Two North American apparel companies are telling their Haiti subcontractors to reinstate recently fired union officers as the Haitian assembly industry faces mounting criticism.
Heads of state from 33 countries met in Caracas for the first summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), a new regional bloc that, unlike the OAS, includes Cuba—but excludes the United States and Canada.
Haitian activists have started an international campaign to force Port-au-Prince apparel assembly plants to rehire six union members who were allegedly dismissed for their union activities.
The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) acknowledges that it has received a petition for relief filed on behalf of the victims of a cholera epidemic brought by UN troops.
Haitian police arrested opposition legislative deputy Arnel BĂ©lizaire at the Port-au-Prienc airport as he returned from an official visit to France and then whisked him to the National Penitentiary, sparking protests against President Michel Martelly.
Activists demanded the withdrawal of the thousands of UN “peacekeepers” in Haiti UN mission and called for the UN to pay compensation for the country’s current cholera epidemic.
Right-wing Puerto Rican governor Luis Fortuño is scrambling to control damage from a report by the US Justice Department condemning unconstitutional conduct by the island’s police force.
Chanting “This has to change,” some 200 Haitians marked World Day for Decent Work with a march to the industrial park where most of Port-au-Prince’s low-wage assembly plants are located.
Haitian President Michel Martelly’s latest choice for prime minister has been an assistant to former US president Bill Clinton, who is already being referred to in political circles as the de facto “governor of Haiti.”
Three Port-au-Prince apparel factories fired a total of six members of a new local of the Textile and Garment Workers Union (SOTA) little more than a week after the union announced its formation.
Haitian president Michel Martelly announced the formation of an advisory council for economic development that will “remove the brakes” on foreign investment—and ensure a continued role for Bill Clinton as de facto “governor” of Haiti.
The US Justice Department announced its findings from a three-year investigation that the Puerto Rico Police Department has engaged in repeated unlawful behavior, including unconstitutional arrests and failure to protect First Amendment rights.
