24 Facts About Prosper Avril

Matthieu Prosper Avril was born on December 12,1937 and is a Haitian political figure who was President of Haiti from 1988 to 1990.

Prosper Avril was President until March 1990, in a period which according to Amnesty International was "marred by serious human rights violations".

Prosper Avril was arrested in 2001, but released in March 2004 after the 2004 Haitian coup d'etat overthrew Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Prosper Avril was born in the small town of Thomazeau, near Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince.

Prosper Avril joined the army, and graduated at the head of his class in the academy.

Prosper Avril then became an advisor to Jean-Claude Duvalier upon the latter's inauguration in 1971.

Prosper Avril was forced into retirement by Jean-Claude Duvalier in 1983, but was reinstated and promoted to Colonel in 1986 in the face of the popular revolt that lead to Duvalier's overthrow.

Prosper Avril was viewed positively by many fellow members of the armed forces; he was an academy classmate of Brig.

Prosper Avril soon rejoined the presidential guard, and assisted junta chief Henri Namphy in the June 1988 Haitian coup d'etat which overthrew Leslie Manigat.

Prosper Avril was first promoted to brigadier general, then to lieutenant general by Namphy.

In September 1988, a week after the St Jean Bosco massacre, Prosper Avril overthrew his former ally Namphy in a bloodless coup.

Prosper Avril served as President of Haiti from September 17,1988 to March 10,1990.

Prosper Avril restored the 1987 Constitution of Haiti in March 1989.

However, the US government required Prosper Avril to crack down on drug trafficking in exchange for foreign aid; his arrests of involved army members dented his popularity.

Prosper Avril put down a coup attempt by disgruntled officers in April 1989.

Civilian opposition groups demanded that Prosper Avril deliver on his promise to hold elections; in response, he began deporting their leaders.

Prosper Avril traveled to Taiwan in January 1990 for his first foreign visit.

Prosper Avril returned home empty-handed; in retaliation, he ordered feces to be dumped outside the offices of opposition groups.

Prosper Avril went into exile in Miami, Florida; he moved to the Dominican Republic after he was refused entry into Haiti in 1992.

Prosper Avril fled again in 1995 after the Haitian government moved to arrest him in connection with the assassination of a government official during his time in power.

Prosper Avril was finally arrested in 2001, shortly after Jean-Bertrand Aristide was elected President, for allegedly plotting against the state.

Prosper Avril was released in 2002 after an appeals court ruled that the government presented "insufficient evidence"; he was immediately rearrested and charged with organizing a 1990 massacre of farmers.

Prosper Avril was freed after Aristide was ousted in the 2004 Haitian coup d'etat.

At the time Aristide came to power, Prosper Avril lived in Miami despite the fact that he would be easily recognizable.