Haiti: Top Officials Fired After Anti-Corruption Protests
Haitian President Jovenel Moise removed Monday two top government officials in a purge of people linked to a corruption scandal that sparked violent mass protests last week, Channel News Asia reported.
The cabinet chief and the secretary general of the presidency were fired from their posts along with 15 government advisers, according to an official announcement.
These firings follow a report compiled in August by the Haitian Senate that called for charges to be brought against two former prime ministers and several other government officials for alleged embezzlement of US$3.8 billion, abuse of power and forgery in connection with a Venezuelan oil loan program.
PetroCaribe, a Venezuelan-led oil alliance between the South American nation and Caribbean countries, was funneling money into Haitian government coffers. But the Haitian Senate’s report follows up parliamentary investigation into whether the PetroCaribe funds were then misspent by previous administrations.
“To have a healthy process, the president has decided to rid the environment of people linked to Petrocaribe without admitting they are guilty of anything,” Prime Minister Jean-Henry Ceant said at a news conference this week.
Haiti’s citizens remain outraged by the lack of arrests and the slow pace of the investigations. Last week at least two people were killed and dozens were injured as anti-corruption protesters numbering in the thousands surged through the streets of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince.
A police spokesman said 11 civilians were injured by bullets and 11 officers by flying rocks, but other officials reported higher civilian injuries.
The protests were kicked off by a photo tweeted by Haitian filmmaker and writer Gilbert Mirambeau Jr. showing him blindfolded and holding a cardboard sign reading “Where is the PetroCaribe money?” in Creole.
The social media campaign, called the #petrocaribechallenge, has spread like wildfire throughout Haiti, one of the poorest nations in the world.
“We are fed up with what’s going on,” said Mirambeau, 35. “It’s like we have a knife under our throats, and are looking at the government and not doing anything.”
Some marchers were heard calling for the resignation of President Jovenel Moise, who took office in February 2017 and whom many accuse of thwarting the PetroCaribe investigation.
In response to the protests, both Moise and Prime Minister Ceant reasserted their commitment to investigating the alleged embezzlement.
“No one will escape justice. It is a moral duty and a righteousness,” Moise tweeted on Thursday.
“We are going to create an independent commission to investigate the truth of Petrocaribe,” Ceant told journalists.
Haitians protest alleged misuse of PetroCaribe funds, demand accountability
Haitians hit the streets to call for an investigation into the alleged misuse of Venezuela-sponsored PetroCaribe funds by previous administrations.A social media campaign drew attention to the issue and led hundreds of Haitians in front of the Superior Court of Accounts with some holding signs that read, “Where is the PetroCaribe money?”“We’re here to ask the court, the (Ministry of ) Justice – I want to know where the fund given by Venezuela is, the fund that should be invested in development projects in the country? A fund estimated at more than 3 million dollars. It’s unacceptable that a small group of people, the (Ministry of) Justice, the parliament can’t understand this dynamic. This morning we’re mobilizing to ask where is this fund”, an unidentified protester said.
I want to know where the fund given by Venezuela is, the fund that should be invested in development projects in the country?
Another protester said “We’re here to denounce the thieves. They should turn over the PetroCaribe fund. We’re starting a peaceful movement. If they don’t turn over the money this movement can take any form. It’s their obligation to turn it over.”Venezuela’s PetroCaribe scheme, launched in 2005, has furnished about 12 Caribbean states with oil supplies under a flexible credit mechanism. It obliging these states to pay cash for part of every shipment and finance the rest at low interest rates, or buy it with goods like food and clothing. However, a collapse in oil prices has caused a recession in Venezuela, and stalled many of the PetroCaribe shipments.Earlier this year judges were appointed to probe possible acts of corruption with PetroCaribe funds during the administrations of former Haitian presidents Rene Preval and Michel Martelly, between 2008 and 2016.Current President Jovenel Moise, who is from the same party that ruled during the period, has been criticized for not pursuing corruption as actively as he vowed to do.Haiti has a long tradition of corruption, and international partners and anti-graft watchdogs have often blamed Haitian politicians for failing to crack down on the menace.By: Reuters via Africanews.com| August 25, 2018
Dominican Senator and His Businesses Sanctioned by the US Under Global Magnitsky
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued a press release whereby they've "sanctioned Dominican Republic Senator Felix Ramon Bautista Rosario (Bautista) for engaging in corrupt acts, including in relation to reconstruction efforts in Haiti. “These actions are part of our continuing campaign to hold accountable government officials and other actors involved in human rights abuse and corrupt activities. Senator Bautista used his position to engage in corruption, including profiting off of humanitarian efforts related to rebuilding Haiti..." said Sigal Mandelker, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. “The United States will continue to use Global Magnitsky and our other authorities to ensure that corrupt actors and human rights violators cannot use our financial system to enable and support their abhorrent activities and exploit the innocent.”According to the Department of Treasury, "Bautista is a Senator from the Dominican Republic who has engaged in significant acts of corruption in both the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and who has been publicly accused of money laundering and embezzlement. Bautista has reportedly engaged in bribery in relation to his position as a Senator, and is alleged to have engaged in corruption in Haiti, where he used his connections to win public works contracts to help rebuild Haiti following several natural disasters, including one case where his company was paid over $10 million for work it had not completed.In a related action, OFAC designated five entities in the Dominican Republic that are owned or controlled by Bautista: Constructora Hadom SA, Soluciones Electricas Y Mecanicas Hadom S.R.L., Seymeh Ingenieria SRL, Inmobiliaria Rofi SA, and Constructora Rofi SA.The law also requires the Secretary of State to publicly or privately designate such officials and their family members. In addition to the designation of Senator Bautista, the Department is also publicly designating his spouse, Sarah Haydee Rojas Pena, their minor children, and his other children including Felix Ramon Bautista Abreu, Felix Jose Bautista Abreu, Felix Augusto Bautista Abreu, Felix Miguel Bautista Soler, Felix Fidel Bautista Grullon, and Yanilssa Bautista Bencosme.See full press release from The U.S. Department of the Treasury | June 12, 2018
Revocation of the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor
Roosevelt Bellevue, the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, suspected of corruption, in a case of fraud in the acquisition of over-charged school kits, was revoked.In the official newspaper Le Moniteur N ° 139 dated Tuesday, August 29, 2017, a decree was issued appointing Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant, acting Minister of Social Affairs and Labor."Combating corruption and impunity is one of my commitments. I shall put all my strength into it. An act of corruption presupposes the presence of corrupters and corrupters. All are subject to the same penalties," declared President Jovenel Moïse.For his part, the former Minister denies his involvement in any corruption case. He considers these accusations to be "politicaillerie" and that this history of overcharging school kits is the work of a specific sector that wants to tarnish his image...For his part, Pierre Josué Agenor Cadet, the Minister of Education, denies any involvement of his Director of Cabinet, Jackson Pléteau, in cases of corruption related to a case of overcharging of school kits. Minister Cadet says he has not signed any contract to date.HaitiLibre - 30/08/2017