Haiti: Democratic Action to Build Haiti (Action démocratique pour bâtir Haïti, ADEBHA): its mandate, structure, leaders, activities before and after its reported creation in 2004, and treatment by the chimères [Haitian armed gangs] and authorities
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa |
| Publication Date | 2 December 2008 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | HTI103014.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Haiti: Democratic Action to Build Haiti (Action démocratique pour bâtir Haïti, ADEBHA): its mandate, structure, leaders, activities before and after its reported creation in 2004, and treatment by the chimères [Haitian armed gangs] and authorities, 2 December 2008, HTI103014.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/49b92b4714.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Democratic Action to Build Haiti (Action démocratique pour bâtir Haïti), also referred to under the acronym ADEBHA [or ADEBAH (Radio Vision 2000)], was founded as a "sociopolitical organization" in 1997 (Radio Galaxie 24 Feb. 2005). ADEBHA's objective, as expressed in their general assembly in 2001, is to establish the rule of law and eliminate theft, waste and disorder (Signal FM Radio 2 Oct. 2001). It was reported in 2002 and 2003 that removing then-president Jean-Betrand Aristide from power was one of ADEBHA's objectives (Signal FM Radio 14 Aug. 2002; ibid. 14 Feb. 2003; ibid. 2 Oct. 2003).
On 30 March 2004 a media source reported that ADEBHA had become a political party (Signal FM Radio 30 March 2004). The party leaders characterized ADEBHA as a modern political party that would represent all generations, drawing support not only from the university sector but also from other sectors of society (ibid.). ADEBHA was officially registered as a political party on 13 July 2004 and was recognized on 26 January 2005 (Haiti July 2005). ADEBHA's candidate for the 2006 presidential election, René Julien, received 8,608 votes (0.44 percent) (Haiti 20 Feb. 2006). The party won 1 seat out of 99 in Haiti's Chamber of Deputies (Chambre des députés) in the 2006 election (Europa 2008 2008, 2123).
Structure
Information on ADEBHA's party structure was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. Port-au-Prince-based Signal FM Radio reported that there were approximately 300 people present at ADEBHA's third ordinary general assembly on 1 October 2001 and that the organization had a board of directors, leader, treasurer and other officials (2 Oct. 2001). In October of 2003, ADEBHA elected a new board and re-elected its leader (Signal FM Radio 2 Oct. 2003).
Leaders
René Julien, an attorney, is referred to as an ADEBHA leader in radio news broadcasts from 2001 to 2004 (Radio Métropole 14 Aug. 2001; Signal FM Radio 8 Jan. 2002; Signal FM Radio 2 Oct. 2003; Radio Métropole 12 Nov. 2004). He was the general secretary in 2005 (Radio Métropole 12 July 2005). He was ADEBHA's presidential candidate in the 2006 election (Haiti 20 Feb. 2006). A radio news broadcast referred to Julien as the "leader" in January 2008 (Radio Vision 2000 16 Jan. 2008). Political Handbook of the World 2008 also lists him as ADEBHA's leader (PHW 2008 2008, 547).
An attorney, Levelt Dorcil, was referred to as ADEBHA's "coordinator" in September of 2000 (Signal FM Radio 7 Sept. 2000). At the ordinary general assembly on 1 October 2001, he was "re-elected as leader" for three more years (Signal FM Radio 2 Oct. 2001). A radio news broadcast, on 24 February 2005, called him "one of the ADEBHA leaders" (Radio Métropole 24 Feb. 2005).
The Europa World Year Book indicates that Camille LeBlanc is the current president of ADEBHA (Europa 2008 2008, 2123). LeBlanc is also referred to as the president of ADEBHA in a radio news broadcast in December 2004 (Radio Métropole 21 Dec. 2004). According to another radio news broadcast in June 2005, ADEBHA dismissed Camille LeBlanc from the party for six months, possibly because he violated an article of the party's internal regulations (Radio Vision 2000 23 June 2005; Radio Métropole 12 July 2005). LeBlanc was the justice minister under the René Préval government (ibid.; Radio Métropole 21 Dec. 2004). With a background as a human rights lawyer, he was appointed justice minister in March of 1999, and Human Rights Watch (HRW) noted that he provided a new impetus to the judicial reform process (HRW 2000).
