Tim tim! Welcome to the latest edition of Woy Magazine’s weekly newsletter, providing you with must-know news and commentary on Haiti and our Diaspora.
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The Ceremony of Ceremonies
Few events live in the collective memory and imagination of Haitians and non-Haitians alike like the ceremony at Bwa Kayiman. Long believed to be one of the main kick-offs to the Haitian Revolution, there have been some who question whether the ceremony ever took place. Today, Woy Magazine is sharing a special 2002 article from Rachel Beauvoir-Dominque exploring this debate:
It seems that in the present discussion an important element, explaining certain apparent “digressions” has been lost. This is the fact that Morne Rouge, the place where BC ceremony hypotheses converge, is also the only place in Haiti to retain an important Islamic cult. This is because the first wave of slaves were from the Senegambian region and had already undergone heavy Islamic influence. Up to date, Mori Barthelemy and followers of the region maintain this tradition, with honor to the sun, specific funeral rites and so on.
You can read the full report here.
Men Moun Yo
As expected, last Sunday thousands upon thousands of Haitians poured into the streets to protest Jovenel Moïse’s refusal to step down from power, mass insecurity and growing economic vulnerabilities. The march, which was led by a coalition of Protestant groups, the opposition and civil society organizations, also called out the United Nations, the United States, Canada and other foreign governing bodies for continuing to meddle in the country’s affairs:
Un fort dispositif de sécurité a été remarqué dans les rues de la capitale haïtienne. La manifestants s’étaient rendus à Pétion-Ville en direction des locaux du BINUH à Juvenat. Ils voulaient délivrer un message à la cheffe du BINUH qui a minimisé le nombre des manifestants présents dans les, le dimanche 14 février dernier devant le conseil de sécurité de l’ONU. (Source: Juno7)
The next day, Black American and dyaspora allies held a solidarity protest in front of the Haitian Embassy in Washington, D.C. Among their demands, the protestors called for U.S. President Joe Biden to condemn the recent violence plaguing protestors and journalists in Haiti, and to immediately cease all financial support for the Moïse regime and it’s illegal constitutional referendum. Jamal Rich of the People’s World writes:
The Haitian aggression is a continued imperialist project to pursue U.S. monopoly interests in the region and have the local governments support it while exploiting their populations. Similar aggression is happening throughout the Caribbean, including against Cuba. The tightened economic warfare against that island which was pushed by Trump still continues under Biden.
Protestors were adamant in keeping the march peaceful, even handing flowers to police officers. The peaceful protestors were, in turn, later subjected to tear gas by the police at certain stops during the march.
Brain Drain
Hours before the Sunday march, news broke of the murder of a well-respected community doctor, Ernst Paddy. While preparing to head to his clinic with his daughter Dr. Paddy was attacked and killed by armed men during a kidnapping attempt; his daughter was seized during the ordeal. The tragic incident stands as a stark reminder that no person or class has been spared in the country’s mounting insecurity issues. (Source: Juno7)
Last March, hospital chief Jerry Bitar was kidnapped and held for ransom just as the country was attempting to make sense of the COVID pandemic. Months later, the nation was stunned to learn that Monferrier Dorval, head of the Port-au-Prince Bar Association was assassinated in his front yard just hours after a controversial interview. And of course, earlier this year Jovenel Moïse had a Supreme Court Justice arrested under the allegations of conspiring to hold a coup d’etat.
Immediately following the news of Dr. Paddy’s death, several doctors across the country, including those from the hospital the late doctor worked at, ceased to work in protest:
Les résidents de l'hôpital universitaire La Paix, consternés par cette nouvelle, ont annoncé un arrêt de travail jusqu'à nouvel ordre à partir du lundi 1er mars 2021. « C'est avec une grande indignation que nous avons appris l'assassinat du Dr Ernst Pady, assistant chef de service de pédiatrie à l'hôpital universitaire La Paix, et père d'une résidente 3 de ce même service», ont signé les résidents à l'HUP. (Source: Le Nouvelliste)
Doctors and other medical professionals will take to the streets once more on Sunday, March 7 to continue protesting against kidnappings.
