CAP-HAÏTIEN — Unidentified individuals vandalized the controversial statue of the lead singer of the popular Konpa band Klass, Richard Jean Hérard, better known as Richie, at Place Carénage in Cap-Haïtien late in the evening on Jan. 2. The statue was beheaded just about a week after it was revealed.
The statue was the subject of controversy on social media because it is forbidden to install a statue of someone who is alive in a public place, according to Article 7 of the Haitian Constitution. However, the motive for the vandalism remains unknown.
“This hurts me a lot because this is an artist like Richard Jean Hérard, an icon in Haitian music, someone who elevated our music, and look what happened,” Dobay Kerby, a painter, said as he stood near the remaining pieces of the statue depicting Richard’s shoulders.
“This is a shame for the neighborhood, for the country,” Kerby, 22, added. “This does not please me at all.”
It is starting to become a pattern for unknown individuals to vandalize unconstitutional statues of living personages. A statue of Wideline Pierre, spokesperson for the canal in Ouanaminthe, was also beheaded in January 2024. It is unknown whether the state will implement measures to prevent groups from placing statues of living individuals in public places.
“This wasn’t legal but the person who broke it did even worse. They have to stop this or people will keep breaking statues.”
Edner Celipha, civil engineer
A group of fans of Jean Hérard’s band, Klass, in collaboration with Cap-Haïtien’s Town Hall, orchestrated the construction of the statue to honor his “immense contribution” to Haitian music. The Town Hall has not responded to The Haitian Times’ interview request for this article.
Originally from Cap-Haïtien, Jean Hérard is a singer, drummer, maestro, composer, and producer. Jean Hérard, 55, also helped several singers develop in the early stages of their careers, including Reginald Cangé. He is undeniably one of the top contributors to Konpa’s development in Haiti. Jean Hérard gained stardom during his time with Zenglen in the 1990s and 2000s. He left the band in 2011 and joined Klass.
Jean Hérard was present when the statue was revealed on Dec. 28, thanking his fans and encouraging Haitians to do what they were meant to do. He has yet to comment on the vandalism of his statue. The Haitian Times reached out to Jean Hérard’s team for an interview, but he has not been available yet.
As of Friday afternoon, some small pieces of the statue were still on the ground at Place Carénage, and the back of the statue has an area that is peeling off, hinting that the unidentified individuals struck it there with force.
A part in the statue that received a heavy blow. Photo by Onz Chéry/ The Haitian Times A small broken piece of the statue on the ground. Photo by Onz Chéry/ The Haitian Times
About every resident passing by stopped to stare at the headless statue. Many of them lamented.
“It was illegal for sure, but vandalizing it doesn’t make sense,” Edner Celipha, a civil engineer, said. “They didn’t have to do it that way. The authorities should have been the ones to take it down.”
Celipha, 48, would like the police to investigate the vandalism so that the perpetrators can be punished. The police have yet to announce whether they will begin an investigation.
“This wasn’t legal, but the person who broke it did even worse,” Celipha said. “They have to stop this, or people will keep breaking statues.”
For every Show page the timetable is auomatically generated from the schedule, and you can set automatic carousels of Podcasts, Articles and Charts by simply choosing a category. Curabitur id lacus felis. Sed justo mauris, auctor eget tellus nec, pellentesque varius mauris. Sed eu congue nulla, et tincidunt justo. Aliquam semper faucibus odio id varius. Suspendisse varius laoreet sodales.
Ce site utilise des cookies afin que nous puissions vous fournir la meilleure expérience utilisateur possible. Les informations sur les cookies sont stockées dans votre navigateur et remplissent des fonctions telles que vous reconnaître lorsque vous revenez sur notre site Web et aider notre équipe à comprendre les sections du site que vous trouvez les plus intéressantes et utiles.
Cookies strictement nécessaires
Cette option doit être activée à tout moment afin que nous puissions enregistrer vos préférences pour les réglages de cookie.
Si vous désactivez ce cookie, nous ne pourrons pas enregistrer vos préférences. Cela signifie que chaque fois que vous visitez ce site, vous devrez activer ou désactiver à nouveau les cookies.