Statement of Rosy Auguste Ducena, Program Director, National Network for the Defense of Human Rights, to the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs
- The statement says more than 1,085 people, including 37 police officers, were murdered in 2020, and at least 65 people were shot dead in January and February 2021.
- It reports at least ten massacres in Port-au-Prince between 2018 and 2020, with 343 people murdered, 98 disappeared and 32 women gang raped.
- It says that as of March 3, 2021, 11,445 people were in prison and 9,673 of them, more than 84%, were awaiting trial.
- It states that 7.5 million citizens were of voting age while less than two million voter cards had been issued after two years.
- It says the Ouest and Artibonite departments represent 60% of the electorate and are controlled by armed groups allied with the government.
Rosy Auguste Ducena presented this statement for the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH) at the March 12, 2021 hearing of the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs. The statement reports figures on killings, massacres and kidnappings, and says armed gangs federated in June 2020 and obtained concessions from the authorities. It describes a judiciary on strike since February 8, 2021 over the replacement of three Court of Cassation judges, with 84% of prisoners awaiting trial. It argues that elections could not be held in 2021, citing voter card distribution, an electoral body without political consensus or oath, and insecurity in the Ouest and Artibonite departments, which hold 60% of the electorate.
It closes with six requests to the Biden administration, including support for a legitimate electoral council, a rejection of the planned constitutional referendum and prosecution of US-linked persons implicated in human rights violations and corruption. The statement presents the organization's positions.
How to cite
National Human Rights Defense Network (RNDDH), 2021, Statement of Rosy Auguste Ducena, Program Director, National Network for the Defense of Human Rights, to the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs, accessed via HaitiDocs, https://www.haitidocs.org/doc/rnddh-2021-03-testimony-house-foreign-affairs
- Rights holder
- Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH)