The government of Haiti on Friday issued a ban on leaving the country against Judge Joseph Mécène Jean Louis, who declared himself president last Monday at the invitation of the opposition.
The order was sent to the Immigration Directorate and asks that Jean Louis be prevented from leaving the country by air, sea or land “because of serious suspicions of a plot against state security”.
Jean Louis was named “interim president” by a group of opposition parties last Monday, a day after the date on which, according to opponents, the term of office of the head of state, Jovenel Moise, ended.
The judge, dean of the Supreme Court, accepted the order in a video that was recorded and released on Monday and he has not been seen since then and has made no further statements.
On the same Monday, Moise ordered the retirement of Jean Louis and two other judges allegedly involved in the alleged coup, by decree, and this Friday appointed three other magistrates to replace the dismissals.
One of those three dismissed magistrates, Yvickel Dabrésil, was arrested last weekend and released on Thursday by order of a lower court.
Moise’s controversial order to retire the judges has sparked responses from several countries and international organizations, such as the Organization of American States (OAS), in addition to complaints in Haiti.
To the Professional Association of Magistrates (APM), the decision making the appointments is “illegal and arbitrary” because it goes against the procedures established for the appointment of judges, the entity said at a news conference held this Friday.
“The appointment decision of these 3 judges is arbitrary and illegal. This marks a brutal interference of the executive in the judiciary. The law establishes the procedure for the appointment of the judges of the Supreme Court,” said the president of the Supreme Court. APM. , Martel Jean Claude.
This entity urged the judges “not to get carried away” and not to accept the appointments.
“Judges of every level of ability and credibility who agree to be appointed in such circumstances are betraying justice, the rule of law and the judiciary,” he added.