Haiti: Prominent Journalist Roberson Alphonse Survives Assassination Attempt

Roberson Alphonse, a well-known journalist in Haiti, has survived an assassination attempt after he was shot inside his car on his way to work in Port-au-Prince, the country's capital.

According to Al Jazeera, Alphonse works at the daily newspaper Le Nouvelliste and radio station Magik9. He is currently in a hospital and has undergone two operations.

Frantz Duval, the chief editor for both media where Alphonse works, noted that the Haitian journalist is expected to recover from his injuries after his car was riddled with bullets on Tuesday.

In a statement, Haiti's Ministry of Culture and Communications said it learned about the news of the assassination attempt that happened in the Delmas neighborhood.

The ministry added that Alphonse's "rigor, his effort to be impartial," and his "sense of perfection make him a model for the profession."

Duval noted that Alphonse's car had more than 10 bullet holes. Duval also thanked the unidentified person who rescued Alphonse and applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding before medical help arrived in the area.

Violence Against Haiti's Journalists

Authorities found the body of another journalist on Tuesday. According to Washington Post, the journalist was identified as Garry Tess, who had been missing for several days.

The government's Office of Citizen Protection noted that Tess used to host a political talk show. The office said they were worried about the security of journalists in Haiti, urging their protection.

No one has been arrested yet in either case of Garry Tess or Roberson Alphonse. Media workers have been a target of fighting gangs who have managed to get a hold of the country after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July last year.

The president of Haiti's Senate, Joseph Lambert, demanded a judicial investigation of Alphonse's case. The attacks on Alphonse and Terry came more than a month after the death of two other journalists.

The two journalists were identified as Tayson Latigue and Frantzsen Charles, who were fatally shot, and their bodies were set on fire.

Latigue and Charles were reporting in a slum area controlled by Haitian gangs when they were killed. Two other journalists were also killed last January by gang members. The journalists were reporting in Laboule.

Haiti Gang Violence

Haiti is facing gang violence while dealing with a cholera outbreak amid a water shortage. The United Nations has released a report regarding gang violence and how criminal groups in Haiti would use rape as a tool of intimidation and control, CNN reported.

One Haitian security forces source told CNN in August that criminal gangs control or influence an estimated three quarters of the city.

Gangs conducting systematic sexual violence are reportedly going largely undocumented and unpunished, while its victims have been left to fend for themselves.

Arnaud Royer, director of the United Nations Integrated Office's human rights arm in Haiti, earlier said that "rape has become a weapon." In addition, warring gangs have reportedly isolated whole neighborhoods and trapped them between the "frontlines" of street warfare.

Many were unable to go to work or have access to food or water. The United Nations report further noted that men and children of all sexes were also targeted for sexual violence.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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