Haiti's opposition party plans street demonstrations in support of Maduro

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – The opposition Pitit Dessalin party says it plans to stage a series of activities, including street demonstrations, to protest Haiti’s decision to support an Organization of American States (OAS) resolution not to recognise the legitimacy of the Nicolas Maduro presidency in Venezuela.

Haiti, along with the Bahamas, Jamaica, Guyana and St Lucia supported the OAS resolution last week, while Dominica, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname voted against the measure.

St Kitts-Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, and Belize abstained and Grenada was not present when the matter was put to the vote.

Haiti later said that it was under no pressure from the United States to vote in support of the resolution as Madura began his second five-year term in office.

But in a letter sent to President Maduro, the general secretary of Pitit Dessalin, Jean-Charles Moïse, pointed to the “strong link” between the two countries and insists that Port au prince should always stand in support of Venezuela.

“Even if all the other countries of the world voted against Venezuela, Haiti should take a stand for Venezuela, for several reasons.

“Haiti is the mother of freedom, the founder of the Haitian nation, Jean Jacques Dessalines, preached solidarity among all peoples; the historical links that exist between these two sister nations; our past morally obliges us to respect the right to self-determination of peoples,” he wrote, noting that “Venezuela is the only country in the world to support Haiti without interference.”

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