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According to China News Network, on August 20 local time, the US Treasury Department announced sanctions against former Haitian President Michel Martelly.

The U.S. Treasury Department issued a statement on the same day saying that the target of the sanctions, former Haitian President Martelly, used his influence to facilitate drug trafficking gangs, and a large amount of drugs eventually entered the United States through Haiti. In addition, Martelly also provided support to multiple Haitian gangs, exacerbating Haitian gang violence. Drug problems and gang violence endanger Haiti's political stability and further deteriorate the living environment of the people.

According to the regulations of the US Treasury Department, the assets of the sanctioned targets in the United States will be frozen and US citizens are prohibited from trading with them.

Martelly served as President of Haiti from 2011 to 2016. Before becoming President of Haiti, Martelly was a pop singer known for his bizarre costumes.

It is worth noting that in March this year, Cankaoxiaoxi.com wrote in a report that the Real Brazil newspaper website published an article entitled "The United States and Haiti: A History of Intervention and Profiting from Barbaric Acts", which mentioned that Haiti was occupied by the United States between 1915 and 1934. Haiti experienced a series of interventions by the United States in the 20th century.

This is a street scene taken in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on August 14, 2021 (Photo source: Xinhua News Agency)

"The United States has repeatedly intervened in Haiti since the 1990s. It's clear that the purpose of these interventions is to prevent any type of progressive policies from emerging in Haiti," said Greg Beckett, an anthropologist at Western University.

The report mentioned that in Haiti, a country where 95% of the population is black, Americans have given more power to light-skinned citizens, especially Jewish and Arab immigrants. Today, they are the economic elite, many of whom do not even live in Haiti.

Jean-Eddie St. Paul, a Haitian and professor of sociology at Brooklyn College, spoke about this racial class divide in Haiti: "There may be people in Haiti who have Haitian passports, speak Haitian Creole, eat typical Haitian food...but in their minds, they never think of themselves as Haitian. They think of Haiti as a place for economic transactions."

Political leaders backed by these economic elites have used armed militias to maintain power for decades. Martelly reportedly received strong U.S. support before and during his presidency, as the United States pressured Haiti to hold elections following the 2010 earthquake.

In January this year, a Haitian court issued an arrest warrant for Martelly and several other senior officials on suspicion of corruption. The court accused them of obtaining illicit property through the Haitian National Equipment Center and engaging in corruption through influence transactions.

It is worth mentioning that in 2022, Canada imposed sanctions on Martelly and others on the grounds of "acting as accomplices in Haitian gang violence and endangering Haiti's political stability."

According to a report released by the United Nations in July, gang violence has displaced more than 30,000 Haitian children since March this year.

Jimu News integrates China News Network, Global Times, Overseas Network, Xinhua News Agency, Cankaoxiaoxi.com, etc.

(Source: Jimu News)