ARTICLE - DUVALIER - ROLE MODEL

HAITIAN LAWYERS OUTRAGED DUVALIER GIVEN AS A MODEL TO LAW SCHOOL GRADS
(Defend Haiti) -

PORT-AU-PRINCE – The Lawyers Committee for the Respect of Individual Liberties (CARLI) is outraged and denounced the "scandalous behavior" of the Dean of the Faculty of Law of Gonaives (North), and the graduating students who have chosen the dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier as their "promotion sponsor."

This act is intended "to rehabilitate the former dictator" and "is in many ways, an insult and a humiliation for the thousands of compatriots who have experienced the atrocities of the Duvalier regime," according to the note of CARLI.

The dictator was chosen as the "godfather" of the Robert White law school graduates in Gonaives. The graduation ceremony was held Friday, December 16, 2011 in the city of Gonaives.

In his speech for the occasion, Jean-Claude Duvalier, expressing his gratitude to the students, described his choice as the "promotional sponsor" as being "courageous and thoughtful. "

Joseph Patron Jean-Louis is the Dean of the School of Law and Economics of Gonaives, since the death of the lawyer Hugues Saint-Pierre in 2007.

"How law students, and officials from the law school can ignore the basic principles regarding human rights and at the same time want to institutionalize impunity like our political leaders?" asks the Renand Hedouville, lawyer and general secretary of CARLI.

During his speech, Duvalier did not hesitate to salute the memory of youths murdered by his regime.

"Indeed, I think of Jean-Robert Cius, Michael and Daniel Michelson Israel who fell almost at the threshold of adolescence. Suffer a moment that I ask you to join me in a minute's silence in their memory," said the dictator.....

For Renand Hedouville, general secretary of CARLI, this act was "insulting and provocative."

"How can he gather in memory of the victims, while the perpetrators of this triple murder worked in the pay of his regime, and therefore he was criminally responsible? " asks CARLI.

The murder in November 1985, of these three students by the men of Duvalier in Gonaives, kicked off a series of events that led to the overthrow of "Baby Doc" and his departure for exile on February 7, 1986.

Since his return to Haiti, 16 January 2011, several national and international voices were raised demanding the trial of the former self-proclaimed president for life for embezzlement and theft of public funds and crimes against humanity.

"Crimes against humanity characterized by disappearances, torture, rape, and summary executions constitute international crimes and are inalienable," says CARLI.

Since March 24, 2011, the dictator, Jean Claude Duvalier had been under house arrest. The court decision of Judge Jean Carves restricted the movement of "Baby Doc" to the capital...