7 February 1986 · Haitian
Six men take power in Haiti and three of them are army officers
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Hours after Jean-Claude Duvalier left, Haitian television carried his taped abdication and then went live to the palace. Lieutenant General Henri Namphy read a short statement saying the country faced an exceptionally grave situation, that demonstrations across the provinces had cost innocent lives, and that the army had no political ambitions. He then introduced the National Council of Government: himself as president, Colonel Williams Regala, Colonel Max Valles, the engineer Alix Cineas, the lawyer Gerard Gourgue, and Colonel Prosper Avril as counselor. Avril's name was almost whispered. The six walked out to the front steps and raised the black and red flag Francois Duvalier had imposed, while the palace band played the national anthem. The council's first order closed schools, businesses and offices for the day. On streets already full of dancing and car horns that changed nothing. Haitians counted the composition of their liberation government and found three of the five full members in uniform.
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