Jean-Bertrand Aristide

Jean-Bertrand Aristide ( French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ bɛʁtʁɑ̃ aʁistid]; born 15 July 1953) is a Haitian former Salesian priest and politician who served as president of Haiti in 1991, from 1993 to 1994, from 1994 to 1996, and from 2001 to 2004. He was in exile after the 1991 military coup until 1994 and again after his overthrow in 2004 until 2011. Aristide was a member of the Lavalas Political Organization before he founded the party Fanmi Lavalas in 1996.

Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies to become a priest of the Catholic Church. As a priest, he taught liberation theology and, as president, he attempted to normalize Afro-Creole culture, including Vodou religion, in Haiti. He became a focal point for the pro-democracy movement, first under Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier and then under the military transition regime which followed. Aristide won the December 1990 presidential election, which was seen as the first free and fair election in Haitian history, with 67% of the vote, but was ousted just months later in the September 1991 military coup. His first presidency began political reforms and introduced a moderate economic program. Aristide went into exile because of the coup, and after negotiations with the military regime did not resolve the crisis, U.S. pressure and threat of force in Operation Uphold Democracy caused its removal.