| Jean-Claude Duvalier | |
 | |
33rd President of Haiti | |
|---|---|
| In office April 21, 1971 – February 6, 1986 | |
| Preceded by | François Duvalier |
| Succeeded by | Henri Namphy |
| Born | July 3, 1951 Port-au-Prince, Haiti |
| Spouse | Michèle Bennett |
| Children | One daughter and one son |
Jean-Claude Duvalier (nicknamed Bébé Doc or Baby Doc) (born July 3, 1951) succeeded his father, François "Papa Doc" Duvalier as the ruler of Haiti from his father's death in 1971 until his overthrow by a popular uprising in 1986. The President of Haiti is the Head of state of the Republic of Haiti. Events 753 BC - Romulus and Remus found Rome ( traditional date) Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar) Dr François Duvalier, known as " Papa Doc " ( April 14, 1907 – April 21, 1971) was the President of Henri Namphy (born Cap-Haïtien, Haiti November 2, 1932) was a Haitian General and political figure Events 324 - Battle of Adrianople Constantine I defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium. Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January PortAuPrinceTapTapjpg|right|thumb|270px|A taptap (shared taxi in central Port-au-Prince Haiti ( English: ˈheɪ·tiː or haɪ·ˈjiː·tiː French Haïti a·i·ti Haitian Creole: Michèle Bennett is the ex-wife of Jean-Claude Duvalier. From 1980 to 1986 she was the First Lady of Haiti. Events 324 - Battle of Adrianople Constantine I defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium. Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January Dr François Duvalier, known as " Papa Doc " ( April 14, 1907 – April 21, 1971) was the President of Haiti ( English: ˈheɪ·tiː or haɪ·ˈjiː·tiː French Haïti a·i·ti Haitian Creole: Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar)
Contents |
Early life
He was born in Port-au-Prince, and was raised in an isolated environment. PortAuPrinceTapTapjpg|right|thumb|270px|A taptap (shared taxi in central Port-au-Prince He attended the most prestigious Haitian schools, College Bird and the Saint-Louis de Gonzague. Saint-Louis de Gonzague is a Roman Catholic lycée (school in Haiti. Later, under the direction of several prominent professors at the University of Haiti, he studied law but never expressed any particular interest in politics or Haitian affairs. Haiti's most important institution of Higher education in the 1980s was the State University of Haiti. Nevertheless in April 1971 he assumed the presidency of Haiti at the age of 19 upon the death of his father, François Duvalier (nicknamed "Papa Doc"), becoming the world's youngest president. Dr François Duvalier, known as " Papa Doc " ( April 14, 1907 – April 21, 1971) was the President of He initially resented the dynastic arrangement that had made him Haiti's leader, having preferred that the presidency go to his older sister Marie-Denise Duvalier, and was content to leave substantive and administrative matters in the hands of his mother, Simone Ovide Duvalier, while he attended ceremonial functions and lived as a playboy. Simone Duvalier (c1913 - 1997 was the wife of Haitian Dictator François " Papa Doc " Duvalier (1907-1971 [1]
Political and economic repression
Partly in response to American pressure, Jean-Claude initially made some efforts to blunt the harsher edges of his father's regime. He released some political prisoners, slightly eased press censorship and initiated some judicial reforms. However, no real changes were made to the regime's basic character. Haiti remained a police state in which no opposition was tolerated. The term police state describes a State in which the government exercises rigid and repressive controls over the social economic and political
Jean-Claude was vested with absolute power by the Constitution. However, after a few years he limited his interest in government to various schemes and misappropriations of funds. Much of the Duvaliers' wealth, which amounted to hundreds of millions of dollars over the years, came from the Régie du Tabac (Tobacco Administration). Duvalier used this "nonfiscal account," established decades earlier, as a tobacco monopoly, but he later expanded it to include the proceeds from other government enterprises and used it as a slush fund for which no balance sheets were ever kept. [2]
By neglecting his role in government, Jean-Claude squandered considerable domestic and foreign goodwill and facilitated the dominance of Haitian affairs by a clique of hardline Duvalierist cronies known as the dinosaurs. The public displayed more affection toward Jean-Claude than they had displayed for his more formidable father. Foreign officials and observers also seemed more tolerant toward "Baby Doc," in areas such as human-rights monitoring, and foreign countries were more generous to him with economic assistance. The United States restored its aid program for Haiti in 1971. [2]
