Haiti: We stand in solidarity to demand an end to police terror

Port-au-Prince, May 31 — We strongly denounce the brutal acts of the police against people in the United States who are demonstrating to demand justice for George Floyd, who died tragically at the hands of racist police in Minneapolis on May 25, 2020. We know also that there are many other Black people who 

are victims at the hands of racist police in the United States. This includes:

1. Breonna Taylor, whom the police in Kentucky killed inside her home.
2. Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia who was killed by two racist whites connected with the police.
3. And the list goes on.

The police in Haiti act with the same brutality against the Haitian people, especially when we demand our rights guaranteed by the Constitution. Here are the names of some of the people whom the police in Haiti assassinated in the past several days:

1. May 30, 2020 — Walking Blanc and another young man were shot by the police at about 8 p.m. in Kazo (Port-au-Prince) because they were in the street during curfew.
2. May 22, 2020 — Louis, an employee of the Ministry for Social Affairs, shot by the police while on his way to buy milk for his child.
3. May 16, 2020 — James, a young man on St. Martin Street, shot by a police armored vehicle as he was helping his brother, who had difficulty walking, cross the street.
4. May 10, 2020 — Two young men killed as a police armored vehicle opened fire on a group of young men on Dechant Street in the area of Pont-Rouge.
5. We cannot forget Roberto Badio Thelusma, 14 years old. The police shot him in February 2019 as he was helping his mother with her soft drinks business.
6. And the list goes on.

These crimes were committed just in Port-au-Prince alone. It is the police from the U.S. and Canada that train the police of Haiti.

People in the U.S. have always acted in solidarity with the people of Haiti as we struggle to become a country with full respect for human rights. Today, we follow the history of our ancestors as we stand in solidarity with the people of the U.S., particularly the Black community that is subjected to racist attacks and oppression.

Hand in hand, let us struggle together to eradicate racism and injustice.

Signers below are representatives of peasant organizations:

Potoprens: Jeanette Denis, Oswald Jean
SenMak: Frantz Malherbe, Dorain Pierre
Jeremie: Marie Carmelle Destin, Thony François
Lenbe: Paul Godin, Ignace Celestin
Terye Wouj: Marie Rene Janvier, Paul Desmarais
Jan Rabel: Octavius Pierre, Ronald Jacques
Lazil: Kesnel Solitaire, Justin Sanon
Aken: Sonel Piercin, Marc Evalis
Bene: Jean Marc Leger, Sony Sanon
Belade: Pierre Noel

Source: Haiti Action Committee