The platform, one of the most powerful in the country that drove the massive anti-government protests of 2019, assured there is no constitutional provision to fill the political and institutional vacuum caused by the heinous crime.

‘The Democratic and Popular Sector confirms that seven days after the assassination of the de facto president, Jovenel Moïse, the country continues without a president. There is also no prime minister. This situation should not last any longer’, said the coalition that brings together various political parties and civil society organizations.

The instance encouraged the creation of an Independent Moral Authority (AMI) to unite the diverse proposals of political and social structures around the exit from the multifaceted crisis of the country. The AMI should be composed of five people from the fields of human rights, the press, religious, business and the university.

The proposal occurs when at least three figures compete for political power, although only the interim prime minister and chancellor, Claude Joseph, wields it effectively. After the assassination, Joseph proclaimed himself provisional president, after invoking article 149 of the Constitution, he decreed a state of siege and national mourning, while directing the investigations into the murder of the president.

However, the neurosurgeon Ariel Henry, appointed two days before the assassination as prime minister without having time to form a government, questioned that Joseph continued in office and urged him to settle current affairs. In this same context, the Senate of only 10 members proclaimed Joseph Lambert as interim president, tasked with reaching a national agreement and organizing elections. The Constitution establishes that in the absence of the head of state, the president of the Court of Cassation must assume his position, but at the end of June, this instance was left headless after the death of René Sylvestre.

ef/mgt /ane