Six killed during anti-corruption protests

Peaceful Assembly

On 18th November 2018, countrywide protests over government corruption were held in Haiti. Allegations that billions of dollars in funds from the Petrocaribe  program have been misused by politicians fueled citizens' anger, who took to the streets of Port-au-Prince blocking roads and burning tires and garbage. As clashes erupted with the police, some protesters were injured, dozens arrested and six were reported killed. 

Expression

As previously reported by the Monitor, on 14th March 2018, Haitian freelance journalist Vladjimir Legagneur went missing after he had left his home and reportedly traveled to the Grand-Ravine neighbourhood in Port-au-Prince. The journalist was working on a project to cover the violent and deadly clashes that have reportedly erupted between police and gangs in neighbourhoods in the capital city. 

In September 2018, six months after the incident, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) issued a statement, calling on the government "to come up with answers for the family and colleagues of Vladjimir Legagneur".

A few days after the family reported the disappearance, the police found human remains in a location where the journalist was seen for the last time. However, DNA results have so far not been released by the police. RSF said: 

"This silence is a torture for his family. The Haitian authorities have a duty to find this photographer, determine why he disappeared and identify those responsible.”