The Catholic Bishops of the Episcopal Conference Haiti (CEH) are urging Haitians to come together and deal with the political situation confronting the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country where opposition parties have been staging deadly protests demanding the resignation of President Jovenel Moise.
In a message titled to the “People of God and men and women of good will,” the church leaders said that they wanted to inform Haitians that “the hour is serious.
“Lord, save us. We are perishing! It is with this alarming cry of prayer and despair of the disciples to Christ who slept as the boat threatened to sink, that we address you today to tell you that the hour is serious.
“We must wake up to take together the full measure of the danger that threatens us all. This is the moment to join our forces and our intelligence to save our common boat, Haiti, which is our pride,” the CEH said, adding “the hour is serious because there is violence against life.
“We deplore the losses in both human lives and property recorded recently in illegal travel and demonstrations. We take this opportunity to present our sympathies to the victims and relatives of the victims.”
Western countries have already condemned the “unacceptable acts of violence” in Haiti and has called on all stakeholders, including Haitian leaders “to engage in a constructive and inclusive dialogue in order to identify and implement realistic and lasting solutions to the political and economic .
Opposition political parties have been staging street demonstrations in support of their calls for President Moise to step down, after accusing him of not investigating allegations of corruption in the previous government over PetroCaribe, an oil alliance of many Caribbean states with Venezuela to purchase oil on conditions of preferential payment. They are also demanding fresh elections and jobs.
But Moise has dismissed the calls for him to resign.
On Monday, demonstrators burnt tyres and sporadic gunshots were heard forcing the closure of many businesses. Several vehicles vandalized while others were burnt, shop windows were smashed and public buildings looted.
Police also clashed with protesters near the airport and used tear gas to regain control of the situation…
Earlier this month, the President of the Superior Court of Accounts and Administrative Disputes (CSC/CA), Pierre Volmar Demesyeux, presented a copy of the report on the management of projects financed by the PetroCaribe funds to the Speaker of the Senate Carl Murat Cantave.
Cantave has since presented the report to Senator Youri Latortue, the President of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission.
In their message, the Haitian bishops warned that the “hour is serious, the misery is increasing, the common good is threatened. The country is on the edge of the abyss (and that this situation cannot be prolonged.
“Let us wake up to listen to God, Master of wisdom and Principle of all life. Let us listen to the people he loves so much.
We must find a solution of wisdom that takes into account the best interests of the Nation and the defense of the common good. In this sense, we appeal to the citizen conscience of the various parties for a patriotic decision, even if only at the cost of great sacrifices,” said the bishops, who were forced to cancel their the 13th triennial bilateral meeting and the Conference of the Bishops of the Dominican Republic (CED), because of the violence.
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