Marriage
Jean-Claude miscalculated the ramifications of his May 1980 wedding to Michèle Bennett Pasquet, a mulatto divorcée with an unsavory reputation. Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) Michèle Bennett is the ex-wife of Jean-Claude Duvalier. From 1980 to 1986 she was the First Lady of Haiti. Mulatto is a term used to describe a person with one white parent and one black parent or a person whose Ancestry is a mixture of black and white François Duvalier had jailed her father, Ernest Bennett, for bad debts and other shady financial dealings. Dr François Duvalier, known as " Papa Doc " ( April 14, 1907 – April 21, 1971) was the President of Her first husband, Alix Pasquet, was the son of a well-known mulatto officer who had led an attempt to overthrow Papa Doc Duvalier. Although Jean-Claude himself was light-skinned, his father's legacy of support for the black middle class and antipathy toward the mulatto elite had enhanced the appeal of Duvalierism among the black majority of the population. By marrying a mulatto, Jean-Claude appeared to be abandoning the informal bond that his father had labored to establish. The marriage also estranged the old-line Duvalierists in the government from the younger technocrats whom Jean-Claude had appointed. The Duvalierists' spiritual leader, Jean-Claude's mother, Simone, was eventually expelled from Haiti, reportedly at the request of Michèle Duvalier. With his wife Duvalier had two children, Francois Nicolas and Anya.
The extravagance of the couple's wedding, which cost an estimated $3 million further alienated the people. Popular discontent intensified in response to increased corruption among the Duvaliers and the Bennetts, as well as the repulsive nature of the Bennetts' dealings, which included selling Haitian cadavers to foreign medical schools and trafficking in narcotics. Increased political repression added to the volatility of the situation. [1]
Discontent and revolt
In response to an outbreak of African swine fever virus, U. African swine fever virus (ASFV is the causative agent of African swine fever S. agricultural authorities oversaw the mass eradication of Haiti's pig population. The Creole Pig was a breed of Pig indigenous to the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The Program for the Eradication of Porcine Swine Fever and Development of Pig Raising (PEPPADEP) caused widespread hardship among the peasant population, many of whom had bred pigs as an investment. PEPPADEP is the acronym for Programme pour l’Eradication de la Peste Porcine Africaine et pour le Developpment de l'Elvage Porcin or the African Swine Fever Eradication and In addition, reports that AIDS was becoming a major problem in Haiti caused tourism to Haiti to decline dramatically in the early 1980s. By the mid-1980s, most Haitians felt hopeless, as economic conditions worsened and hunger and malnutrition spread. [3]
Widespread discontent began in March 1983, when Pope John Paul II visited Haiti. Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) History See also History of the Papacy Catholics recognize the Pope as a successor to Saint Peter, who Jesus named as the "shepherd" and Pope The pontiff declared that "Something must change here. " He went on to call for a more equitable distribution of income, a more egalitarian social structure, more concern among the elite for the well-being of the masses, and increased popular participation in public life. This message revitalized both laymen and clergy, and it contributed to increased popular mobilization and to expanded political and social activism. [2]
A revolt began in the provinces two years later. The city of Gonaïves was the first to have street demonstrations and raids on food-distribution warehouses. Gonaïves ( Gonayiv in Kréyòl) is a city in northern Haiti, the capital of the Artibonite Department. From October 1985 to January 1986, the protests spread to six other cities, including Cap Haïtien. Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar) Cap-Haïtien ( Okap or Kapayisyen in Kréyòl) is a city of about 130000 people on the north coast of Haiti. By the end of that month, Haitians in the south had revolted. The most significant rioting there broke out in Les Cayes. Les Cayes, formerly Aux Cayes (Okay is a town and Seaport in southwestern Haiti with a population of approximately 45904 people (1995 estimate [2]
