• 19 the age that Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier took over Haiti

• 28 number of years he and his dad, Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier, ruled over the country
• 15 number of years “Baby Doc” was “president-for-life” before he was booted from power
• 100k people left the country while “Baby Doc” was ruler; many sought asylum on rafts source

• » With an iron fist: The regime of father and son – especially son – was noted for its disparities. The leaders, who had near-absolute rule (with the help of a secret police force called the Tonton Macoutes), lavished themselves while doing little to help Haiti’s population deal with the overwhelming poverty. It got so bad that Pope John Paul II publicly called out elites for their lack of interest in and care for the plight of the poor. To emphasize … this guy’s return is not good by any stretch of the imagination. He needs to go back to France.

Posted by Ernie Smith • Permalink