Rony Gilot was also listed as an ADEBHA leader in 2005 (France 15 Oct. 2005, 26).
ADEBHA's activities before 2004
In August of 2000, ADEBHA wrote to the Organization of American States (OAS) about the "illegal and unconstitutional nature" of the Haitian election results (Radio Métropole 17 Aug. 2000). From 2001 to 2003, ADEBHA repeatedly called for the overthrow of the Lavalas government (Radio Métropole 14 Aug. 2001; Signal FM Radio 8 Jan. 2002; ibid. 14 Aug. 2002; ibid. 14 Feb. 2003; ibid. 2 Oct. 2003). They criticized the government for breaking state laws, disregarding the constitution (Radio Métropole 14 Aug. 2001), breaking with democratic principles (Radio Vision 2000 6 Dec. 2002) and violating journalists' rights (Signal FM Radio 19 Feb. 2003).
ADEBHA's activities after 2004
In 2007 and 2008, ADEBHA criticized the René Préval-Jacques-Edouard Alexis government (Radio Vision 2000 22 Aug. 2007; ibid. 16 Jan. 2008). On 22 August 2007, ADEBHA accused the government of arresting people on "contraband" charges without any legal grounds (Radio Vision 2000 22 Aug. 2007). On 16 January 2008, the leader of ADEBHA was quoted as saying the government didn't have "the capacity to help the country become a modern state" (Radio Vision 2000 16 Jan. 2008).
Treatment by the chimères and government authorities
Information on the treatment of ADEBHA by the chimères [Haitian armed gangs] could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints for this Response.
Information on the treatment of ADEBHA by government authorities was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. In August of 2001, two of ADEBHA's leaders, René Julien and Levelt Dorcil, were called to appear before the public prosecutor for making statements advocating the overthrow of the government (Radio Métropole 17 Aug. 2001; ibid. 31 Aug. 2001). After the hearing, the judge dismissed the charges (Radio Métropole 31 Aug. 2001).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
The Europa World Year Book 2008. 2008. "Haiti." London: Routledge.
France. 15 October 2005. Commission des recours des réfugiés. "Sommaire Haïti." Haiti. 20 February 2006. Conseil électoral provisoire. "Élections 2006: Résumé présidentiel pays." Human Rights Watch (HRW). 2000. "Haiti." World Report 2000. Political Handbook of the World: 2008 (PHW 2008). 2008. "Haiti." Edited by Arthur Banks, Thomas Muller and William Overstreet. Washington, DC: CQ Press. Radio Galaxie [Port-au-Prince, in French]. 24 February 2005. "Haiti: Highlights of Galaxie Radio News 1230 gmt 24 Feb 05." (BBC Monitoring Americas/Factiva) Radio Métropole [Port-au-Prince]. 12 July 2005. "Politique: les deux principaux responsables de l'ADEBAH à couteaux tirés" Radio Vision 2000 [Port-au-Prince, in French]. 16 January 2008. "Haitian Politicians Criticize President; Call for Immediate Action on Poverty." (BBC Monitoring Americas/Factiva) Signal FM Radio [Port-au-Prince, in Creole]. 30 March 2004. "Haiti: Highlights of Signal FM Radio News 1230 gmt 30 Mar 04." (BBC Monitoring Americas/Factiva 31 Mar. 2004) Additional Sources Consulted Internet Sites, including: Amnesty International (AI), Canada Haiti Action, Freedom House, Haïti Progrès, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) RefWorld, Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
_____. July 2005. Conseil électoral provisoire. "Liste des partis politiques enregistrés et reconnus."
_____. [Port-au-Prince, in French]. 24 February 2005. "Haiti: Highlights of Métropole Radio News 1145 gmt 24 Feb. 05." (BBC Monitoring Americas/Factiva)
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_____. [Port-au-Prince, in Creole]. 8 January 2002. "Highlights of Signal FM Radio News 1230 gmt 8 Jan 02." (BBC Monitoring Americas/Factiva 10 Jan. 2002)
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_____. [Port-au-Prince, in Creole]. 7 September 2000. "Port-au-Prince Signal Radio Highlights 1230 gmt 7th September 00." (BBC Monitoring Americas/Factiva 8 Sept. 2000)