Article: Haitian Winter, Part 4: The Duvalier Legacy: The Ghosts of Fort Dimanche

Now I have stepped into the prison courtyard bounded by jail cells. Sometimes victims were summarily executed right here.

From the V's:

Valentin, Josmat: Among the 19 officers executed by Duvalier in Fort Dimanche in 1967.

Vassseau, Rifla: FD Vaval Guy - He was married to Colonel Jean Thomas' sister. Spent more than 5 years in Fort Dimanche - Released in December 1976 but he did not survive long after.

VictomÃ �, ThÃ �ophile: ( Blanc) From Casale. He was sixteen or seventeen years old when he was arrested. He spent close to five years in Fort-Dimannche, cell #5. Sick he requested medical assistance from the prison's guardians for months but he never received even an aspirin. He died on January 2, 1975.

Vital, Pierre Michel: Born in Jeremie - Arrested in Port au Prince where he was studying. Interrogated and accused of being a communist by General Breton Claude and Emmanuel Orcel. He was sent to Fort Dimanche to die but he was released a couple years later. He went straight back to his home town to isolate himself. But shortly after he was once more arrested, interrogated by the same officers who sent him once more to Fort Dimanche. Pierre Michel fought until the last minute, hoping to get out alive, but he died in February 1976 in cell #6. (source)

A closeup of a dilapidated corridor, and the prison cells beyond.

A very notable G:

Gaetjens, Joe: Football player, Internationally famous. Disappeared in 1964. Died in Fort-Dimanche (source)

Closeup of prisons bars and cells now open to the outside world, something impossible for many decades here.

And now I am adding to the photographs that follow the list compiled by the same Special Commission that I highlighted earlier (source):

After the visit of the Special Commission, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights sent the Government a note on September 11, 1978, with the following list of 151 individuals who, according to the allegations of accusers, were executed in the mid-70s while in prison or who died in prison because of lack of medical care.
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights List of dead prisoners at Fort Dimanche.

AUGUSTERE cell 1, Plaine du Cul de Sac, poet, journalist, arrested in January 1971, released in December 1972, re-arrested in January 1973, died in 1975 of diarrhea.

Joseph ALEXANDRE cell 3, known as Djo Malanca, Port-au-Prince, died on November 1, 1975, of physical weakness and mental illness.

GÃ �rard AUGUSTIN cell 1, St. Marc, 53 years old, sociologist, imprisoned 3 times, died on September 19 at 4:00 p.m. of tuberculosis.

Marcus ANDRE cell 7, JÃ �rÃ �mie, professor, died in 1975 of diarrhea.

Jean-Claude ALEXANDRE cell 7, JÃ �rÃ �mie, professor, died in 1975 of diarrhea.

EzÃ �chiel ABELARD cell 6, died in September 1976 of tuberculosis.

Massena ANIBOT cell 8, died in August 1976 of tuberculosis and malnutrition, a peasant from l'Arcahaie.

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