In her first interview following the assassination of her husband, Haiti’s first lady Martine Moise said she’s contemplating running for the vacant presidential seat. The Caribbean nation entered further turmoil and political instability after the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moise at his private residence in Haiti’s capital of Port-au-Prince.
The widow, who was with her husband when he was killed, also sustained gunshot wounds during the fatal incident. She was subsequently airlifted to the Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami for treatment. And Martine, who is still recovering from the gunshot injuries on her arm, told The New York Times she’ll be exploring the possibility of running for president after she undergoes the remaining surgeries on her wound.
“President Jovenel had a vision and we Haitians are not going to let that die,” she said. The first lady also described what happened the night of her husband’s assassination, saying, “The only thing that I saw before they killed him were their boots.”
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“Then I closed my eyes, and I didn’t see anything else,” she continued, adding that the killers thought she was dead when they left.
Haiti’s police chief said president Moise’s assassination was planned by mercenaries in the neighboring Dominican Republic. So far, 18 Colombians have been arrested in connection with the assassination while three suspects have been killed, according to France24. Police said the majority of the alleged Colombian mercenaries suspected to have carried out the June 7 assassination arrived in Haiti a month prior to the killing. They joined four other suspected attackers who had earlier arrived in the Caribbean nation.
Besides the Colombians, two Haitian-Americans have also been arrested while senior ranking officials in the island nation’s police force are also being detained as investigations continue. During the interview, the first lady suggested an oligarch in the country may have made the call and provided the necessary logistics for her husband’s assassination. She also revealed that though there were over 30 guards providing security at their residence when her husband was killed, none of them was shot.
“I don’t understand how nobody was shot,” she said.
President Moise was buried in his hometown of Cap-Haitien on July 23. His wife flew back to the Caribbean nation for the state funeral. And while investigations into her husband’s killing continue, Martine said she wants those behind his death to face the full brunt of the law to serve as a deterrent to others.
“I would like people who did this to be caught, otherwise they will kill every single president who takes power,” the 47-year-old said. “They did it once. They will do it again.”
