Haiti: Half Hour for Haiti

Last Friday was the two-month anniversary of the abduction of Haitian human rights activist Lovinsky Pierre-Antoine. Lovinsky has been one of Haiti’s most persistent and effective human rights activists in Haiti for almost 20 years. He founded several organizations, including the September 30th Foundation, which has maintained weekly vigils for justice in Haiti for over a decade, through hurricanes, coup d’états and economic privation. For more information about Lovinsky, his disappearance, and taking action to save Lovinsky's life, see our website, www.HaitiJustice.org

When Lovinsky was kidnapped on August 12, many U.S.-based activists (including us) worked quietly rather than publicly, in order to avoid interfering with negotiations with the kidnappers. But there have been no negotiations for eight weeks, and the quiet advocacy is not working, so there’s a general consensus that we need to go public to save Lovinsky’s life.

The public momentum for Lovinsky has been building. The September 30th Foundation keeps taking to the streets in Haiti; they’ve been joined by demonstrations in London, San Francisco and New York, a petition drive from Los Angeles, and calls to Haiti and foreign governments from Canada, the U.S. and Europe. Several members of the U.S. Congress have urged the U.S. and Haitian governments to make saving Lovinsky’s life a priority.

There are lots of reasons for all of us to take action to help save Lovinsky. He is a husband, father, brother, son, colleague, inspiration and a friend to many. He is irreplaceable as an activist: no one has organized more demonstrations in Haiti over the last decade; no one has so effectively kept justice issues on the national radar screen. His disappearance has a ripple effect: as long as Lovinsky is missing, other activists will have good reason to fear for their safety if they speak out.

But perhaps the best reason for taking action to save Lovinsky is the fact that if another activist had been kidnapped- another of our friends, colleagues or relatives- Lovinsky would organize tirelessly until they were released. He would plan demonstrations, call press conferences and apply pressure wherever he could, as long as necessary to save the activist’s life.

We are recommending two activities, one easy, the other very easy, to help save Lovinsky’s life. Please do both if you can, but at least do one:

First, sign the Petition to Save Lovinsky issued by Global Women's Strike. The petition has 1017 signatures already, but it needs hundreds more to maximize its impact. Signing takes less than three minutes.

Second, send a letter to Haiti’s President René Rene Préval, urging him to ensure that his government does everything it can to investigate Lovinsky’s disappearance and ensure his safe return. A sample letter is below, please customize and personalize it if you can. You may send your letter directly to President Préval by regular mail ($ .69 postage in US, $1.55 in Canada), or to us by fax: (206) 350-7986 (a U.S. number) or email: [email][email protected], and we will ensure that they are delivered.