Two journalists murdered in 48 hours in Haiti
Last edited Fri Apr 28, 2023, 03:03 PM - Edit history (1)
Inter American Press Association
28 April 2023
2 minute read
Ricot Jean's body was found two just days after the killing of journalist Dumesky Kersaint.
This statement was originally published on en.sipiapa.org on 25 April 2023.
Another journalist was murdered within 48 hours in Haiti, the most dangerous country to practice journalism, according to a preliminary report released Tuesday by the Inter American Press Association (IAPA).
The body of Ricot Jean, a journalist with Radio-Télé Évolution Inter in Saint-Marc, a town located 73 km north of Port-au-Prince, was found in an open field on Tuesday morning, according to Alcide Volcy, the station’s information director, quoted by the newspaper Le Nouvelliste.
The newspaper said that Jean was abducted along with a friend the night before by four armed men dressed in uniforms of the Departmental Unit for the Maintenance of Order (UDMO), a specialized body of the Haitian police, on the pretext of being arrested. In addition to being an editor of Évolution, the victim was a well-known cultural entertainer in Saint-Marc and hosted the program “Jamè Dodo” every weekend.
Jean’s murder follows that of Dumesky Kersaint, a journalist with Radio Télé Inurep, who was gunned down last Sunday 18 in Carrefour, south of Port-au-Prince. According to Jacques Antoine Bazile, the station’s executive director, the journalist was killed “while preparing to resume his usual activities.”
Kersaint’s death occurred in the same place where another unidentified person was shot dead. The perpetrator or perpetrators of that crime would have killed Kersaint upon recognizing him due to his profession, according to the news portal Vant Bèf Info.
More:
https://ifex.org/two-journalists-murdered-in-48-hours-in-haiti/
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Earlier article, written before the murder:
FEATURED PARTNER: RICOT JEAN-PIERRE, PAPDA
No social and political changes can be achieved without the men and women who dedicate their lives to the improvement of their communities’ living conditions. Ricot Jean-Pierre is one of them. As the program director of our partner the Platform to Advocate Alternative Development in Haiti (PAPDA), Ricot works restlessly to better the lives of Haitians and the country itself – a fight he started at a very young age.
Ricot lived his early years under the violence of the Duvalier dictatorship. Very close friends of his and family members including his father directly experienced violence and repression. As Ricot explains, that’s when he first began to think that “there was something wrong, that something needed to be fixed.” The overthrow of Duvalier made it possible for social movements to be grow (even though the political climate was still somewhat hostile).
This is when Ricot, aged 16, and some of his friends decided to help address the issues faced by the people living in their neighborhood. They set up an activist support network. This initiative also led Ricot to begin reflecting on the political and social system that allowed so much misery and violence to happen.
. . .
The aftermath of the 2010 earthquake showed how much still needs to be done in terms of social justice in Haiti. However, this does not discourage Ricot. As he told us, “As long as there will be life, there will be struggles to be lead, and as long as there will be struggles, I will be there.” He added that he does not plan on stopping his involvement in these struggles to rest before “I am in my grave.”
More:
https://grassrootsonline.org/our-impact/partner-stories/partner-story-ricot-jean-pierre/
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Another Journalist Murdered in 48 Hours in Haiti
Ricot Jean, journalist with Radio-Télé Évolution Inter in Saint-Marc.
. . .
In the period under evaluation, from October last year to April of this year, four journalists, media executives, or press workers were murdered, four others were kidnapped, and one was wounded.
"These numbers and the expressions and denunciations of unions, social and international organizations revalidated the country's condition as the most dangerous to practice journalism," the organization pointed out.
In addition, the difficulties in practicing journalism in Haiti were recorded in the report "Study on the development of the media in Haiti," published by Unesco on February 10.
The document notes that attacks against the press are frequent, and perpetrators are rarely brought to justice. It also denounces that reporters covering political rallies are often verbally or physically attacked by demonstrators who associate them with the opposing side.
