Hérard Abraham (28 July 1940 – 24 August 2022) was a

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

an military officer and politician who served as the acting

President of Haiti The president of Haiti ( ht, Prezidan peyi Ayiti, french: Président d'Haïti), officially called the president of the Republic of Haiti (french: link=no, Président de la République d'Haïti, ht, link=no, Prezidan Repiblik Ayiti), is the head ...

in 1990, helping to lead its democratic transition.

Biography

Hérard Abraham was born in

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is defin ...

on 28 July 1940. He enlisted in the Haitian army as a young man and rose to the rank of

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. Abraham became one of the few military members in the inner circle of President

Jean-Claude Duvalier Jean-Claude Duvalier (; 3 July 19514 October 2014), nicknamed "Baby Doc" ( ht, Bebe Dòk), was a Haitian politician who was the President of Haiti from 1971 until he was overthrown by a popular uprising in February 1986. He succeeded his father ...

. He supported the 1986 coup against him. Under

Henri Namphy Henri Namphy (2 October 1932 – 26 June 2018) was a Haitian general and political figure who served as President of Haiti's interim ruling body, the National Council of Government, from 7 February 1986 to 7 February 1988. He served again as Pre ...

, he served as the Secretary of State for the Interior and National Defense from 7 February to 24 March 1986, the Minister of Information and Coordination from 24 March 1986 to January 1987 and

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between coun ...

from 20 June to 18 September 1988. He became acting

on 10 March 1990 after street protests forced President Prosper Avril into exile. He gave up power three days later, becoming the only military leader in Haiti during the twentieth century to give up power voluntarily. Abraham helped in securing the

1990–91 Haitian general election General elections were held in Haiti between 16 December 1990 and 20 January 1991. The presidential election, held on 16 December, resulted in a victory for Jean-Bertrand Aristide of the National Front for Change and Democracy (FCND). The FCND als ...

. In January 1991, he helped to crush a coup attempt by

Roger Lafontant Roger Lafontant (1931–September 29, 1991) was the former leader of the Tonton Macoutes and the former Minister of Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier. He was the leader of an attempted coup d'état in January 1991, an effort which ultimately ...

. In July 1991, he was forced to retire from the army by the recently elected President

Jean-Bertrand Aristide Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born 15 July 1953) is a Haitian former Salesian priest and politician who became Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince ...

and moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. He settled in

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at th ...

and drifted into obscurity. After the

2004 Haitian coup d'état A coup d'état in Haiti on 29 February 2004, following several weeks of conflict, resulted in the removal of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide from office. On 5 February 2004, a rebel group, called the National Revolutionary Front for the Libera ...

forced Aristide to resign, Abraham was one of the contenders for the position of the

Prime Minister of Haiti The prime minister of Haiti (French: , ht, Premye Minis Ayiti) is the head of government of Haiti. The office was created under the 1987 Constitution; previously, all executive power was held by the president or head of state, who appointed and ...

. His friend

Gérard Latortue Gérard Latortue (born 19 June 1934 in Gonaïves) is a Haitian politician and diplomat who served as the prime minister of Haiti from 12 March 2004 to 9 June 2006. He was an official in the United Nations for many years, and briefly served as fo ...

however was chosen at the end by the Council of Sages and he appointed Abraham as a minister in his cabinet. Abraham was sworn in as the Minister of Interior and National Security on 17 March 2004. He later served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 28 January 2005 to 9 June 2006. On 7 October 2019, amid nationwide protests for the resignation of Haitian President Jovenel Moise, the retired lieutenant general penned an open letter regretting the situation. He called on political leaders to show thoughtfulness and patience for a resolution so that the country could never again be called a "shit hole", referring to language attributed to U.S. President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of ...

. In 2020, President

Jovenel Moïse Jovenel Moïse (; ; 26 June 1968 – 7 July 2021) was a Haitian entrepreneur and politician, who served as the 43rd President of Haiti from 2017 until his assassination in 2021. He was sworn in as president in February 2017 after winning the ...

appointed Abraham to a five-member committee for drafting a new

Constitution of Haiti The Constitution of Haiti (french: Constitution d'Haïti, ht, Konstitisyon Ayiti) was modeled after the constitutions of the United States, Poland and France. The latest version of the document was approved by Parliament in March 2011 and came i ...

. He started suffering from a

brain tumor A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secon ...

before his death and died at the age of 82 on 24 August 2022 at his home in Fermathe.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abraham, Herard 1940 births 2022 deaths Presidents of Haiti Haitian Interior Ministers Foreign Ministers of Haiti Haitian military personnel 1980s in Haiti 1990s in Haiti 2000s in Haiti 20th-century Haitian politicians 21st-century Haitian politicians Haitian expatriates in the United States People from Port-au-Prince