- Tonton Macoute
The Milice de Volontaires de la Sécurité Nationale (MVSN), or (Militia of) National Security Volunteers, was commonly called the "Tonton Macoutes". It was a
Haiti anmilitia /secret police force created in 1959 and reporting directly to François 'Papa Doc' Duvalier.The VSN were led by Duvalier's second-in-command,
Luckner Cambronne , who died on20 September 2006 , inMiami, Florida at the age of 77. [ [http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/obituaries/15634693.htm "Luckner Cambronne", Obituary, "Miami Herald"] ] After Duvalier's fall in 1986 the VSN army was disbanded. Some of them took on the roles as rebels during political turmoil up until 2000.Origin of the name
The name "Tonton Macoute" (literally translates as "Uncle
Gunnysack ") originated from Haitian Creole mythology. It was the name of abogeyman who on Christmas Eve snatches bad children from their beds and makes them disappear forever. "Tonton Noël" (Father Christmas, equivalent to that of Santa Claus in western nations) visits the good children and rewards them for their behavior. Because the MVSN used intimidation and threats, as well as physically attacking and "disappearing" people, they were referred to as "Tonton Macoutes".François Duvalier
François Duvalier (better known as "Papa Doc") came to power in 1957, as a democratically elected leader on a populist platform. He had previously served as Minister of Health. He led a campaign against the widespread eye disease ofyaws .After an attempted
coup against him in 1958, Duvalier rewrote the Haitian constitution, making himself a President for Life. Believing the Army was planning to overthrow him (as they had previous leaders), he disbanded all law enforcement agencies in Haiti, including the army. He executed all high-ranking Generals. To keep law enforcement completely loyal to his own ruling family, in 1959 he created a private security force, the "Tonton Macoutes", who were granted automaticamnesty through his powers for any crime they committed.Cultural references
*Graham Greene's novel "The Comedians" (1966)
*Film based on "The Comedians" (1967), starringRichard Burton ,Elizabeth Taylor andAlec Guinness .Paul Ford andLillian Gish had supporting roles as a Presidential candidate and wife.
* Episode 9 "Father Knows Best" of Season 1 of Showtime television series "Dexter" (2006)ee also
*
Boubou Macoutes References
External links
* [http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/tontons.htm Tonton Macoute Militia, photos] , Latin American Studies
* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1295/is_n5_v57/ai_13705082 William Steif, "Revenge of the Tonton Macoute - Haitian terrorism"] , "The Progressive", May 1993 [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQxcRPPiaxY]<
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