Fonkoze's Jeannot Found in Haitian Morgue

see also "He Was Brutally Tortured"

The National Coalition for Haitian Rights (NCHR) received word today that the mutilated body of Amos Jeannot, the Fonkoze courier who was abducted on September 6, at the end of a robbery of the alternative bank for the poor by a gang of men dressed in standard issue police uniforms, was found in Port-au-Prince's morgue in a badly decomposed state. We are saddened by this news and extend our condolences to his relatives and young child for whom he was the main breadwinner.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your responses to our call for action. They provided much needed comfort and support to the Fonkoze staff and its leaders who spared no efforts in their quest for Jeannot, even while bracing for the worst. Fonkoze had offered the sum of 50,000 gourdes, a small fortune by Haitian standards, for information leading to the whereabouts of Jeannot and the assailants. Your letters, telegrams and faxes prompted the Haitian police to start cooperating in the investigation rather than simply lend a deaf ear.

Funeral services for Amos Jeannot will be held next week at the Cathedral in Port-au-Prince. To express sympathy and condolences, to offer support to Fonkoze, please write to Anne Hastings, Executive Director at fonkoze@aol.com. You may not get a reply right away, but be certain that your thoughts and concerns will be deeply appreciated.

These are trying times for advocates for human rights, and social and economic justice in Haiti. Fonkoze continues to be the subject of anonymous threats. The absence of viable police protection and a functioning government contribute to its vulnerability. Yet through Fonkoze and beyond Fonkoze lies the future of a democratic Haiti whose people can not only hope for a better life, but should be able to call their leaders to account for their action and get results. Their struggle for survival is also our own. I urge you to rally around their efforts to find justice for Amos Jeannot and the hundreds of poor Haitians who were robbed of their savings when the killers raided Fonkoze's headquarters.

Please continue to demand that the Haitian police investigate this matter to the best of its ability, to provide enhanced protection to Fonkoze's offices located in virtually every Haitian province. And most importantly continue to stand with the Haitian people in these trying times.

Sincerely,

Jocelyn (Johnny) McCalla
Executive Director
National Coalition for Haitian Rights