Photos: Funerals turn into protests in Haiti’s 5th week of turmoil
Updated On Oct 17, 2019 06:33 PM IST
Road blocks are going up across Haiti as the country enters its fifth week of protests after opposition leaders said they will not back down on their call for President Jovenel Moïse to resign. The UN recently said Haiti stands at a delicate moment. Much of the anger stems from an investigation released by Haiti's Senate that accuses former top government officials of misusing some $2 billion in funds tied to a Venezuelan subsidized oil program that were slated for social programs. The report also mentioned a company once owned by Moïse, who has denied corruption allegations.
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Updated on Oct 17, 2019 06:33 PM IST
Mourners walk past burning tires carrying the coffin of a man killed during a demonstration, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on October 16, 2019. Funerals for 11 of at least 20 people killed were held in six cities. At least two people were injured in a protest in the capital that broke out when presidential guards tried to block a road near where hundreds had gathered around the coffins of two victims. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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An anti-government protester shouts that Haitian President Jovenel Moise must step down, in Port-au-Prince. The country has entered its enters its fifth week of protests that have paralysed the economy. The protests are fuelled by anger over corruption, inflation that has reached 20% and dwindling of basic supplies, including gasoline. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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A girl writes in French and Creole on a chalkboard: “A sentence always begins with a capital letter and ends with a period,” outside a one-room home in the Cite Soleil district of Port-au-Prince. Residents of Cite Soleil say access to basic services, jobs, and security has been declining and many are participating in the protests. Schools have been closed for weeks due to the protests. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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Protesters led by the art community demanding the resignation of Haitian President Jovenel Moise as they march through Port-au-Prince on October 13. Sixty percent of the people in a country of nearly 11 million make less than $2 a day and 25% less than $1 a day. “Not our president” and “We want a different Haiti,” read signs in the protest. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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President Jovenel Moïse broke his silence Tuesday and said it would be irresponsible for him to resign amid unrest. “However long it takes, I am ready for dialogue. We don’t want to have another 1986,” Moïse said, referring to the year that then President Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier fled Haiti following lengthy demonstrations. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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Paseus Juvensky St. Fleur, who trained as a lawyer and is now an activist working for social justice, drops to his knees as protestors trying to set up a barricade across a major road argue with police trying to stop them, in Port-au-Prince. Opposition leaders have rejected Moïse’s call for unity and dialogue and created a nine-person commission they say would be responsible for overseeing an orderly transition of power. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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People fight as they line up at a closed gas station, hoping it will open eventually. Much of the anger stems from an investigation released by Haiti’s Senate that accuses former top government officials of misusing some $2 billion in funds tied to a Venezuelan subsidized oil program that were slated for social programs. The report also mentioned a company once owned by Moïse. (Dieu Nalio Chery / AP)
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The UN noted in a recent report that Haiti has not had a functional government since the president’s second Prime Minister resigned in March. It also warned of a “looming constitutional crisis” given the failure to organize local elections scheduled for this month. Demonstrations have shuttered businesses, and led to the deaths of some 20 people and roughly 200 injuries. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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Protesters use paving stones and rocks to barricade a road near the presidential palace. A new budget hasn’t been approved for two years, prompting organizations like the International Monetary Fund and others to withhold aid. On Tuesday the UN’s Mission for Justice Support in Haiti ended its mandate, marking the first time since 2004 that there was no UN peacekeeping operation in Haiti. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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A man drives his motorcycle through a burning barricade during anti-government protests in Port-au-Prince, on October 11. Haitians have complained of a leadership vacuum given Moise’s rare appearances during this crisis. The last time Moise spoke publicly before Tuesday was nearly three weeks prior in a pre-recorded 2 a.m. televised address. (Rebecca Blackwell / AP)
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Updated on Oct 17, 2019 06:33 PM IST