Les professionnels du secteur de la santé en Haïti se disent révoltés par l’ampleur du kidnapping dans le pays. En conférence de presse, ce jeudi, plusieurs d’entre eux annoncent, en ce sens, une marche pacifique pour dimanche 7 mars 2021 à la Capitale en vue de protester contre ce phénomène qui sème le deuil et décapitalise les familles haïtiennes. (Source: Gazette Haiti)
A Most Peculiar Woman
Four days ago, Ti Nèg was able to speak about his ordeal of being kidnapped along with two Dominican colleagues while they worked on a film. During his interview on the Panel Magik morning program, he mentioned that he, along with the two other abductees, were released into the custody of Magalie Habitant. The woman mentioned is a former government official who is known for her closeness to the current leader and his cohorts:
« Nous avons été conduits dans un pick-up blanc par deux hommes que je ne connais ni d’Ève ni d’Adam. Ils nous ont déposés à la rue Capois », raconte Augusma, connu sous le nom de Ti nèg dans les milieux universitaire et littéraire.
Et de poursuivre : De là étant, un autre véhicule, une Toyota Prado de couleur noire, conduit par Magalie Habitant nous a pris pour nous transporter à la Direction Centrale de la Police Judiciaire (DCPJ). (Source: Trip Foumi)
This revelation immediately drew suspicions that the ordeal Ti Nèg and the Dominicans were forced to endure was, in fact, orchestrated by the government. In return, Habitant soon went forward with her own version of events, claiming she was only doing a concerned friend a favor:
« Une instance concernée qui entreprenait des démarches pour leur libération, laquelle n’étant pas prête sur-le-champ, et m’a en conséquence appelée puisque nous étions tous ensemble sur le terrain à multiplier les démarches pour avoir leur libération. L’instance concernée m’a demandé si je pouvais lui rendre un service et passer les prendre pour les conduire à la DCPJ parce qu’il fallait qu’ils soient entendus par celle-ci », confie madame Habitant au journaliste Robenson Geffrard. (Source: Le Nouvelliste)
We should note that in the interview, Habitant continued to express concern for the Dominican victims while never once mentioning Ti Nèg:
She also argued that the government has no hand in the country’s kidnapping crisis:
« Le gouvernement n’a rien à voir avec le phénomène du kidnapping. Le kidnapping ne fait que détruire le pays. J’ai jamais participé à des activités illégales. Dès qu’il s’agit d’une affaire qui concerne le pays, je ferai tout pour le faire », argue Magalie Habitant donnant l’air bouleversé. (Source: Trip Foumi)
You can listen to Magalie Habitant’s full interview here:
Yon Kout Rèl
The push to protest Jovenel marches forward as hundreds of Haitians today shut down the country to bat tenèb to call out the ever-mounting kidnapping crisis.
This is the second time activists have called on the people to do this within weeks:
This latest activation comes just as the Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe announced that the country would temporarily ban tinted windows in effort to stop kidnappings. Jouthe also declared that the country has set up a hotline for people to report any cars they see with tinted windows:
La population est invitée à collaborer en vue de la mise en application de ces mesures en dénonçant tous véhicules circulant sans plaque d’immatriculation et avec les vitres teintées en appelant aux numéros 3838 1111, 3839 1111 et, à partir de vendredi 5 mars courant, au 122 comme numéro d’urgence, poursuit le communiqué de la Primature. (Source: Juno7)
Given everything the Moïse regime has done in effort to consolidate power, including starting its own secret police force, it is hard not to see this latest move as a way to push and increase senseless witch hunts. In all major atrocities of the last century and fascist governments, “neighbor telling on neighbor” is one key way governments have been able to avoid accountability while driving forward their key agendas to hold fast to power.
Feminism, Haitian Style
This week, the New School re-published a 2019 essay by sociologist Fanïa Noel detailing the feminist movement in Haiti. While the canon of feminism is wide and diverse, little attention is paid to how feminists/womanists in Haiti have rattled the patriarchy to confront the institutions that continue to treat and regard women and girls as second class citizens:
The legitimacy of the Haitian feminist movement lies in its century-long rootedness but also in the heart of its politics. As early as 1915 many women were active in the Union patriotique contre l’occupation americaine (Patriotic Union against the US. Occupation) (1915-1934). In 1934 the first officially feminist Haitian organization was founded, the Ligue feminine d’action sociale (Women’s League for Social Action). This league focuses its actions on the working class: “evening courses for working women, a people’s credit union, talks across the country, opening of libraries, a worker’s home, lobbying authorities to open girls’ schools, demands for equal pay for equal work.”
Limyè
This week, musician and Woy co-founder Nathalie Cerin debuted her music video for her song Limyè off of her debut album Solèy Midi. Filmed in Philadelphia and Haiti, the visuals honor those who’ve been killed by state violence. Enjoy and we’ll see you next week!
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