By TRENTON DANIEL
tdaniel@MiamiHerald.com
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Among Martelly’s biggest fans was Army Col. Michel Francois, who used the nickname “Sweet Micky” on his police radio. Francois, a chief architect of the coup, was convicted in absentia in 1995 on murder charges and now lives in Honduras.
In early 1993, Francois asked Martelly to join protesters when Dante Caputo, the UN special representative to Haiti, arrived at the Port-au-Prince international airport to negotiate Aristide’s return. The greeting wasn’t warm.
“Grenadier! To the attack!” he yelled amid a crowd of several hundred, according to the Miami New Times. “If anyone dies, that’s his business!”
As thousands of Haitians fled the island amid a U.S.-imposed embargo, Martelly put out an album. The title: I Don’t Care. A popular song of the same name carried this refrain, in Creole: “Those who aren’t happy — get out!”
Martelly himself got out after Aristide was ousted in his second term, in 2004, and the country was rife with kidnappings and lawlessness. He also scaled back on the constant touring, spending more time with his wife and four children in a five-bedroom, two-story house the couple purchased in Royal Palm Beach. He has since defaulted on more than $1 million in loans and lost three South Florida properties to foreclosure in just over a year, public records show.
Martelly surprised the country in August when he registered at the election office, hours before his friend Wyclef Jean filed paperwork. Some initially thought the entertainer was joking.
But Martelly showed he was a fighter. When election officials released preliminary results on Dec. 7 that barred him from a run-off, thousands of supporters and anti-government protesters poured into the streets. They paralyzed the capital by burning barricades and buildings.
Under pressure from the international community, election officials released final results showing that Martelly – and not the government’s pick, Jude Celestin – made the second round with Manigat.
“This is not a gift,” Martelly told reporters at the Oloffson.
(On a January visit U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Martelly and the two other candidates. Martelly’s charm was not lost on her. Clinton said: “Whatever happens, don’t lose that smile.”)
Since the election announcement, Martelly has kept a decidedly high profile. He has toured the countryside, hosted rallies, and exchanged online banter with Wyclef. He said he wants to bring back the army Aristide disbanded, redirect government services to the countryside and provide free education to all.
“I think Martelly might become much more polarizing than people think right now,” said Hyppolite Pierre, a Haitian political analyst based in Maryland. “We don’t need polarization in the future.”
Others find him refreshing. Repeatedly, Martelly has said he doesn’t know all the answers and would solicit answers from others — the antithesis of outgoing President René Préval, a reputed micromanager.
“What I like about Martelly is that he admits he’s not a politician,” said Maarten Boute, chief executive officer of Digicel, a cell phone company in Haiti. In a visit to South Florida earlier this month, Martelly spoke to several thousand Haitians at an amphitheater in North Miami Beach. Supporters like Miami physician and philanthropist Rudy Moise joined him on stage. Moise urged the crowd to tell family members in Haiti to pick Martelly in the runoff.
Sporting a dark suit, Martelly cracked a few jokes but mostly maintained a serious tone. He spoke about the need for tourists to invest in “our house,” the importance of Haiti’s Diaspora, and the need for decentralization.
As he wrapped up his 20-minute speech, Martelly tapped into his inner Micky.
“Sak pa kontan…” he said, awaiting a response. Those who aren’t happy…
The crowed roared in delight: “Anbake!” Get out!
