Haiti was left virtually paralyzed on Monday by a transport strike after three days of violent riots due to an increase in fuel prices, which the government canceled shortly after the announcement.
Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant led a meeting Friday with representatives of Parliament to badess the situation created after the violent demonstrations, which left at least three dead and several wounded.
In the first of two days of strike called by the unions, Port-au-Prince, the capital of this country, was practically deserted, with the presence in the streets of private vehicles only, since the public transport was void . People, moreover, chose to stay at home as a precaution.
At noon, a group of people attempted to reach the parliament but was dispersed by police officers who fired shots in the air. with different reports. Although the airlines have begun to resume their flights, the situation remains tense and several embbadies, such as those of Germany, Canada and the United States, have not opened their doors today. They asked their citizens not to go out on the streets. ] Strike paralyzes Haiti "src =" data: image / png; base64, iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAIAAAABCAQAAABeK7cBAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkAAIAAAoAAv / lxKUAAAAASUVORK5CYII = "style =" display: inline; "data-original =" / files / article_content / uploads / 2018/07/09 / 5b43f703e26a9.jpeg "/>
General view of the damage caused during the demonstrations of the last three days due to the increase in fuel prices, in Port-au-Prince (Haiti) today, Monday, July 9, 2018
Photo:
EFE / Jean Marc Hervé
General view of the damage caused during the demonstrations of the last three days due to the rise in fuel prices in Port-au-Prince Prince (Haiti) today, Monday, July 9, 2018.
EFE / Jean Marc Hervé
General view of the damage caused during the demonstrations of the last three days due to the increase in fuel prices, in Port-au- Prince (Haiti) today, Monday, July 9, 2018.
photo:
EFE / Jean Marc Hervé
Street violence was unleashed last Friday in Port-au-Prince, when the government announced that the next day, a sharp increase in fuel prices would come into effect, as part of the package of adjustments signed last February with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
On Saturday, protests and vandalism intensified and Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant, who had initially called for calm, announced hours after the increase was over. without effect "until further notice".
However, chaos continued in the capital and others Haitian President, Jovenel Moise, recalled that the increase had been revoked and called for calm and a return to normalcy.
37% of the price of gasoline; 40% in diesel (diesel) and more than 50% in kerosene, the latter widely used to enlighten Haitian households large areas with low purchasing power.
Guyler C. Delva, the country's Minister of Communications, said on Twitter that "the moment of coups d'état is over" and that Moise "was democratically elected" and " will continue to work to lift the population out of poverty. "
For its part, the Ministry of Tourism condemned Friday attacks on hotels and other private property this weekend. "We can not solve the problems of violence (…) we must respect property and infrastructure," he said in a statement.
The Caribbean Community (Caricom) expresses today its "deep concern" at the violence. Haiti In a statement, Caricom President Andrew Holness added that the organization "deplores the loss of life, property and attacks against infrastructure" and called for "the lorry". "The problems that triggered them can only be solved in an atmosphere of calm, so that in this sense the Caribbean Community welcomes the "Finally, he insisted that the community wanted the normality to be" as soon as possible "and, in the meantime, welcomed the support for the situation, he added.
of the UN to "monitor the situation closely." The violent protests of the last three days in Haiti reached the city of Malpbade, on the border of the Dominican Republic, where the customs offices were set on fire , for which the Dominican government announced the reinforcement of the security on the border between the two nations.
