St Kitts and Nevis prime minister, Denzil Douglas, said that the return of Jean Claude Duvalier to Haiti and reports that former president Jean Bertrand Aristide is also planning to return could spell further political instability in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.
Douglas, a member of the CARICOM bureau of heads of government, said that supporters of both men were still very present in Haiti and for Aristide to return and with Duvalier on the ground and in the absence of credible successor plan for the last election, then of course Haiti can become embroiled in a blood bath.
“I want us to pray for Haiti and hope that the presence of Duvalier in Haiti at this time does not lead to continued conflict and unsettling situation there,” he added.
On Tuesday, heavily armed police escorted Duvalier from his luxury hotel to a court, where he was questioned for hours, following which he was slapped with several charges, including corruption, theft and misappropriation of funds allegedly committed while he was in office.
Under Haitian law, the charges must be investigated by the judge, who will decide whether a judicial case should go ahead against the 59-year-old former leader.
Human rights group have also blamed Duvalier, also known as “Baby Doc”, for carrying out various human rights abuses and that his administration had been involved in the disappearance of thousands of opponents.
Aristide was forced out of office in 2004 after accusing the United States and France of engineering his downfall.
