-American voters in the United States, said Friday he's had meetings with the administration and is optimistic that it is taking a serious look at the policy. "It may not come as soon as we want to, but I can tell you the Obama administration has made steps the Bush administration wouldn't have made in 100 years,'' Meek said, noting that the administration has temporarily stayed deportations of noncriminals to Haiti. "The ultimate goal is to have Haiti in a position where Haitians can stay in Haiti and not take to the sea.''

Still, Broward Democrat Rep. Alcee Hastings chastised the administration last week, looking to prod it by attaching an amendment to a Coast Guard spending bill that would require the agency to review the effect of changing immigration policy toward Haiti. Critics have suggested TPS could lead Haitians to rush to the U.S. shore. "Temporary Protected Status or some other comparable relief for our Haitian neighbors is long overdue and this administration has been stalling for far too long,'' Hastings said in support of his amendment. He said the review would "hopefully help us show that our government has rationally and realistically examined all possible scenarios and we are well-equipped to contend with any possible effects.'' (Miami Herald, 10/25)

Miami Herald Editorial: Haitians shouldn't be left in limbo
Why won't President Obama let 35,000 hardworking Haitians get a job? It's the question U.S. Reps. Kendrick Meek, Alcee Hastings and Debbie Wasserman Schultz should demand the president answer Monday during his Miami stop to raise money for House and Senate Democrats for next year's congressional elections. In July, Obama said he was "very sympathetic'' to the concerns that immigration activists and Haitian Americans expressed about the ramifications of deporting undocumented Haitians who have not committed any crime to a nation that's struggling to overcome last summer's devastating hurricanes. Thanks for the sympathy, Mr. President, but that won't get you a job if you're a Haitian with a deportation order.
 
Even if you're a Haitian married to a U.S. citizen or green-card holder and your paperwork gets bogged down in red tape. Even if your brother is a Marine. Even if you follow the rules, show up at immigration offices to clear up a document problem and your stay is approved -- as happened to one Haitian woman married for five years to a U.S. citizen, and still, still, she was put in detention.
 
At least Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano hasn't been sending noncriminal Haitians with deportation orders back to Haiti. But being locked up or sitting in your South Florida home with an ankle bracelet without the ability to feed yourself or your family is little consolation. Our former "feel your pain'' president, Bill Clinton, has the fortitude to call it right. During the recent Americas Conference at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Clinton, now the United Nations envoy to Haiti, said granting temporary protected status, or TPS, to undocumented Haitians, so that they can work, makes sense. Clinton's trying to help that country attract business, build roads and dams and housing for those struggling there. It's not smart U.S. policy to send another 35,000 people to a place that already has millions without adequate housing.
 
If not TPS, then why not an interim policy while the administration figures out its grand immigration reform plan (for next year) and allow U.S. work permits for Haitians while the tiny country rebuilds? Randolph McGrorty of Catholic Services notes this can be done on a case-by-case basis. So why the delay? The fear that TPS would open the floodgates of Haitian refugees setting out for South Florida on rickety boats is overblown. It didn't happen during the Clinton administration when several thousand Haitians were allowed to stay because of bloody political instability in Haiti. So why leave Haitians in an American-imposed limbo?
 
Are you squirming yet? Because everybody knows the answer. It's the 800-pound political gorilla threatening common sense: race.
 
Obama would be seen as favoring black people, and, oh my, we wouldn't want an African-American president playing favorites. Except he wouldn't be playing favorites. Obama would be treating Haitians just as past administrations have treated Salvadorans, Hondurans and Nicaraguans -- all were granted TPS after natural disasters or civil wars devastated their countries. If not TPS, then grant work papers case by case. Let's stop filling detention centers with people who have suffered enough. (Miami Herald Op-Ed, 10/25)

Haitians with HIV Fight for Increase in PEPFAR Funding:
Thanks to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and other international funding, most Haitians with AIDS who seek care receive early forms of antiretroviral medication. But that’s not enough. Many Haitians don’t have water to take their medications. Or even homes to live in. So the Haitian AIDS group Fondation Esther Boucicault-Stanislas (FEBS) visited D.C. earlier this month to tell Congress and the State Department to provide full funding for PEPFAR and include newer, stronger medication and supportive services such as food and shelter and support for people whose family and communities have abandoned them because they have HIV or AIDS.

The delegation worked hard to convince Global AIDS Coordinator Dr. Eric Goosby and Congress to push President Obama to increase funding for PEPFAR by $7 billion and the Global fund by $2 billion in order to expand supportive services. Haiti was one of the first countries hit by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and 2.2 percent of citizens are infected. Eighty percent of Haitians live in poverty. “There are a lot of girls 11, 12, 13 years old out there prostituting themselves. They lives in houses that are shacks,” said Norvelia Passeus, who lives in St. Marc, Haiti. Passeus has struggled since she was diagnosed with HIV five years ago. Passeus, a former school teacher, was fired when her principal found out she had HIV. She became a client with FEBS and now works there as a volunteer.

Passeus was part of a delegation of nine Haitians, American advocates and a Creole translator who visited key members of Congress and Global AIDS Coordinator Dr. Eric Goosby to talk about their problems in St. Marc, a coastal port town in Haiti. In addition to meeting with Goosby, the activists met with staffers from the offices of Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN); Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ); Sen. Russell Feingold (D-WI);Sen. John Kerry (D-MA); House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA); Mel Martinez (R-FL); Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL); Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA); Rep. Ileana Ross Lehtinen (R-FL) and Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA). The trip was organized by Housing Works and Health GAP.

The visits were powerful, with staffers moved by the stories by the Haitians. In one visit Esther Boucicault, FEBS founder, broke down and started to cry talking about the experience of people coming to her clinic. “They come to me and say ‘I don’t have access to food. I don’t have access to second line treatment.’ But I can’t do anything about that.” The advocates were particularly impressed by Goosby’s interest at their meeting with him. “Dr. Goosby is very committed to expanding out the model of PEPFAR to supportive services,” said Health GAP Director of U.S. Policy Matthew Kavanagh, who attended the lobby visits. “As a doctor, he understands why second line treatment works. But he has a major mandate without any new money.”

“My best moment was meeting with Dr. Goosby. He guaranteed that he’d be helping Haiti,” said Emmanuel Merilien, who attended the meetings. Merilien is the first publicly openly gay HIV-positive person living in Haiti. Last month he was kicked out of his parents’ home for having HIV/AIDS, but he has found support through FEBS. At the “Equality to End AIDS Rally and Vigil”, Merilien issued a stirring speech in his native Creole, that was translated for the audience. “With courage, we can overcome the barriers which prevent us from creating opportunities for those the who are infected and or affected by the HIV/AIDS. I am a young gay man living with HIV in a society that offers no opportunity whatsoever to people like me,” Merilien said. “We are completely marginalized. We are not entitled to a decent housing, to education, to jobs, or to health-care. Instead, stigma and discrimination trap us behind walls of silence. We need courage to break our silence.” (http://www.housingworks.org/blogs/detail/haitians-with-hiv-fight-for-inc...)