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- Haiti: riots after the announcement of rising fuel prices during the match of the World Cup
- The International Monetary Fund charged to the l '; austerity provoking riots
Haiti: riot after the announcement of fuel prices increase during the World Cup match
People dump garbage and raw sewage into the cbads that pbad through Port-au-Prince, Haiti. When it rains, the channels overflow and flood the poor neighborhoods. (NPR)
On Friday, as Haitians watched the World Cup between Brazil and Belgium, the Haitian government announced the end of the big fuel price subsidies: 38% for gasoline, 47 % for diesel and 51 percent for kerosene. Increases were charged to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Increases in fuel prices seem to affect everyone. Gasoline prices have hit business people who use diesel fuel for trucks and heavy equipment, and kerosene price increases are hitting the poor especially because they burn kerosene to light their homes. Haiti was the poorest country in the world, even before the country's major earthquake in 2010. There was a huge wave of international aid after the earthquake, including a major fund organized by the government. former President Bill Clinton, but no one seemed to have benefited from it, and almost all the money was apparently lost in corruption.
The government had apparently hoped that by announcing the price increases at the World Cup on Friday, no one would notice it. This has turned out to be a major miscalculation. Most Haitians strongly supported Brazil against Belgium in Friday's World Cup match and were shocked when the match ended in a defeat against Brazil. The riots started five minutes after the end of the match. Burning tires were blocking important roads in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, and sporadic gunfire could be heard around the city. Shop windows and cars in the affluent neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince were destroyed. Affluent hotels have also been targeted. Three people were killed on Friday.
As the riots became more and more violent, Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, accompanied by his wife Martine, appeared in a televised address Saturday night:
You sent me the message. I have it. I have corrected what needed to be corrected. … I asked the government to reconsider the decision to withdraw subsidies on the prices of petroleum products. The Prime Minister did it. The price of fuel remains what it was before, across the national territory. There is no longer an increase in gas prices. … Now, I ask you to stay calm and go home. … I know it's mine that you gave power, but I can not run alone. I have to have a lot of people around me before making a decision.
The demonstrations did not end. On Monday, the workers went on strike and closed the capital. Many badysts have said that ongoing riots are caused by mbadive government corruption. According to an NGO badyst:
Having had more than ten deployments in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, including during their elections, I do not think rising fuel prices are the root cause of this crisis.
that sacrifices must be made to improve their economy, and they have done so in the past. However, after suffering for so long, the Haitian people hated being deceived
. Their political candidates promised to tackle mismanagement and corruption if they were elected. People were expecting an improvement in the government's efficiency and the arrest of those accused of corruption, before being targeted for austerity.
However, imposed austerity, without effectiveness and the promised arrests, seemed too much for the people. the bear of a government that has promised to be different.
The United States warned Americans living in Haiti to take shelter at home, to avoid violence. A Marine Security Detachment of 13 Marines arrived in Haiti to provide security at the US Embbady.
The United States and Canada have policies to deport Haitians who fled violence after the 2010 earthquake. Activists in Canada demand that, because of ongoing violence, deportations to Haiti cease immediately and that Haiti is reinstated on the government list of countries to which migrants can not be returned. AFP (July 7) and Barbados today and Military.com and Canadian Broadcasting
International Monetary Fund blamed for austerity sparking riots
Fuel price hikes announced Friday were caused by a cessation of grants as required by the International Monetary In 1965, Prime Minister Guy Lafontant said: "I ask for your patience as our administration has a vision, a clear agenda." He defended the price increases because subsidies make Haiti's fuel prices are the lowest in Latin America among non-oil producing countries. In addition, he claimed that many people regularly crossed the border. of the neighboring Dominican Republic, where oil prices are 43% higher, to take advantage of subsidized prices in Haiti, which means that subsidies supported Haiti and the Republic Dominican.] The demands for austerity were in an agreement that Haiti signed with the IMF in February. The agreement defines a "staff-controlled program" (SMP), where the IMF closely monitors government activities in Haiti in exchange for loans and grants. The agreement requires that it is necessary "to eliminate excessive subsidies, including on retail fuel". According to the agreement:
Under the SMP, fiscal policy will focus on revenue mobilization and streamlining current expenditures. in infrastructure, health, education and social services. This will include measures to improve the perception and efficiency of taxes and eliminate excessive subsidies, including on retail fuel. Other reforms will aim to stem the losses of the public electricity company (EDH), which in recent years has accounted for a sizeable share of the public deficit, improving the efficiency of billing and accounting. by reforming contractual practices. Budget reforms also aim to increase the transparency of public accounts. These reforms need to be accompanied by a substantial package of mitigation measures to protect the most vulnerable members of society
…
Fund staff will work closely with authorities to monitor progress in the implementation of their economic program. On Wednesday, relative calm was restored in Haiti. The President and the Prime Minister are under pressure to resign, and we do not know how the IMF will react, now that subsidies have been restored. Atlanta Black Star and IMF (27-Feb-2018) and Miami Herald
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KEY: Generational Dynamics, Haiti, Bill Clinton, Jovenel Moses, World Cup, Brazil, Belgium, Canada, International Monetary Fund, IMF, Guy Lafontant, Dominican Republic
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