Law & Justice

Our collaborator Soeurette Michel is featured in the latest issue of Le Floridien (along with a lot of reprints of articles related to our work). The profile tells the story of the obstacles Soeurette had to overcome in order to become an attorney and eventually create her own law firm. Soeurette was involved in the Haitian American diaspora cholera brief, which is briefly mentioned. Congratulations to Soeurette! We are honored to work with such a remarkable human rights advocate. Part of the article is below. Read the full article here (page 11). LAW BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY: HOW SHE BECAME A LAWYER “I know I can be what I want to be. If I work hard at it, I’ll be where I want to be.” Jaury Jean-Enard, Le Floridien April 1-15, 2017 Such is the chorus of songwriter Nas’s 2002 song entitled, “I […]

Haiti’s prisons were already overcrowded but conditions worsened after the 2010 earthquake, which aggravated the backlog of paper work by destroying several government buildings. Many of the prisoners have never even seen a judge and even men who have been approved for discharge remain in prison due to conflicts in their paperwork. This article shows why improvements in Haiti’s judicial system are so necessary. Part of the article is below. Read the full article here. Haiti’s Prison from Hell: ‘I can’t cope, I have no-one’ Debra Killalea, news.com.au April 4, 2017 IT’S so overcrowded there’s barely room to move. Dozens of men are crammed into cells for hours on end, some without access to a toilet. Welcome to Haiti’s National Penitentiary. Regarded as one of the most overcrowded prisons in the world, Dateline reporter Seyi Rhodes goes inside and discovers the […]

(The English translation of this letter is below.) BUREAU DES AVOCATS INTERNATIONAUX 3, 2ème rue Lavaud B.P. 19048 Port-au-Prince, Haïti Tel : +5092943-2106/ 07 Email: avokahaiti@aol.com   LETTRE OUVERTE   Port-au-Prince, le 28 Mars 2017 Monsieur Michel-Ange Gédéon Directeur Général de la Police Nationale d’Haïti (PNH) En ses bureaux.-   Monsieur le Directeur Général, Le Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI), dans sa mission première de défendre les droits des plus démunis, les droits inaliénables, imprescriptibles et inhérents à la personne humaine, en particulier ceux des victimes du choléra importé par la MINUSTAH, des femmes victimes de viol, d’agression sexuelles et autres abus de droit, prend acte du refus systématique de la Police Nationale d’Haïti (PNH) dont vous êtes son Directeur Général de donner suite aux notifications des organisations de Victimes de choléra, du Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI) et du […]

Last month, three plaintiffs sued former Haitian mayor Jean Morose Viliena for human rights violations in Haiti, including an attack on a radio station that caused one of them, Nissage Martyr, to have a leg amputated. Viliena was appointed mayor of Les Irois by ex-president Michel Martelly despite an open case against him in Haitian courts. Now that a case has been opened against Viliena in U.S. courts, and an investigation is underway for the mysterious death of Martyr after the suit was filed, many are looking to see whether the new Haitian president will continue this pattern of impunity. Part of the article is below. Click HERE for the full text. Haiti’s Violent Politics Are Taken to Court. In Boston Frances Robles, The New York Times April 1, 2017 A mysterious death, a decade-old murder and a human rights lawsuit in federal […]

BUREAU DES AVOCATS INTERNATIONAUX 3, 2ème rue Lavaud B.P. 19048 Port-au-Prince, Haïti Tel : +5092943-2106/ 07 Email: avokahaiti@aol.com POUR DIFFUSION IMMÉDIATE Contact : Mario JOSEPH, Av., Bureau des Avocats Internationaux, mario@ijdh.org +509-3701-9879 (français, kreyòl) Nicole PHILLIPS, Esq., Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti, nicole@ijdh.org +509-4645-2888, (anglais, français, kreyòl) Plaignant Nissage MARTYR est mort après qu’il a déposé plainte aux États-Unis contre Jean Morose VILIENA, ancien maire des Irois, pour Assassinat, Torture et Incendie Port-au-Prince, le 31 mars 2017 – Le Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI) regret d’annoncer que notre client Nissage MARTYR est décédé subitement dans la soirée du vendredi 24 mars 2017. Sa mort intervient un jour après que lui et deux autres clients ont annoncé le dépôt d’une plainte au tribunal fédéral à Boston contre Jean Morose VILIENA, l’ex maire des Irois en Grande-Anse, qui habite à présent aux […]

The former mayor of Les Irois in Haiti led murderous mobs against political dissidents.  Seven years after he fled to Malden to avoid charges against him there, three plaintiffs were able to sue the ex-mayor, Viliena, under the Torture Victim Protection Act. The day after the suit was made public, one of the plaintiffs died suddenly, so his death is now under investigation as well. IJDH’s Nicole Phillips and Center for Justice and Accountability’s Scott Gilmore comment on this case that they are leading against Viliena. Part of the article is below. Click HERE for the full text. Accused in Haiti, Malden man is latest to face lawsuit here Nestor Ramos, The Boston Globe March 31, 2017 As the mayor of a remote Haitian coastal town, Jean-Morose Viliena was above the law, according to those who say they suffered his wrath. He incited mobs […]