Haiti

HAITI Press freedom in Haiti has changed in recent months along with the political situation, which seems to be moving slowly but decidedly toward strengthening the rule of law to guarantee the human rights that have been violated for decades. Today the Haitian press simply reports the facts but emphasizing official statements without providing an analysis of socio-political, economic and cultural events. The media in general have not been attacked since May 28 when several journalists were physically and psychologically abused by police officers during a meeting called by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Haiti. There are still problems with access to official sources and a lack of depth in coverage of the news. Many Haitian journalists face a situation of growing frustration, in part at the level of their personal development, but above all at the level of the news that can be published because of the "gag" imposed by authorities to suppress the wishes of a broad sector of society. Some official sources are still hesitant to provide information to the media because of fright or fear of reprisals. Other officials favor certain news organizations for the dissemination of some news items. Political topics take precedence over social, economic and cultural ones which are usually covered in a superficial way. This seems to characterize the work of the Haitian media in general. There are various topics, such as official corruption, that the media are reluctant to cover or cover in depth.