Yves Volel

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Yves Volel was a Haitian lawyer, activist, and presidential candidate. He was assassinated in 1987 while running for office. He was the leader of an offshoot of the , led by , known as the .[1]

Early life[]

Yves Volel was born in 1934. He graduated from the Military Academy in 1954, and was classmates with Henri Namphy. He served in the Haitian military as an officer.[2]

He was married three times, and his last wife was Rose Marie Volel. He fathered six children.[3]

Exile from Haiti[]

In 1965, fleeing the Francois Duvalier regime, Volel emigrated to the United States.[4]

Volel spent 18 years working as a math teacher at the Dalton School, a prestigious private college prep school in Manhattan, New York.[3] One of his students was Anderson Cooper, who has spoken about his teacher on CNN.[5]

While in New York, he set up a refugee help group known as Operation Exodus.[2]

Return and politics[]

In 1986, after Duvalier fled to France and Namphy had become president, Volel returned to Haiti.[3][4]

Volel was the attorney who prosecuted , Duvalier's former chief of police. He also defended , who was affiliated with the CATH trade union. After finance minister Leslie Delatour fired him, in January 1987, Volel sued him and won a symbolic victory for $1 in damages.[2]

Volel became a critic of the Namphy government.[6] Volel was a supporter of major strikes that shut down Haitian cities in 1987.[6]

Volel became a candidate for the 1987 general election to replace Namphy, amidst rising violence. Thirty candidates declared for the election, including many former Duvalier officials. Volel suggested Duvalier officials should have a 10-year moratorium on running for office.[6]

Assassination[]

On August 2, 1987, , a candidate for the Social Democratic Party, was killed outside a church in Léogâne by a mob yelling "Kill the communists!"[7][6]

On October 13, 1987, Volel told reporters he would be giving a speech demanding release of his client , a political prisoner held without charges, in front of the Port-au-Prince police headquarters and prison. During his speech, he was shot to death by plainclothes policemen. The police declined to comment at the scene.[6][4][8] The next day the police released a statement saying Volel had been armed and attempting to force his way into the station, though witnesses disputed their description.[9]

His death was mourned by Haitian author .[2] In his honor, Haitian lawyers in Port-au-Prince held a strike as part of "a week of mourning".[10]

References[]

  1. ^ Haitian Candidate Killed at Police Post. October 14, 1987. The Washington Post.
  2. ^ a b c d "Yves Volel Killed". Jean-Pierre Cloutier. October 1987. The Haiti Times.
  3. ^ a b c "The killing of Haitian presidential candidate Yves Volel outside". UPI. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c What Yves Volel Gave Haiti. The New York Times. October 16, 1987.
  5. ^ Vales, Leinz (January 11, 2018). "Anderson Cooper delivers emotional tribute to Haiti". CNN.com. Retrieved January 12, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c d e Services, From Times Wire (October 13, 1987). "Police Kill Haitian Presidential Hopeful : Shot to Death as He Gives Address on Human Rights". Retrieved January 12, 2018 – via LA Times.
  7. ^ "Political Leader Hacked to Death in Haiti". Washington Post. August 4, 1987.
  8. ^ Haitian Candidate Killed by Gunmen. Joseph B. Treaster. The New York Times. October 14, 1987.
  9. ^ "Police claim slain candidate stormed station, witnesses disagree". UPI. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
  10. ^ Lawyers in Haiti Hold Strike In Mourning for Slain Leader. Reuters. October 21, 1987.
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