Jean-Claude responded with a 10 percent cut in staple food prices, the closing of independent radio stations, a cabinet reshuffle, and a crackdown by police and army units, but these moves failed to dampen the momentum of the popular uprising against the dynastic dictatorship. Jean-Claude's wife and advisers, intent on maintaining their profitable grip on power, urged him to put down the rebellion and to remain in office. [2]
In January 1986, the Reagan administration began to pressure Duvalier to renounce his rule and to leave Haiti. The United States Presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan Administration, was a Republican administration headed by Representatives appointed by Jamaican prime minister Edward Seaga served as intermediaries who carried out the negotiations. Jamaica (ˈdʒəˈmeɪkə} is an Island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length and as much as in width situated in the Caribbean Sea. Edward Philip George Seaga ON (born May 28, 1930) was Prime Minister of Jamaica and Leader of the Jamaica Labour Party from 1980 The United States rejected a request to provide asylum for Duvalier, but offered to assist with the dictator's departure. Duvalier had initially accepted on January 30, 1986 and the White House actually announced his departure. Events 1648 - Eighty Years' War: The Treaty of Münster is signed ending the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar) At the last minute, however, Jean-Claude decided to remain in Haiti, declaring “we are as firm as a monkey tail. ” His decision provoked increased violence in the streets, reaching Port-au-Prince. [4]
At this point, Minister of Public Works Alix Cineas and Lieutenant General Henri Namphy, along with others in the military, confronted the Duvaliers and demanded their departure. Henri Namphy (born Cap-Haïtien, Haiti November 2, 1932) was a Haitian General and political figure Left with no bases of support, Jean-Claude consented, leaving behind a country economically ravaged, lacking functional political institutions, and devoid of any tradition of peaceful self-rule. [2]
Exile
The Duvaliers settled in France. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. For a time they lived a luxurious life - a villa in the hills of Cannes, two apartments in Paris, a chateau, along with a Ferrari. A villa was originally an Upper-class Country house, though since its origins in Roman times the idea and function of a villa has evolved considerably Cannes (kan in Occitan Canas) is a city in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city For other senses of this word see Château (disambiguation. A château (plural châteaux) is a Manor house or residence Ferrari SpA is an Italian Sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy Although he formally applied for Political Asylum, his request was denied by French authorities and he was subsequently placed under house arrest for some time. Right of asylum (or political asylum) is an ancient Judicial notion under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his [5] Jean-Claude lost most of his wealth with his 1993 divorce from Michèle. [6] While apparently living in penniless exile, Duvalier does have some supporters, who founded the Francois Duvalier Foundation in 2006 to promote positive aspects of the dictatorship, including the creation of most of Haiti's state institutions and improved access to education for the country's black majority. [7]
A private citizen, Jacques Samyn, sued to expel Duvalier as an illegal immigrant (the Duvaliers were never officially granted asylum in France). Then, in 1998, a Haitian-born photographer, Gerard Bloncourt, formed a committee in Paris to bring Duvalier to trial. Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) At the time, the French Ministry of the Interior said that it could not verify whether Duvalier still remained in the country due to the recently enacted Schengen Agreement which had abolished systematic border controls between the participating countries. The term Schengen Agreement is used for two agreements concluded among European states in 1985 and 1990 which deal with the abolition of systematic Border controls [5] However, Duvalier's lawyer Sauveur Vaisse said that his client was still in France and denied that the exiled leader had fallen on hard times. [8]
