March 10, 1999
March 10, 1999
Contact HRF Communications (212) 845 5245 media@humanrightsfirst.orgHuman Rights First CALLS FOR FULL INESTIGATION OF ATTACK ON HAITIAN HUMAN RIGHTS LEADER
Measures Must Be Taken To Guarantee Protection For Human Rights Workers
March 10, 1999—Human Rights First called on the Haitian government yesterday to pursue a thorough investigation into the attack on Pierre Esperance, director of the Port-au-Prince field office of the National Coalition for Haitian Rights (NCHR). In a letter to Haiti’s President, Human Rights First said those responsible for the attack must be apprehended and prosecuted, while appropriate measures must also be taken to effectively guarantee Mr. Esperance’s human rights and those of other activists in Haiti.
"Under the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, which was adopted by the UN last December, Haiti is committed to adopting all necessary measures to ensure that the rights of human rights defenders are effectively guaranteed," said Robert Weiner, Direction of Protection at Human Rights First. "We intend to closely follow developments in this case."
Mr. Esperance was attacked on Monday in his car as he approached NCHR’s offices with a colleague. He sustained non-fatal bullet wounds; his colleague escaped injury. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, which appeared to be premeditated, and there was no attempt at robbery.
NCHR is a partner of WITNESS, a project that uses video and technology to help activists around the globe fight for human rights. WITNESS was formed in partnership with Human Rights First, artist Peter Gabriel and the Reebok Foundation.
Last week, the Organization of American States’ Inter-American Commission on Human Rights held a hearing on Human Rights First’s recently submitted brief on the murder of Guy Malary. Malary, Haiti’s former Minister of Justice, was assassinated in 1993. Efforts to investigate and prosecute the case have been ineffective. The brief argues that the government of Haiti has made insufficient efforts to resolve the murder, in violation of its obligations under international law.