Prince Port.- The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Haiti, Claude Joseph, affirms in an interview with Efe that the situation in the country is “under control”, despite the deep political crisis whose last episode has been an alleged coup attempt, according to President Jovenel Moise himself denounced.
Less than a week after the crisis broke out, Joseph defends the government’s actions and the controversial decree that fired three judges accused of leading the conspiracy, a decision that has raised criticism from the international community.
The minister also assures that the Government remains determined to continue with its plans to organize a referendum in April to vote for a new Constitution and hold elections in September, highlighting that “in a democracy, there is no other way to come to power.”
QUESTION- Given the current crisis situation, is the holding of the referendum in danger?
ANSWER- The question of the referendum is not a decision of the President of the Republic, it is not his personal project. It is very important to understand. Recently, polls by Brides, a polling company, and an anti-government organization called Haiti Nou Vle show that more than 80% of the population wants a new Constitution.
The next Constitution will balance the powers. There will be a much greater balance, unlike the 1987 Constitution, which gives Parliament extremely unlimited power, I would say, over the Executive. This Constitution will enshrine what Americans call the “checks and balance.”
Q- Regarding the coup d’état, do you have reliable proof of the intentions of the detained group?
A- The messages are public. Communication existed between the conspirators and the intelligence services of the National Palace, the Police and the Justice. So the evidence is there.
Now it is up to Justice to do its job. An investigation is ongoing. So we are waiting for the results. But it is clear that there is an assassination attempt on the President of the Republic. It is clear that the attempted coup has been thwarted thanks to the vigilance of the National Police and the Justice.
Q- The decree to withdraw the judges has generated rejection inside and outside the country. Do you continue to think that it was the right decision?
A- Article 136 of the Haitian Constitution also establishes that, in principle, the president is the guarantor of the proper functioning of the institutions. Also the decree of 2015, which requires in its article 5 that, in principle, the judges are not politically partisan. So, automatically, we have a situation like this- The president, as the guarantor of the proper functioning of the institutions, must act. And he has acted.
Q- You have had conversations with the Undersecretary of State of the United States, Julie Chung. What have you talked about?
The interview with the US Undersecretary of State has to do with this coup attempt. But we really talk about other things, like the elections and the constitutional referendum.
In a democracy, we know that there is no other way to come to power. For example, to be president you have to be elected by the people.
Jovenel Moise is not endorsed by international organizations, it is democracy in Haiti that they support. These are the democratic principles that we ask to be respected. Let the actors know that, in principle, illegal means should not be used to gain power. We can always protest. There must always be opposition, because this is a democracy.
We reject violence. It is a violence that the entire international community rejects today. This is the case of the United Nations. This is the case of Caricom. This is the case of the OAS.
This is the case of the State Department… And for the other international partners. Whether from the Core Group, etc.
Q- The Dominican Republic is your neighbor. What has President Luis Abinader told you?
A- President Abinader’s support for the referendum is clear. He believes that the 1987 Constitution has run its course. And that he is also willing to help in this process and in the electoral process. His position is clear. The sister nation, our brothers in the Dominican Republic, especially the Abinader administration, supports democracy in Haiti.
Q- If the crisis continues along this path, would you consider asking the UN for the return of blue helmets to the country?
A- Let’s not dramatize. We do not have a situation as serious as it tends to be projected. It is a controlled situation. The situation is under control. Today is better than yesterday. Tomorrow will be better than today.
Q- So, what do you think of the police violence against protesters and journalists?
A- That is unfortunate. It is something that we also reject. I have seen the video of a journalist, probably not a journalist, who also hit a policeman. So we have to reject that. What I can tell you is that in protests, all over the world, there are these deviations.
These deviations should be avoided. And I know that the President of the Republic has spoken with the Director General of the National Police in this regard, to avoid these deviations as much as possible.
Because journalists are important to us in democracy, especially now that we are trying to use public opinion as a tool. There is a fringe of the opposition that tries to use public opinion as a tool.
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