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by Haiti Grassroots Watch
 The
phenomenon called “zokiki” appeared recently in urban
Haitian society. The “juvenile delinquency” activities grouped
under this label include “after-school” illegal clubs and “ti
sourit” (“little mouse”) parties.
Zokiki activities really
took off after the January 12, 2010, earthquake. For many, they
are a logical culmination of the disintegration of the cultural,
moral and social fabric in Haiti’s youth. Many teenagers,
younger than 18, drink, take drugs, engage in “strip-tease”
acts, and also in a series of sexual acts that are not
appropriate for their age. The Haitian Constitution defines
adulthood as beginning at 18. (However, because of
inconsistencies in Haitian law, the legal drinking age can be
interpreted to be 16.)
In spite of an offensive
against the zokiki phenomenon last year, it is far from
being eradicated. In pursuit maximum profits, owners and
managers of night clubs continue to exploit under-aged youth who
come to their establishments to drink alcohol, consume drugs,
and engage in many other activities. Abandoned in a society that
does not take into account the importance of leisure activities
for young people, these teenagers take full advantage of a “laissez-faire”
situation.
Marie Pierre, 15, is proud of
her participation. “I always go out to zokiki clubs,” she
told Haiti Grassroots Watch (HGW) which undertook a two-month
investigation of the phenomenon. “Each time, I put on really
sexy make-up and dress zokiki style, which means almost
naked. The only thing I can say about this so-called fight
against the zokiki phenomenon is there isn’t one. It
doesn’t exist. I say that because when I’m in the streets at
midnight, and I meet police officers, they don’t say anything!”
According to psychologist and
professor Lenz Jean-François, the proliferation of zokiki
is linked to the breakdown of Haitian society.
“Disintegration happens when a
society enters into a period where it has lost its way,”
explained the professor, who teaches at the State University of
Haiti. “This same disintegration is responsible for encouraging
young people to seek to replicate the models they see in front
of them, or for encouraging them to do whatever they want, in a
society where everything is permissible… All of a sudden, there
are no longer any shared values. As long as we live in a society
where each person only thinks about him or herself, it will be
as if each is person is completely alone… This is why I think
that the zokiki phenomenon is an indicator of the how our
teenagers are living. It informs us of their human condition.”
The authorities take action
While the authorities might not understand
the origins of zokiki, they are aware of it, and they
have taken action.
“Since we are an institution
charged with protecting youth, of course we are aware,”
explained Jean Gardy Muscadin, director of the Haitian National
Police’s Brigade for the Protection of Minors.
Early in 2012, the Brigade and
the state’s Institute for Social Well-Being and Research
launched an offensive against the phenomenon. Soon thereafter
government’s top prosecutor (like an attorney general),
Commissaire du gouvernement Jean Renel Sénatus joined the
struggle, setting up a special unit to handle crimes and charges
related to minors. His actions even earned him the nickname “Commissaire
Zokiki.”
In January 2012 alone, at least
64 people “were arrested ‘caught in the act’ of sexual orgies,
strip-tease, and the consummation of drugs in clubs and homes in
Port-au-Prince, Delmas and Pétion-ville,” according to Le
Nouvelliste dated Feb. 1, 2012.
In an exclusive interview with
HGW, the former commissaire explained that in addition to
pursuing “judicial repression” against criminals, “it is also my
job to protect all vulnerable groups in society.”
Speaking about his focus on
zokiki, he said, “this little innovation I brought to the
court showed people that the prosecutor is a lawyer who defends
society in the same way as any other lawyer would do… No matter
who you are, if you are exploiting a child, no matter where, no
matter when, we can arrest you.”
However, the former prosecutor
noted that arrest is not enough, because the night club sector
“is completely without rules.”
“To open a nightclub, you just
need a license from the state tax agency,” he said. “City
officials have no way to inspect or to assure the respect of
norms.”
The former commissaire
ended by saying “our biggest challenge is related to our lack of
means… If I had the necessary power, I would force the entire
world to respect the law. Because if a person, or an
institution, or a country lacks discipline, it will not
advance.”
But the former prosecutor no
longer has any power. On Sep. 27, the Justice Minister suddenly
removed him from his post for alleged “insubordination,” an
accusation and an action that have provoked numerous criticisms.
