Last Updated on February 24, 2020, 8:15 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The protests over the working conditions and the pay of the police, turned into a battleground when the newly reconstituted army and Haitian police exchanged gunfire outside the national palace.
It is reported that three policemen were injured during the gunfire and a bullet in the back wounded one soldier.
Haiti’s three-day carnival celebration was scheduled to start on Sunday in all the major cities, including Port-au-Prince. The government announced on Sunday night that the carnival was cancelled to avoid bloodshed.
The police protesters and their supporters had burned over a dozen floats and stands during the recent protests. The point they wanted to present that a nation should not celebrate carnivals during a state of crisis.
On Sunday afternoon, dozens of men claiming to be off duty officers along were spotted marching towards the palace along with hundreds of backers with a demand for better pay for Haitian law-enforcement officials.
The protesters then stopped outside the Army headquarters, and the said headquarters face the palace.
The journalists saw soldiers in the headquarters fire into the air, and it is not clear that which side, the police or the army started firing at the other side first.
After some time, the uniformed officers joined the off duty officers and joined the gunfire. Using semi-automatic rifles and pistols started firing at the army headquarters.
It was also seen that many of the protesters wore masks to hide their identities. Later, some armed men spotted a drone taking images of the gunfire and in order to take it down, followed it to the office of radio Caraibes and opened fire on the building. No casualties were reported in this attack.
The police are protesting because a half a dozen police officers were fired because they were attempting to form a union. The shrinking economy of Haiti and the failure of the president to improve the standards of living is also a concern of the protesters.
A protester wearing a mask talked to the press and said that the protesters wanted to have their colleagues reinstated, and wages increased. He also added that until their demands are not met, they will not sit and talk. And the protesters think that the president does not care about their demands.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
