Ariel Henry

Ariel Henry is a Haitian neurosurgeon and politician who has served as the acting prime minister of Haiti and the acting president of Haiti since 20 July 2021. He later became involved in a controversy due to his refusal to cooperate with the authorities over his links with Joseph Felix Badio, one of the suspects accused of orchestrating the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse on 7 July 2021. Officers who investigated the case suspected Henry was involved with planning the assassination.

Political career :

Henry entered politics as a leader of the Democratic Convergence movement which sought to topple President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was accused of rigging the 2000 Haitian parliamentary election. He and Micha Gaillard led the opposition against the President at international forums. After the 2004 Haitian coup d'état that ousted Aristide, Henry called for a transition government based on consensus and new elections. He later became a part of the "council of sages", consisting of seven members. The council was backed by the United States and elected members of the transitional government. 

He supported René Préval after he was elected as the President and was appointed as the director general of the Ministry of Health in June 2006. He remained in the position until September 2008, when he was appointed as the ministry's chief of staff from September 2008 to October 2011.During his tenure, he dealt with the strikes at the General Hospital in Port-au-Prince, worked alongside the United States in managing the public health response after the 2010 earthquake, and streamlined the ministry's finances, enabling direct American funding of its programs. 

Henry is a former member of Social Democratic Party, Haitian Revolutionary Progressive Nationalist Party which was founded by his long-time friend and political mentor Serge Gilles, Fusion of Haitian Social Democrats and Inite. He was selected as the Minister of Interior and Territorial Communities in 2015 by President Michel Martelly, after the latter reached a deal with the opposition parties following anti-government protests, many of them led by followers of Aristide. Henry served in the post from 22 January 2015 to 11 September 2015, when he was appointed as the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor by Prime Minister Evans Paul and replaced by Ardouin Zéphirin. He remained in the position until 28 March 2016. After Inite announced it would withdraw from Martelly's unity government on 8 September 2015, it called on Henry to resign. Henry however refused and left the party.

On 5 July 2021, he was selected as the next prime minister of Haiti by President Jovenel Moïse, but two days later, Moïse was assassinated, stalling the transfer of power. At the time, incumbent Prime Minister Claude Joseph took control of the government, with the backing of the military, and was acknowledged by the United States as the rightful prime minister. A group of prominent diplomats to Haiti called the "Core Group", which is made up of ambassadors to Haiti from Brazil, the European Union, France, Germany, Spain, Canada and the United States, in addition to representatives to Haiti from the Organization of American States and the United Nations, called on Henry to take charge as the head of the government on 17 July. On 19 July, Joseph announced that he would stand down as prime minister in favor of Henry.

Prime Minister of Haiti :

Henry was sworn in as the prime minister on 20 July 2021. During the ceremony, he called for unity and stated that he will prioritize reassuring people about restoring order and security in the country. He stated on 28 July that he planned to hold the long-delayed elections as soon as possible, and the government would hold dialogue with the civil society on what to do further for Haiti's progress.

After an earthquake struck Haiti on 14 August, Henry declared a state of emergency for one month in the country and stated that all resources would be mobilized to help people affected by the quake. During an address to the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States on 20 August, he vowed to hold elections as soon as possible to restore democracy in the country, despite the country reeling from instability following the recent earthquake and Moïse's assassination.

On 6 September, Henry described reducing crime in Haiti as a primary concern of his government. He introduced the draft of a proposed new constitution on 8 September. Among its provisions, the President is given further powers while the position of Prime Minister is abolished to allow government policies to be passed more easily. Government officials, ministers and presidents can also be tried before courts once they leave their office. 

Henry signed an agreement for a consensual transitional government with opposition political parties on 11 September. Under the agreement, a new Provisional Electoral Council will be formed which will include members of Haitian diaspora in its functioning. Meanwhile, the government also agreed to hold a trial for the PetroCaribe scandal; in addition to conducting investigations into the massacres that occurred in La Saline, Bel Air and Delmas 32. The agreement contains provisions for the establishment of a two-headed executive of Haiti, while the country will be governed by the Council of Ministers under the leadership of Henry. It allows the elections to be delayed to late 2022. Over 169 political and civil organizations had signed the agreement until 12 September according to Henry, however he has sought support of more organizations. 

