The front door of St. Jean Bosco in La Saline. Traditionally, this is the main starting point for most Fanmi Lavalas mobilizations. On September 11, 1988 the massacre here by Duvalierist factions was also another starting point for the Lavalas popular movement that changed the will of The People of Haiti forever.
image ©2014 Randall White

Haiti’s Fanmi Lavalas will continue their mobilization

by Randall White

HaitiAction.net - Port au Prince, Haiti — There’s no doubt that the whirlwind of political shenanigans — magouy — since January are largely driven by the intent to see national elections this year. The focus on Aristide is perceived by most to be a ruse to distract attention away from the delay of elections.

“fouchèt divizyon pa bwè soup eleksyon”

After the Lavalas political organization first overcame the national objectives of the United States Government (USG) in 1990 by overtaking the “presidentialism” inflicted on Haiti by its overseers. And, after the surprise victory — 67% — of Aristide, the USG would spare no life, to make sure that a continuing legacy of a clean result would never happen again. Thus was born, the current mythomania that has left behind any pretense of diplomacy.

In January, a fifteen year USG plot to frame the Lavalas government with the assassination of one of Aristide’s close friends — Radio Haiti-Inter owner Jean Dominique — had taken on a new momentum, until the machinations of former USIA officials were coming to the fore. All the while, the familiar cast of clowns were finding a new sense of purpose in reviving their old, worn-out tricks on the post-Earthquake audience. In the poor neighborhoods a newer generation of Macoutes had become the shape-shifting werewolves of nightly terror to challenge the pro-democracy activists that mobilize from the base communities there.

Recently, the Martelly/Lamothe government has been tagged by the bourgeoise media as trying to inflict a new Macoute dominated election process on the country. With, even moderate, factions crying “Foul” those designs have bogged down and the election date slips further away.

This poster was distributed widely as one of the announcements to the upcoming sanctioned demonstration of September 30, 2014 through the streets of Port au Prince

With the sudden death of the autarchic tyrant, Jean Claude Duvalier, The People of Haiti have had Justice and closure denied to them for the second time in Duvalier’s life. What most outsiders fail to comprehend is that the political cult of Duvalierism has been provided a tabula rasa with this death, clearing the sort-term path for his son “Nico” — Francois Nicolas Duvalier — currently serving as a minister in the Duvalierist Martelly government and expected to be formally launched into political office, as a Senator when the delayed elections finally do run.

All this time, the Fanmi Lavalas political organization has been organizing and consolidating its supporters in preparations of participating in whatever election may come. To avoid a new political dialogue this year, the Martelly/Lamothe machine was able to appoint — unconstitutionally — one of their cronies to the judiciary to revive an old charge (like an apparition of mouldy US bills in a magical safe) that the USG had fabricated ten years ago. The tactic is perceived by all non-Macoutes as the same old Election Year Magouy.

On the other hand, Fanmi Lavalas militants perceive the shifting charade as a present danger to the safety of Dr. Aristide, his wife and his daughters. Their mobilization has now taken on a new character; that has nothing to do with the “presidentialism” malady. Fanmi Lavalas marched on September 30th, like they have done since 1992, but somehow their sanctioned march across the city had to be rerouted n the middle of the event “to allow for the Prime Minister Lemothe to make a meeting.”

After several “rerouting” provocations, CIMO let loose with tear gas and water cannons injuring many demonstrators and bystanders. However, Fanmi Lavalas is planning another mobilization this week and their organizing drive through the country will continue, unfazed.

“In memoriam Dr François Duvalier, président à vie”

If someone is confused about Nico’s world-view, then just taking his own published op-ed — prima facie, as the basis of your personal research — his message to old-line Duvalierists is clear.

Last year, a week before the 50 year commemoration of The Massacre of April 26, 1963, Nico published this op-ed in le Nouvelliste which translates to “In Memoriam: Dr. François Duvalier, President for Life." *

@FNDuvalier - A Twitter page can say a lot about how a person views their own destiny.

Click on the above image for larger, 143K view

In actuality, the most significant point here is the title “President for Life;” that is, for history hacks. We are talking about a seminal event in the modern Haitian history, the one where the nascent CIA really starts mucking things up in the Caribbean. Foreign-policy theorists can reasonably speculate that there is a likelihood that the CIA, fresh from their Bay of Pigs success — that is, “success” of their own talents at disrupting JFK’s foreign policy objectives — had their hands in the attempted kidnapping of Jean Claude and Simone that lead to the retaliatory massacre. This episode further inflamed François Duvalier’s malice towards JFK to where he had a real celebration at his villa — in the surroundings of the Mockingbird of Haiti, Herb Gold, and Oswald’s handler, George de Mohrenschildt — the November evening of John Kennedy’s assassination.

It was in the year following The Massacre of April 26 that François Duvalier proclaimed himself to be “président à vie.” This grandiose proclamation is an claim to a special destiny and anointing for a special purpose. Many claim that Nico is the latest embodiment of the Duvalierist personality cult. Yes, there is actually a Nico cult. But let’s get back to the op-ed…

Here is Nico showing an amazingly adept proclivity for political spin; no doubt a skill he picked up from his privileged education in France. Read it for yourself. Its entirety is revisionist history. There’s little doubt that the Noiriste scholar, Dr. Francois Duvalier, lent his name to petitions by the early anti-apartheid movement. What is highly unlikely, is that his name would be one that Nelson Mandela would celebrate upon his release from prison. Its inclusion in this op-ed is Political Spin 101. Nico is well aware of the historical context of his op-ed and how it was perceived by The Nouvelliste audience.

Nowadays, there’s a trend to determine what someone’s self-image might be by what appears on their Twitter page. Sure enough, it seems that the “background” imagery on https://twitter.com/FNDuvalier provides the impression that Nico may just have that sense of predestination.

We look forward to more of the same from François Duvalier II. In his grandfather’s footsteps…

Unity - Justice - Election

At the foundation of the Fanmi Lavalas political organization was their own Calvary, at St. Jean Bosco. The Nine O’Clock Mass of Sunday September 11, 1988 was more of a political mobilization in response to one more assassination attempt at Fr. Jean Bertrand Aristide the previous Sunday. That foiled attempt was similar to another Tonton Macoute attempt by Stephan Joseph over two years earlier that was the first of many attempts on Fr. Aristide’s life by the Duvalierists.

In the continuing pattern of the militants’ mobilizations, Father Aristide was a bit reluctant to lead the Eucharist in the face of danger, but the young congregation was moving.

This cartoon by the right-wing newspaper Le Nouvelliste shows that even they perceive that Martelly has stacked the provisional electoral council with Duvalierists (Macoutes)

1985 had seen a new determination by the People of Haiti to uproot — dechoukaj — the brutal regime and end a perverse system that was an extension of the US Empire. The US Embassy could see that the time was up for Jean Claude Duvalier. A complete victory for the popular mobilization would have been Jean Claude Duvalier facing Justice. This would have awakened a “social cyclone” that could build through the region. The Embassy’s containment program wanted to create the perception that whisking away the dictator on their big bird sitting at the Port au Prince airport was an act of benevolent “diplomacy.” Their biggest fear in the 80’s was not Communism, but Liberation Theology.

A few days before that first assassination attempt, the young Lavalas movement mobilized and swept up Father Aristide to the airport to prevent the US plane from taking off with Duvalier. The People of Haiti were compelling Aristide into leadership of their popular movement.

The removal of Duvalier from Haiti in 86 was not welcomed by Father Aristide or the popular movement, at the time, they were seeking Justice. Instead of a constitutional democracy, the US provided them with a brutal circus while they attempted to contain the movement.

The turmoil of Haiti from 1986-1990 is well documented and debated. What is clear is that The People of Haiti were finally able to freely participate in the selection of their leaders in the face of the collective self-image of their powerful oppressors.

With the death of Jean Claude Duvalier, it was just like the time he was flown out of the country over 28 years ago. The People of Haiti regretted that event. Like today, they just wished to have some Justice. Nico might have a vision of his destiny, but what matters now is what the will of the People of Haiti will be if they can participate in the upcoming elections.

*(text provided here for clarity as the original seems to have a preponderance of superfluous code that can prevent a clear reading/translation on many systems. For the current original go to In memoriam Dr François Duvalier, président à vie

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