Following the ousting of president Jean-Bertrand Aristide in February 2004, Duvalier announced his intention to return to Haiti. Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born July 15 1953 is a former Roman Catholic Priest who was President of Haiti in 1991 again from 1994 to 1996 and then February 2004 was the second month of 2004 in the Gregorian calendar. In 2004, he announced his intentions to run for president of Haiti in the 2006 elections for the Party of National Unity; however, he did not become a candidate. The 2006 Elections in Haiti, to replace the interim government of Gérard Latortue put in place after the 2004 Haiti rebellion, were delayed four [9]
On September 22–September 23, 2007, an address by Duvalier to Haitians was broadcast by radio. Events 66 - Emperor Nero creates the Legion I Italica. 1236 - The Lithuanians Events 1122 - Concordat of Worms. 1459 - Battle of Blore Heath, the first major battle of the English Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. In this address, he said: "If, during my presidential mandate, the government caused any physical, moral, or economic wrongs to others, I solemnly take the historical responsibility . . . to request forgiveness from the people and ask for the impartial judgment of history. " Although he said exile had "broken" him, he also said that what he described as the improving fortunes of the National Unity Party had "reinvigorated" him, and he urged readiness among his supporters, without saying whether he intended to return to Haiti. [10] President René Préval rejected Duvalier's apology and, on September 28, he said that while Duvalier was constitutionally free to return to Haiti, he would face trial if he did so. René Garcia Préval ( IPA: /ʀəne pʀeval/ (born January 17, 1943) is a Haitian politician and Agronomist who has been Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. [11]
Duvalier reportedly lives in a one-bedroom apartment in Paris with Veronique Roy, his longtime girlfriend and chief public-relations representative. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city [6] Veronique Roy is the granddaughter of Paul Magloire, President of Haïti from 1950 to 1956. Paul Eugène Magloire ( July 19 1907 &ndash July 12 2001) was a Haïtian military ruler from 1950 to 1956 [12]
Popular culture
Swedish band Sator made a song about him called "Baby Doc Holiday" on their album "Stock Rocker Nuts. Sator is a Swedish rock band The band was founded in Borlänge and have released 7 albums "
New Zealand artist Luke Hurley has a song entitled "Duvalier" on his album "Luke Hurley - The Best of 1981-2006. Luke Hurley is an independent New Zealand guitarist and Singer-songwriter, who works mostly outside the confines of the music industry " [13]
A story arc in the Doonesbury comic strip had the character of Uncle Duke running the "Baby Doc College of Offshore Medicine" in Haiti in the mid-1980s. Doonesbury is a Comic strip by G B Trudeau that chronicles the adventures and lives of a vast array of different characters of different ages professions A comic strip is a sequence of drawings that tells a story Currently in the Western world, most comic strips are written and drawn by a Comics artist Uncle Duke is a Fictional character in the Comic strip Doonesbury. Uncle Duke was subsequently turned into a zombie slave, purchased by Duvalier as a manservant, and then taken with the Duvaliers into their exile in France. zombie is a reanimated human corpse Stories of zombies originated in the Afro-Caribbean spiritual belief system of Vodou, which told of the people being controlled
References
- ^ a b Abbott, Elizabeth. Haiti: The Duvaliers and Their Legacy McGraw-Hill New York 1988 ISBN 0-07-046029-9
- ^ a b c d e f [Metz, Helen Chapin Dominican Republic and Haiti : Country Studies Federal Research Division, Library of Congress Washington, DC December 1989 ISBN 0-8444-1044-6]
- ^ History of Haiti
- ^ My country is Haiti: a summary of Haiti 's history from colonial times to 1994
- ^ a b Haitian exiles want to take ``Baby Doc to court
- ^ a b Exile in France Takes Toll On Ex-Tyrant 'Baby Doc'
- ^ Haiti: Loyalists Seek Dictator's Return
- ^ Not just fade away
- ^ "Haiti vote attracts 30 candidates", BBC News, September 16, 2005.
- ^ Stevenson Jacobs, "Exiled dictator apologizes for 'wrongs' in rare address to Haitians", Associated Press (SignOnSanDiego. com), September 24, 2007.
- ^ "Haiti's president says ex-dictator must face justice if he returns from exile", Associated Press (International Herald Tribune), September 28, 2007.
- ^ Baby Doc’s return to Haiti seen as play to contain Preval
- ^ Hear "Duvalier" by Luke Hurley
External links
- Haiti, 1.000 Gourdes, 1973, Jean Claude Duvalier
- Jean Claude Duvalier and Michele Bennet Wedding 25 Mai 1980
| Preceded by François Duvalier | President of Haiti 1971-1986 | Succeeded by Henri Namphy |
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