Haiti's late ex-president Rene Preval, a champion of the poor who served two terms as the country's leader, will be honored with a state funeral, a source close to his family said on Sunday.
The viewing for Preval, who died Friday aged 74, will be held on Friday at a museum on the Champ de Mars, the capital Port-au-Prince's main park. His funeral is set for Saturday.
The former president died after a cardiac arrest, according to local media reports citing Preval's sister.
With a reputation as an honest and efficient administrator, Preval served as president of Haiti, the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with a long history of political violence, in 1996-2001 and 2006-2011.
Since the end of the Duvalier dictatorship in 1986, Preval was the only Haitian leader to have completed two terms as president, the constitutional limit, without suffering a coup or having to flee into exile.
A moderate leftist, Preval first served as prime minister to ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide from February 1991 until the government was toppled in September that year.
Following that coup, he sought refuge at the French and Mexican embassies in Port-au-Prince, and eventually joined Aristide in Washington, where he stayed until 1994.
Both Preval and Aristide had enjoyed huge support among millions of impoverished Haitians, many of whom live in the capital's violent slums.
Haiti plunged into lawlessness in February 2004 when Aristide stepped down during his second term and fled the country as insurgents closed in on Port-au-Prince.
During his 2006-2011 term, Preval's popularity suffered after a massive earthquake struck in 2010, killing more than 220,000 people. Critics said he showed a lack of leadership after the disaster.
Source: AFP
GMT 15:34 2018 Friday ,14 December
Moscow ready for Putin-Trump meetingGMT 13:40 2018 Friday ,14 December
Britain and EU should prepare for second Brexit referendumGMT 11:43 2018 Friday ,14 December
Kosovo to build an army amid tensions with SerbiaGMT 11:52 2018 Thursday ,13 December
Britain's May to appeal to EU for help to salvage Brexit dealGMT 10:28 2018 Wednesday ,12 December
Huawei Executive Gets Bail In Case Rattling China TiesGMT 09:01 2018 Tuesday ,11 December
US marines missing after aircraft collision off Japan confirmed deadGMT 08:55 2018 Monday ,10 December
Top EU court to issue decision on reversal of BrexitGMT 08:37 2018 Monday ,10 December
Peruvians vote for anti-corruption reformsMaintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor