Media

Haiti: President Martelly attacks journalists again

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (defend.ht) – It doesn’t go a week without the report of an attack of the President Michel Martelly against the Press, in Haiti or in Diaspora, noticed Defend Haiti. Oops, he did it again.

President Michel Martelly has been last Friday (once again) hostile to the press when he was answering questions from journalists on the laxity of the government on certain issues including the relocation of victims of the devastating earthquake of 12 January 2010, Radio Vision 2000 reported.

Instead of answering the question, the head of state has been arrogant to reporters that he wanted to indicate the direction for their work.

As if addressing his communication team, the president Martelly instead urged Haitian press to draw attention of the people on "initiatives and actions undertaken by his team to support the victims and assure them of a secure home, instead of focusing on certain issues begun to discredit his administration.”

"The press must speak the truth. We will rebuild various areas including Nazon and Champ de Mars. After relocation of disaster victims in it now, the whole area of the Champ de Mars to create a large auditorium as well as designated areas for parking of automobiles, "said the head of State clearly that confuses journalists with his own communicators or spokespersons.

Does Michel Martelly ignore that the press should report the "facts" and not that he "intends to do"?

The last weekend, lawyers from Michel Martelly sent a letter of intimidation Haitian-American News Agency Defend Haiti (defend.ht) that attempts to shed light on illegal taxes from Haitian government on the Diaspora.

The week before, President Michel Martelly has estimated at 100,000 dollars a charge against the press. On the occasion of a meeting, the President Martelly has encouraged members of the public to hold the press responsible for the misfortune of Haiti.

Note that not only the Haitian press, or that of the Diaspora that is attacked by Haitian President Michel Joseph Martelly. Colleagues of the foreign press also complained of contemptuous behavior of the Haitian Head of State to them.

In November 2011, in a long letter entitled "Mr. President, a little respect for the press," Michel Dumont, Grand reporter of ARTE TV, told how hard it was for him to get an interview with the Haitian president. An interview that the reporter did not ultimately obtained without a word of explanation of the president or his team communication while they previously assured him he would get the interview with the head of state.

Disappointed, including Michel Dumont wrote: "I can understand, Mr. President, you have better things to do than to receive a French television journalist. But why not tell it to me through your communication services. This would have allowed my TV station to spare the cost of a useless journey. "

"I'm sorry, he says, above all the contempt of your employees. And lack of professionalism. That none of them has had the courage and the courtesy to inform me of events, what an edifying lesson! "

And should we also mention other verbal attacks or the famous "Shut up" shouted in the local of a newspaper by the President Martelly few months after taking office? Or the journalist whose President insulted the mother because he just asked him a question?

The list is growing.