At the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly on 25 September, Henry spoke about the recent expulsion of Haitian migrants by the United States from its border with Mexico and stated that while he did not wish to challenge its right to expel illegal migrants, migration would continue until wealth inequality no longer existed in the world. He urged wealthy countries to help less-developed ones improve their living standards more quickly to prevent it, and criticized the United States Border Patrol agents for their conduct while stopping the Haitian migrants. Henry also stated that his government was trying to apprehend Moïse's killers and asked for "mutual legal assistance" before the assembly, while promising to restore democractic governance in Haiti quickly.

Henry dismissed all members of the Provisional Electoral Council, seen by many in the country as politically biased, on 27 September. The elections were postponed indefinitely and he promised to appoint a new election council. The next day, Henry told the Associated Press that he planned to hold the constitutional referendum in February 2022, and hoped to hold the elections in early-2022. He also stated that the Haitian migrants recently expelled from the Mexico–United States border would be assisted by the government in setting up small businesses, and criticized the treatment meted out to them by the United States. 

Henry named a new ministerial cabinet on 24 November, consisting of eight new appointments. A 52-member National Transitional Council was named on 12 December under the "Montana Accord", a competing accord against Henry's own "September 11th Accord", being given the task of selecting a new president and prime minister until elections are held.

On 1 January 2022, it was reported that Henry had survived an assassination attempt after he fled Gonaïves during a shootout between his security forces and an armed group. The attempt on his life occurred outside the cathedral in Gonaives, where a ceremony marking the 218th anniversary of Haitian independence was taking place. The incident resulted in one death and two others were injured. Henry accused "bandits" of trying to assassinate him, and stated that the state should never bow to their demands. 

Delegates of various accords, including the Montana Accord, chose Fritz Jean as the interim president of Haiti on 17 January during a unitary summit. Henry however stated on Twitter that the next president would be elected by the Haitian people, apparently rejecting attempts at a transitional government. After the Montana Accord signatories chose Jean as the interim president and Steven Benoît as the prime minister in late January, Henry rejected giving recognition to it on 7 February. He also promised to announce the date of the elections soon, while his opponents demanded that he step down since the legal mandate of late president Jovenel Moïse, who had appointed him, formally expired that day. 

In an interview with Miami Herald on 11 February, Henry stated that he was willing to hand over suspects in the case of Moïse's assassination to the United States, as he supported their investigation into the former president's death and believed that the Ministry of Justice and Public Security was weak. He also stated that he supported appointing a judge from another country to oversee the case independently in Haiti and he would seek the assistance of the Caribbean Community for it. During the 2 June meeting of the Aid Effectiveness Committee of the Coordination Framework of external aid for the development of Haiti, Henry stated that improving the security situation in the country was a prerequisite for holding the elections. On 11 September, he stated that the government will begin the organization of elections by the end of 2022.

An announcement by Henry on 11 September regarding a reduction in subsidies on fuel, more than doubling the cost of petrol, diesel and kerosene, led to countrywide protests and gangs preventing fuel from being unloaded at the Varreux terminal, creating a nationwide shortage. On 5 October, Henry appealed to the international community for help in resolving the crisis. Two days later, he and the Council of Ministers authorized the government to request international military assistance. The G9 alliance of gangs announced the lifting of their blockade of the Varreux terminal on 11 November. 

Henry fired Justice Minister Berto Dorcé and Interior Minister Liszt Quitel on 14 November, three days after the Government Commissioner Jacques Lafontant was dismissed due to a complaint by Henry. Henry appointed himself as the acting Interior Minister, while Emmelie Prophete was appointed as the Justice Minister. 

On 21 December 2022, Henry along with representatives of political parties, civil society organizations and the private sector signed an agreement to hold the general elections in 2023, with the new government taking office on 7 February 2024. It also established a three-member High Council for the Transition with powers to take part in appointment of government officials and overseeing the various government departments, along with a Government Action Control Body to ensure the compliance of the government with the rules and transparency.

Protesting police officers attacked the official residence of Henry and the Toussaint Louverture International Airport on 26 January 2023, in response to a rise in killings of fellow officers. Henry, who was at the airport at the time, was able to escape. The High Council for the Transition was formally installed by him on 6 February 2023.