The police don’t have the power
or the means, either. “We have no way to control this sector,”
Chief Muscadin said. “We can only intervene when someone calls
to report something,”
Zokiki clubs and “party houses”
all over the place
Not surprisingly, a mini-investigation by
HGW discovered many places where zokiki activities take
place, as well as a number of young people willing to talk about
it.
“I can tell you right now, the
prosecutor is wrong,” said Marie-Isabelle Saint-Etienne, 17. “I
think he needs to do his homework. Because I know a lot of
people who are under 18 who go to nightclubs. Me, I still go!”
HGW had no trouble finding
clubs. Level One/Escape is in the Jacquet area. It has a pool.
On a recent night, some young people were smoking cigarettes and
marijuana, others drank, and some of the girls were very
scantily dressed. There was nobody at the door to check IDs for
ages.
François, 15, said she has a
lot of options. “Sometimes I go to Club D, or Xtrême Dynamique,
or I go to “ti sourit” activities in Peguyville,” she
said. “I always get in. Nobody ever asks for ID.”
HGW did not find one zokiki
participant who said he or she had ever been asked to prove his
or her age at the door.
The investigator also spoke to
zokiki organizers, like Jean Ronald François. He swore
that, ever since the prosecutor’s offensive, he has not
permitted minors to participate. But he also admitted that his
programs are not innocent.
“Sometimes things happen, like
when a girl takes off clothing, the boy has to do the same
thing,” François said. “During this kind of party, you see boys
in undershirts and girls in their push-up bras.”
Edouard Pau, 17, lives in a
poor neighborhood of Pétion-ville. He told HGW he thinks
zokiki activities are the reason “a lot of adolescents 14 to
18 years old are pregnant or are already mothers. This happens
when there are ‘anything goes’ parties.”
“The prosecutor can’t eradicate
this phenomenon, because even if young people cannot get into
night clubs, they will organize what is called a ‘party house,’”
he added. “What’s worse, we see that ‘the mulattos’* are the
exception that confirms the rule! They all have these kinds of
parties and activities. The police patrols know it but they
don’t say anything.”
His friend agreed with the
obvious prejudice. “The laws are supposed to be applied equally
to everyone,” Rockaz Romulus, 21, added. “But you should see…
there are even government officials who go with their children
to the Ibo Lele [Hotel] parties.”
A city and a society with no amusements
According to the Haitian Institute of
Statistics and Data, almost half of Haiti’s population – 43.6% –
is under 18 years of age. A document from 2009 adds that “all
ages taken together, the large majority of young people – 1.23
million – are concentrated in the West Department,” home to the
capital region. At the same time, according to UNICEF, only 20%
of Haitian youth ever attend high school. And many international
agencies say Haiti’s unemployment tops 70%.
How should these young people –
who don’t go to school and who don’t work – spend their time?
Almost everybody interviewed
talked about the problem of “leisure time” or “amusement” for
young people. Amusement and relaxing is key for good mental
health.
Edouard Pau talked about his
frustration: “The prosecutor is fighting against zokiki,
but he doesn’t offer any alternative. Aside from those clubs,
there is nowhere else to go.”
Jean-François agrees. “Whether
you are talking about physical or mental development, young
people need leisure activities,” the professor explained.
However, “the social disintegration in which we are living leads
to this kind of leisure activity, which in turn reinforces
society’s disintegration by affecting how young people think
about their relationships with each other and with society. This
means that when a young person goes to a ti sourit, he is
led into behavior which discriminates against his peers,
behavior where young man can do almost anything to a young
woman, who has become an object.”
In their 2012 carnival song,
the rap group Barikad Crew sang “all little teenagers are
corrupt!” But is that corruption by choice? Not entirely,
according to the professor, in a country where almost all of the
media content “is based on mediocrity, on what I would call the
‘ideology of nothing.’”
Even if the authorities had
more “means,” the structural causes of zokiki are
unavoidable, he added.
“We live in a country where
insecurity touches every facet of life, even leisure,”
Jean-François noted. “Young people are practically forced into
this kind of leisure activity. In the end, we can’t really say
it is a choice they have made, because all aspects of society is
pushing them in this direction.”
*
Note from the editor: This is a typical confusion of
class with color. While many of Haiti’s elite are lighter
skinned, there are also many dark-skinned elite. Edouard Pau and
Romulus are obviously referring to the elite, since they cite
the Ibo Lele Hotel. The names of minors have been changed. |
