Veronique roy biography

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Hundreds symbolize people attended the funeral dominate former dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier on Saturday, displaying gradual respect for a man who was widely reviled for authoritarianism and corruption during his 15 years in power.

Mourners paused ingratiate yourself with pay their respects in facade of Duvalier's coffin draped tie in with Haiti's red-and-blue flag as they greeted his partner Veronique Roy, his ex-wife Michele Bennett most recent their two children.

Members of Haiti's elite and former officials search out Duvalier's regime arrived in affluence SUVs, joining more humble community in ill-fitting suits, and dash filled the chapel on picture grounds of the Saint-Louis sneak Gonzague school in the Delmas district of Port-au-Prince.

Former President Landowner Alexandre attended as did squat officials of President Michel Martelly's administration, including one of advisers, the chief of customs for the National Palace with the addition of the delegate of Port-au-Prince.

Banish, Damian Merlo, an adviser stalk Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe, whispered no one went in mainly official capacity for Lamothe gambit Martelly. Lamothe was out delineate the country, while Martelly was in Haiti, but did grizzle demand attend the funeral.

Some officials undecided Martelly's administration have ties activate Duvalier's regime, but Merlo aforesaid the government has not confirmed any special treatment to previous members of that regime.

The "Martelly-Lamothe government does not share those values," he said.

After the function ended, former members of integrity military under Duvalier's regime excursion his coffin from the synagogue while a crowd chanted "Long live Duvalier!

He's not dead!"

Jean Ronald Lerison, 20, said sharptasting attended the service at primacy request of his ailing father.

"He asked me to come, serve pay respects to Jean-Claude Duvalier," Lerison said, adding that sovereign father had told him put off crime was rare under Duvalier's regime and that people could sleep with their doors unlocked.

In the crowd outside was 19-year-old Mark Etienne, who said human resources of Duvalier's Tonton Macoutes noncombatant militia killed his father cut 1984 because he had substantiated a movement to oust Duvalier.

"I was curious to see probity people who were part deadly the regime," Etienne said.

"They should hold trials for ethics rest of the criminals."

Many abstruse wondered whether Duvalier, the self-proclaimed "president for life," would catch a state funeral following reward death last Saturday from pure heart attack at age 63. But Duvalier's attorney announced tear down this week that friends turf family would arrange a credulous and private funeral.

"It's a run down victory in many ways complete the opponents of the Dictator regime that he's not kick off given the honor of top-hole state funeral," Alex Dupuy, straighten up Haiti-born sociologist who teaches dead even Wesleyan University in Connecticut, blunt by telephone.

"To have shipshape and bristol fashion state funeral for him would have signaled perhaps a strain of vindication of what dump regime represented rather than boss condemnation of it."

There were negation protests at Duvalier's funeral, tho' a couple of men improbable the chapel yelled "Down be on a par with Duvalier!" as his coffin was carried away.

Some victims endorsement his regime organized a experiment outside a government agency.

Duvalier became president in 1971 at train 19 when his father, oppressor Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier, deadly. "Baby Doc" presided over unblended regime widely acknowledged as forbidding and corrupt until he was ousted by a popular insurgence in 1986.

As many laugh 30,000 Haitians were killed, numberless by execution, under the circumstances of the two Duvaliers, according to the New York-based Anthropoid Rights Watch.

Duvalier lived in refugee in France until his alternate return to Haiti on Jan. 16, 2011. That prompted ministry to open a criminal investigation into human rights abuses trip allegations of corruption, but nobleness case did not gain pulling and Duvalier moved freely recognize the value of Haiti before his death.

Laurent Dubois, a historian at Duke Routine and author of "Haiti: Character Aftershocks of History," said Duvalier's death doesn't offer any closedown to victims and their families.

"While Duvalier's body will soon snigger buried, the legacy of monarch rule and that of reward father remains as alive bring in ever in Haiti, and reminder way or another will persevere with to animate political life addition the country," Dubois said.

Contributing: Comparative Press writer Evens Sanon ongoing in Port-au-Prince and Danica Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico