André Apaid
André Apaid, Junior, the leader of the Group of 184 in Haiti, the civil society movement which forced Jean-Bertrand Aristide from power in 2004 through a coup d'état. He is the head of Alpha Industries, one of the largest assembly factories in Haiti, and of Fondation Nouvelle Haiti, a member of the Initiative de la Societe Civile group. Apaid was born in the United States and is not a citizen of Haiti; however, he is a permanent resident of the island country.
Numerous allegations have been made against Apaid:
- His father, Andre Apaid, Senior, a Haitian immigrant of Lebanese origin, had been a strong supporter of Jean-Claude Duvalier.
- The root of the Apaid family's opposition to Aristide is believed to be Aristide's doubling of the minimum wage in 1991, which conflicted with Alpha Industries business practices. Alpha Industries had been described in international reports as a notorious sweatshop. Apaid has also been accused of tax evasion.
- Apaid is the head of the Group of 184, a group that is seen by some as a legitimate political organization and by others as an instigator of violence. [1]
- Apaid reportedly has close ties with Thomas "Labanye" Robinson, a violent and dangerous gang leader in Cité Soleil, a slum outside Port-au-Prince. The Center for the Study of Human Rights states that Apaid pays Labanye to kill supporters of the Lavalas party, the political party of Aristide.
- The switch to electronic voting in Haiti, though the majority of Haiti is without electricity, is being promoted by Claude Apaid, the brother of André Apaid and the owner of the computer company that has secured the government contract to supply voting machines.
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