Haiti: The International Community Steering Domestic Politics

A woman takes an image of the late Haitian President Jovenel Moise during a memorial ceremony at the National Pantheon Museum in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, July 20, 2021. Moise was assassinated on July 7 at his home . (AP Photo/Joseph Odelyn)

On July 7, Haitian president Jovenel Moïse was assassinated. What exactly occurred is not yet clear—reports have surfaced linking the murder to culprits including Colombian mercenaries for hire and a Florida man who joined Zoom groups on Haiti’s future. More troubling than the assassination itself is the question of what will happen to the country and its inhabitants.

Moïse was an unpopular president. Under his watch, institutions were dismantled, the cost of living skyrocketed, and Haiti became more dangerous. Moïse has been linked to organized crime in Haiti, and the growing instability of the country, where gang-organized massacres have led to hundreds of civilian deaths.

Much of the support Moïse enjoyed came from the outside the country. Since 2004, a “Core Group” made up of international actors, including the United States and the Organization of American States—an international organization based in Washington, D.C.—have had a heavy hand in Haiti. Most recently, this “Core Group” threw its support behind the choice of interim prime minister after the assassination, first supporting Claude Joseph over Ariel Henry, a former minister had been tapped for the role by Moïse shortly before he died, then shifting to support Henry.

This week, Joseph announced he would step down and cede the prime minister role to Henry. But it would be “a fatal mistake for the new Prime Minister to believe that the blessing of the international community is sufficient to address the country's current challenges,” according to Haiti’s largest newspaper, Le Nouvelliste. To further understand the situation, The Ballot turned to Pharès Jérôme, a journalist at Le Nouvelliste, and Pierre Esperance, executive director of the Haitian National Human Rights Defense Network. These interviews were conducted separately, then translated from French and edited for clarity.

The Ballot: You have a new prime minister.

Pharès Jérôme: We don’t yet know this prime minister. But it’s almost the same team as the previous minister. [Both politicians come from the same party.] Henry was a minister for former president Michel Martelly. In addition to that, many former ministers have been taken back to key roles and we don’t yet know what will happen. The prime minister doesn’t have a president to give him orders. But he has to be accountable to the international community, who gave him their blessing.

The Ballot: What is the role of the international community in Haiti’s politics?

Jérôme: Jovenel Moïse chose Henry as prime minister before he was assassinated. But when he was killed, there were no provisions to install a new prime minister. The Core Group gave its authority to Claude Joseph, who took control immediately after the death, to stay on as prime minister. But after a lot of criticism—and we don’t know what exactly happened—the Core Group communicated that they were supporting Henry instead. It’s the international community who is behind this new prime minister. There should have been an accord from the political parties, but that didn’t happen, so he will be installed with the help of the international community. These decisions were made by the international community, rather than local politicians.

This happened in the elections of Michel Martelly [who was President of Haiti from 2011 to 2016]. He had been in third place following the first round of voting and was not supposed to go to the second round. American embassy [and the Organization of American States] contested the election [on the basis of fraud.] Many called Martelly “the president of the international community.” And decisions are taken without diplomacy, without nuance. The international community imposes itself on Haiti.

Pierre Esperance: The Core Group doesn’t support democracy in Haiti. The Core Group supports corruption, insecurity, the “bananization” of everyday life, the instrumentalization and politicization of institutions and of the state. The Core Group doesn’t listen to Haitians.

The Ballot: What is now known about Moïse’s assassination?

Jérôme: The police have been looking for certain individuals. Most of them were unknown before their arrest... We are waiting. We think that a crime this bad must have some people more powerful behind it. But we are waiting. The investigation is happening. The police are working.

The Ballot: Moïse was not very popular. Why?

Jérôme: The president was indeed very unpopular. The population was very unhappy with his governance. The standard of life had deteriorated, insecurity grew, as did corruption.

From the moment he came into power until his death, the country’s levels went down, and one didn’t hear a strong will to turn things around.

In Moise’s speeches, he attacked corruption. He promised things, but in reality, nothing happened. One began to be unable to leave home. Insecurity increased. Fear began to take over. The roads were often blocked; it was as though the country had stopped working. When you left the house, people would say “careful.” If you leave, you don’t know if you’ll come back. The problems were here; nothing was done to resolve them.

Esperance: He was a president who worked with the mafia, who was very corrupt, who turned our country into a banana republic, and who made an alliance with gangs. [“G9 and Family,” an organization of nine of the strongest gangs in Port-au-Prince, has been linked to Moïse.]

The Ballot: What happens next for Haiti?

Jérôme: There needs to be a solution to insecurity questions, notably kidnapping. There’s also the cost of life; the cost of things have increased. These are things to deal with. No one is expecting a miracle solution. But things need to be done. There need to be signals.

I think there’s an opportunity today for Haiti to find some stability...Haitians must show they are capable. The international community must not take the place of Haitians. We’ve seen in the past what happens when we impose outside solutions and it buries us in crisis.