Photo by Dieu Nalio Chery/AP
Former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, who presided over a brutal and bloody 15-year regime, has died, according to tweets posted Saturday by current president of Haiti Michel Martelly.Duvalier, 63, nicknamed "Baby Doc," died of a heart attack at his home over the weekend, his attorney, Reynold George, told the Associated Press.Duvalier succeeded his father as Haiti's president at the tender age of 19. His father, Francois Duvalier, known as "Papa Doc," was a medical doctor before he moved into politics, and was known for motivating the radicalist nationalist movement known as "noirisme," which pitted the country's black majority against the mulatto (people of mixed ancestry) elite.Both father and son were infamous for presiding over corrupt and ruthless regimes that committed widespread human rights abuses, including torturing and killing political opponents and journalists. The actions were often carried out hand-in-hand with the Tonton Macoutes, a feared civilian militia.The younger Duvalier was known periodically for breaking away from the rigidity of his father's ideals, sporadically allowing certain press freedoms and criticisms of his regime. He also shocked leaders of the old regime by marrying Michele Bennett, the mulatto daughter of a rich coffee merchant in 1980.Humanitarian disaster forces closure of Haitian refugee camp in Brazil. Read more here.During Haiti's time under both Duvaliers, thousands of refugees fled to America and Canada, fearing the same grim fate that befell thousands of their fellow citizens, who were either executed or indirectly killed under the family's time in power.In 1986, a popular uprising forced Baby Doc and his wife leave the country for France and spend the next half-century in exile. Duvalier did not return to Haiti until January 2011. He divorced his wife in 1993.Not long after Duvalier's return, 20 of his victims came forward to accuse him in court of violence and torture suffered under his rule. But throughout the series of stalled prosecutions, the dictator managed to avoid prison and remained free until the day of his death.Duvalier is survived by his ex-wife Michele, and their two children, son Francois Nicolas "Nico" Duvalier, and daughter, Anya.Life is no carnival for Brazil's Haitian immigrants. Read more here.Follow Liz Fields on Twitter: @lianzifields
L'ancien Président Haïtien — Michel J. Martelly (@MichelJMartelly)October 4, 2014
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