. . .
https://en.sipiapa.org/notas/1215900-another-journalist-murdered-in-48-hours-in-haiti
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Young journalist shot dead in Haiti
Dumesky Kersaint. (Photo taken from Rezo Nodwes.)
*By Javier Valdivia, special for the Inter-American Press Association (SIP)
Miami (April 18, 2023) — A journalist was murdered over the weekend in Haiti, where last year nine press workers died as victims of the constant insecurity and violence that plagues this country.
Armed men gunned down Dumesky Kersaint, a journalist for Radio Télé Inurep, early Sunday morning in the municipality of Carrefour, south of Port-au-Prince, "as he was preparing to resume his usual activities," according to Jacques Antoine Bazile, the station's executive director. quoted by the news portal rezonodwes.com.
"Due to the severity of his injuries, Kersaint could not be taken to hospital. His tragic death is a blow to the community cause to which he was deeply committed," Bazile said.
The death of the 30-year-old journalist occurred in the same place where another unidentified person was shot, according to the digital media Vant Bèf Info. The perpetrator or perpetrators of that crime would have murdered Kersaint upon recognizing him by his profession, added the online news report.
. . .
"Dumesky, who had recently lost his mother, was a young and dynamic person, passionate about his profession and with great leadership," added Bazile.
More:
https://www.sipiapa.org/notas/1215813-asesinan-varios-disparos-joven-periodista-haiti
Dumesky Kersaint and Ricot Jean-Pierre
Rest in Peace
= new reply since forum marked as read
Haiti: PEN International and PEN Haiti condemn the murder of journalist Dumesky Kersaint
19 April: PEN International and PEN Haiti are deeply concerned by the escalating violence in cities such as Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. The killing and kidnapping of several people over the past few days, including a journalist, demonstrates the lack of rule of law. The grave security situation must urgently be addressed, and those responsible brought to justice.
Between Thursday 13 and Sunday 16 April 2023, the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince inHaiti experienced a violent wave of murders and kidnappings, according to information published by the online agency AlterPresse. Young journalist Dumesky Kersaint was killed by gunmen in the early hours of Sunday, while covering gang violence in Carrefour, Commune in the West Department of Haiti.
"The deterioration of freedom of expression is the consequence of a country in democratic decline. Haitians have shown courage and bravery in their struggle to defend basic human rights. Today we condemn and deplore the murder of journalist Dumesky Kersaint and renew our call for peace in Haiti and the restoration of rule of law," said Ma Thida, President of the Writers in Prison Committee of PEN International.
. . .
"Since 2022, we have witnessed an increase in cases of violence and killings of journalists. It is proof that the Haitian State has emptied itself of all power and the economy is in total deficit, except when it has to repress the population. Attacking journalists who do their job is displacing the problem, said Ethson Otilien, General Secretary of PEN Haiti.
More:
https://www.pen-international.org/news/haiti-pen-international-and-pen-haiti-condemn-the-murder-of-journalist-dumesky-kersaint
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Radio journalist Dumesky Kersaint shot and killed in Haiti
April 27, 2023 10:26 AM EDT
New York, April 27, 2023—Haitian authorities must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Dumesky Kersaint, determine if he was killed in connection with his work, and bring those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
Between the evening of April 15 and the morning of April 16, Kersaint was shot and killed in the Mahotiere 83 neighborhood in the municipality of Carrefour, according to news reports and Quito, Ecuador-based press freedom group Fundamedios.
According to Le Facteur, Kersaint was a “victim of collateral damage” as armed civilians “were committing crimes in the same place where the journalist was.” Kersaint, 30, was a reporter at online Radio Tele INUREP, where he covered demonstrations.
“Haitian authorities must conduct a swift investigation into the killing of Dumesky Kersaint and bring those responsible to justice,” said Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJ’s program director. “The security crisis in the country is putting journalists at a constant risk of extreme violence. It is the authorities’ responsibility to make sure reporters can do their jobs without fear of violence.”
More:
https://cpj.org/2023/04/radio-journalist-dumesky-kersaint-shot-and-killed-in-haiti/
