In a video shot Wednesday, November 20 in Rio de Janeiro, Emmanuel Macron accused Haitian officials who dismissed Garry Conille, appointed Prime Minister five months ago to try to stabilize his country, of being “completely stupid.”
The video filmed on the sidelines of the G20 before its departure for Chile without the presence of the press was widely relayed on social networks. The head of state responded, according to his entourage, to a Haitian who questioned him “insistently” in accusing him and France “of being responsible for the situation in Haiti“.
“There frankly, it was the Haitians who killed Haitileaving drug trafficking”, Emmanuel Macron replied. “And there, what they did, the Prime Minister was great, I defended him, they fired him!”, he added in reference to the dismissal of Garry Conille by the Haitian presidential transition council “It’s terrible. It's terrible. And I can't replace him. They are complete idiots, they should never have released itthe Prime Minister was great,” he continues before the video cuts off.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Haiti announced Thursday evening that it had summoned the French ambassador and protested against the “remarks deemed unacceptable” by President Emmanuel Macron.
Emmanuel Macron mentioned the Haitian crisis the next day during a speech on the relationship with Latin America given to the Chilean Congress in the city of Valparaiso. “France will continue to provide support to the Haitian people and to support all initiatives aimed at restoring security and recreating a path towards a stable political situation. Haitians deserve it,” he said.
Plagued by political, security, socio-economic and humanitarian crises, fueled by the violence of gangs who control 80% of the capital Port-au-Prince, this Caribbean country is in chaos. The decision to dismiss Garry Conille from his functions came on November 10 when the Transition Council wanted to change officials in the ministries of Justice, Finance, Defense and Health, against its advice.
Read more
