Politicized Police:
Inadequate Response to Political Violence

The OAS reported at least seventy acts of violence between January and the May 21st vote, including a number of killings. The November presidential elections were preceded by acts of violence that included drive-by shootings in Port-au-Prince – a new and alarming phenomenon – and a series of pipe bomb explosions that killed two children and wounded many others. Much of this violence, including the killing of Jean Dominique (discussed below), has not been effectively investigated or punished.

Members of popular organizations supporting Fanmi Lavalas were responsible for violent street demonstrations and other mob actions that went largely unchallenged by the Haitian National Police (Police Nationale d'Haïti, PNH). At the October 24, 1999 launching of the CEP's civic education campaign in Port-au-Prince, a score of Aristide supporters shouted slogans, threw trash and plastic soft drink bottles filled with urine, and tried to attack opposition leader Evans Paul. In late March, during a dispute between Préval and the CEP over the date of elections, mobs set up barricades of burning tires and lobbed rocks at passing cars, calling for the CEP's dismissal. Charging through the big Croix des Bossales market, they burned hundreds of storage depots, stores, and nearby homes. Five people were reported killed in the days of violence, with fighting among criminal gangs nearly indistinguishable from political violence.

The burning of the headquarters of Espace de Concertacion, April 8, 2000.

The most dramatic pre-election incident of mob violence occurred on April 8, when some one hundred protesters burned down the headquarters of the opposition coalition, Espace de Concertation. Earlier in the day, at funeral services for Jean Dominique, members of the mob had publicly announced their plans to burn the building and kill opposition leader Evans Paul (whom they were unable to find). Police, who were on the scene, did not interfere, nor did they make any arrests.

Victim of mob attack on RCP headquarters, May 22, 2000.

A similar lack of police response was apparent on May 22, when a mob of Fanmi Lavalas supporters attacked the downtown Port-au-Prince headquarters of a small party, the Rally of Patriotic Citizens (Rassemblement des Citoyens Patriotes, RCP). The mob attacked and nearly killed one man, and badly injured another. Although the attack took place a few blocks from a police station during a period of supposed "zero tolerance" for violence, police did not intervene or make arrests.

Nor did police respond effectively to the dramatic mid-June shut-down of Port-au-Prince. On June 19, in a show of force intended to intimidate the CEP into confirming erroneous first-round election results, several hundred members of pro-Fanmi Lavalas popular organizations erected barricades of burning tires, logs, and other debris on the city's roads. The roadblocks halted nearly all traffic, effectively confining most inhabitants to their homes for the day, but the police took no action against those responsible. Similar but smaller protests occurred in other cities.

In the wake of the May elections, police arrested some thirty-five opposition candidates and activists, many of whom had been involved in protests against electoral fraud. Those held included former senator and candidate for re-election Paul Denis of the Organization of People in Struggle (Organisation du Peuple en Lutte, OPL) and four others arrested in Les Cayes on May 23. The apparent political motivations for these arrests raised serious concerns.

Human Rights Watch's recommendations are the following:

• Investigate and prosecute all acts of violence. Thorough investigations should be made into recent violent incidents, and those responsible should face criminal prosecution.

• Strengthen the independence and professionalism of the Haitian police. Only qualified and capable persons should be named to the Haitian National Police, particular to senior positions. Political affiliation should not be a factor when candidates are considered, nor should political pressure be used to affect police actions. Appointments should be made in a transparent fashion, and all incoming officers should receive proper training.

The Killing of Jean Dominique

Jean Léopold Dominique, Haiti's most renowned journalist and the director of Radio Haïti-Inter, was killed on the morning of April 3, 2000. Gunmen ambushed and shot both him and Jean-Claude Louissant, a station security guard, in front of the radio station as the two arrived at work.

Dominique was a controversial and outspoken figure, and a firm defender of the rule of law. He had been forced into exile under previous governments because of his critical views, and his radio station bore the marks of numerous bullet holes from earlier attacks.

Police arrested several men said to have taken part in the assassination, one of whom, Jean Wilner Lalane, died in custody under suspicious circumstances. After months in which little progress was shown, the investigation into the killings appeared to gather momentum with the assignment of Judge Claudy Gassant, who began questioning and inquiring into the activities of persons potentially implicated in the murder. Yet obstacles to the investigation have recently arisen. Senator Dany Toussaint, a popular Fanmi Lavalas leader whom Dominique had criticized in a radio broadcast prior to his death, has reportedly refused to cooperate with the judicial investigation. Claiming parliamentary immunity, Toussaint has failed to respond to summons seeking his appearance before Judge Gassant.

According to the National Coalition for Haitian Rights, several members of the Haitian Senate are assisting Toussaint in obstructing the investigation. Radio Haiti-Inter, now run by Dominique's widow Michèle Montas, suspended its operations from February 3-5 to protest these actions.

Human Rights Watch strongly supports judicial efforts to prosecute those responsible for Dominique's murder. We note, in this regard, that the year 2000 witnessed encouraging steps toward justice. The successful completion of two important trials – of the 1999 Carrefour Feuilles killings of eleven people, and of the 1994 Raboteau massacre – raises hopes that justice will achieved in the brutal killing of Jean Dominique.

Human Rights Watch recommends the following:

• Aristide's government must facilitate the full and complete investigation of Jean Dominique's killing. Judge Claudy Gassant should be given complete cooperation in his investigation, as well as adequate material support to carry it out. The Senate should not obstruct the investigation in any way.