Recall that on March 20, 104 members of the US Congress (Democrats and Republicans), in a letter to Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State expressed their deep concern about the situation in Haiti, which they say is the subject of serious violations of human rights perpetrated by the National Police of Haiti (PNH), especially during the last demonstrations of February 2019 and asks the Secretary of State to investigate in particular "human rights violations" and "the extrajudicial executions" in Haiti.

"To protect the Haitian people, the United States must investigate the corruption and human rights violations committed by the Haitian Government [...] We can not let this perilous situation worsen further [...] ask you to work with your partners in Haiti to make the Haitian Government understand that it is important to invite the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to visit the country and to investigate acts of political violence," explains the US officials.

Reacting to this correspondence the Embassy of Haiti in Washington DC in a note, rejects these allegations of human rights violations by the US Congress

"The Embassy of the Republic of Haiti in the United States acknowledges the concerns expressed by members of the United States Congress regarding the social, economic and political climate of the Republic of Haiti.

It is clear that Haiti's young democracy faces various challenges that are not new and that it continues to address with the help of its partners. However, it would be inappropriate to talk about systematic violations of human rights in Haiti. On the contrary, the country has made enormous progress in the area of ​​civil and political rights, as shown by the recent reports of international organizations. Also, the accusations made by members of the US Congress in their correspondence to the State Department, dated March 20, 2019, do not reflect the reality on the ground in Haiti.

The State of Haiti respects and encourages the divergent opinions of all its citizens, in accordance with the national and international laws that protect the dignity of all Haitians. As a democratic State, the protection of all human beings is our main priority.

Given the long history and close ties between our two countries, the Government of Haiti reiterates its desire to work more closely with the United States Government to address all concerns."

HL/ HaitiLibre