Overview:
Haitian journalists, media owners and international watchdogs say a new CPT decree to regulate the media expands criminal penalties for press offenses, including prison sentences and steep fines. Further, it risks silencing critical reporting at a pivotal political moment to elect a new government.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — A Transitional Presidential Council (CPT) decree establishing jail time and fines for Haitian journalists and digital media distributors has set off alarm bells across the country and abroad. Advocates for an open press and freedom of expression warn the directive opens the door to expanded state control over speech — all without public debate and ahead critical elections.
The decree was quietly approved by the Council of Ministers on Dec. 18 and published in Le Moniteur on Dec. 30. Its adoption marks the first time in Haiti’s history of journalism that a decree introduces criminal penalties for press offenses, the National Association of Haitian Media (ANMH) said in a statement. At least one international advocacy group is calling for its repeal.
“This text undermines one of the most important gains since the end of the dictatorship: freedom of expression,” said Richard Widmaier, president of ANMH.
“The moment the state interferes to impose such rules, it is a matter of dictatorship, of muzzling the press.”
Jacques Sampeur, Radio Télé Antilles
“By its very nature,” he continued, “it is anachronistic and sends a very negative and dangerous signal for Haiti’s democratic future.”
What the media decree says
In adopting the “Decree Regulating the Exercise of Freedom of Expression and Providing for the Prevention and Punishment of Defamation and Press Offenses,” the CPT says its objective is to regulate freedom of expression and punish defamation and press offenses. While it reiterates that freedom of expression is guaranteed, the decree also restricts that freedom in the name of public order, national security, public health and human dignity — language critics say is vague enough to invite abuse.
Dieu Nalio Chery, an award-winning photojournalist, taking a picture. Photo by Garry Pierre-Pierre for The Haitian Times.
In key provisions, the decree:
- Introduces prison sentences of six months to three years for press offenses, along with fines starting at 100,000 gourdes, about $760.
- Provides special legal protection to public officials, making insults or defamation against government authorities or members of security forces punishable by higher fines of up to 500,000 gourdes, about $3,800, and prison time.
- Increases penalties, including higher fines, when offenses are committed online or through social media.
- Defines press offenses broadly, including defamation, insults, false news, cyber harassment, and hate speech across radio, television, digital media and social networks.
- Requires media outlets and digital platforms to retain user data and provide such information to judicial authorities upon request
- Requires media outlets and digital platforms to remove content deemed illegal, or face penalties as accomplices.
Critics: Law protecting power, not people, echoes the past
For many journalists, the decree revives painful memories of earlier attempts to silence the press under past repressive regimes in Haiti’s history. Speaking on Radio Magik 9 on Jan. 10, Jacques Sampeur, a journalist and owner of Radio Télé Antilles, said that the decree recalls periods when heads of state tried to control the media after the Duvalier era.
“A serious press must verify its information without the state automatically dictating what it should or should not do,” said Sampeur. “The moment the state interferes to impose such rules, it is a matter of dictatorship, of muzzling the press.”
Sampeur acknowledged problems within the media sector, but said state-imposed criminal sanctions cross a dangerous line.
Media leaders say the decree favors the powerful and discriminatory, offering increased protection to elected officials and state authorities while exposing journalists and citizens to harsher punishment. They also note a strategy aimed at silencing citizens, especially since the decree doubles the penalties when offenses are committed electronically or through social media to reach a wide audience.
In ANMH’s statement, Widmaier described the text as more restrictive than even the infamous baboukèt — the gag laws of the past dictatorship era.
“It is unprecedented for those in power to arm themselves with legal tools to silence criticism,” he said. “This decree legalizes impunity.”
Veteran journalist Gotson Pierre, co-founder of AlterPresse and Groupe Médialternatif, warned that the decree could severely limit investigative reporting and access to information guaranteed under Haiti’s Constitution.
“Freedom of expression risks becoming a tool of control,” Pierre said. “Repealing this decree and aligning our laws with constitutional and international standards is essential if journalism is to remain free and responsible.”
Human rights organization Fondation Je Klere echoed those concerns, calling the decree “a tool of political repression reminiscent of Haiti’s darkest periods,” and demanding its immediate repeal.
International body calls for repeal
The decree has also drawn international scrutiny.
On Jan. 16, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issued a statement urging Haitian authorities to rescind the measure. It warned against expanding criminal defamation laws without public debate, at a moment when Haiti is preparing for its first presidential election in a decade, currently scheduled for August 2026. CPJ asserted the rules could prove detrimental for journalism in the country.
“The Transitional Presidential Council was meant to provide stability,” said Katherine Jacobsen, CPJ’s program coordinator for the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean. “Instead, it has quietly rolled back media freedoms in what appears to be an attempt to shield itself from scrutiny.”
Installed in April 2024, the CPT’s mandate is set to end Feb. 7. After that date, its members will lose political immunity.
Some journalists say the timing makes the decree especially troubling. They and media advocates say as Haiti navigates yet another political transition and deep ongoing insecurity, the cost of silencing the press will not fall on journalists alone
“Protecting freedom of expression is not just a legal imperative,” Pierre adds. “It is a collective duty that requires vigilance, solidarity, and commitment from all members of society.”
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