Update | Get help for Haiti - Desulme

Haiti, the hemisphere's poorest and most unstable state, is now under a state of emergency following the predawn assassination of President Jovenel Moise and the wounding of his wife, Martine-Marie, on Wednesday.

Four persons suspected of being "mercenaries" were later shot dead by the police. Two others have been detained.

There are now fears that its history of political turbulence will escalate into full-blown anarchy in the days ahead.

That is why Jean-Marie Desulme, a Haitian who has made Jamaica his home for more than 40 years but who has family still in that country, is calling for the 15-state Caribbean Community (CARICOM), of which Haiti is a member, to build consensus with other countries in the Americas to stabilise the Francophone nation.

“Haiti needs help. CARICOM should call on the prime minister of Haiti and ask what can it do to help. The first people that can help are the CARICOM neighbours,” said Desulme, whose family once owned and operated ThermoPlastic Jamaica Limited, a former manufacturing outfit.

“The Organization of American States (OAS) should also be on board. Countries like Jamaica, the United States, and several other Caribbean countries can get together and send a detachment of people to be on the ground,” he added.

After an emergency meeting on Wednesday, CARICOM heads issued a statement saying that they strongly condemned “this abhorrent and reprehensible act that comes at a time of deep turmoil and institutional weakness in the country” and called for the perpetrators to be apprehended and brought to justice.

Moise had been ruling by decree since 2019 following disputed election results that escalated with street protests, kidnappings, the assassination of high-profile politicians, and, ultimately, his own death.

Desulme said that Moise was the democratically elected president despite objections about the election results. He believes that his efforts to begin fixing many of Haiti's centuries-old problems led to his murder.

“Nobody has the right to go there and kill him. That is a crime against the State. And whoever has done it, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the International Police, should get together, track these people and bring them to justice, because these people have plunged Haiti today into anarchy and chaos. Haiti doesn't need that,” he told The Gleaner on Wednesday.

Marie-Jose Zengou Tayo, retired University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona campus senior lecturer in French, does not believe that occupation is necessary. She still believes that Haitians can achieve the long-desired ambition for democratic, non-violent change.

The retired lecturer, who has lived in Jamaica for the last 30 years, said the current instability has made governance impossible.

“It was a shock because even though the situation was very difficult and there was a lot of unrest and violence, I never expect that kind of violence ... ,” she told The Gleaner on Wednesday.

She hoped that after the creation of a new Constitution drafted after the ouster of Jean-Claude Duvalier, or Baby Doc, the country would have been on the road to stability.

Zengou Tayo said that the political and social atmosphere provided the perfect storm for protest.

“What has happened is an accumulation of things. The development of armed groups, gangs, insecurity, kidnappings, so this feeling of insecurity has put people in distress.

“The other thing also, there had been frustrations with the social conditions. There is frustration with corruption, no gas, always shortage of gas, no electricity, and no water,” said Zengou Tayo.

Desulme said Haiti has been fighting for the last 35 years since the departure of Jean-Claude Duvalier and his repressive regime of Tonton Macoutes – a special criminal unit within the paramilitary force created by his father, Francois.

He said Haiti's problem is being fuelled by groups of persons hell-bent on destroying the country.

“You can narrow it down to a group of people, of politicians, who live on the backs of the people and the back of the State. They feel they can use the masses whenever they want to try to get people on the streets to demonstrate so they can overthrow for them to go in themselves and take over so they can embezzle,” he explained.

Desulme said in 1991 when Aristide was overthrown by the army and sent into exile, the world stood behind Haiti. Aristide's return and reinstatement three years later was a lesson to Haiti that democracy could be achieved by the ballot, said Desulme.

Zengou Tayo said that it was well known that many interests wanted Moise out, but not necessarily dead, and fingers are already being pointed at the oligarchs.

“That may be so, but those oligarchs behind his killing would be the very ones that contribute to his win. And there is the view that there was a coup within his own party that is a possible cause of his death,” she theorised.

EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this story suggested that Mr Desulme advocated for an occupational force from CARICOM. Although he was quoted correctly in using the term 'detachment', which is the deployment of military, ships, and aircraft on a mission, he said he wants foreigners to assist with investigations and the provision of other resources. Mr Desulme does not support the occupation of Haiti.

erica.virtue@gleanerjm.com