Michel Martelly facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Michel Martelly
Martelly in 2011
42nd President of Haiti
In office 14 May 2011 – 7 February 2016
Prime Minister	Jean-Max Bellerive Garry Conille Laurent Lamothe Florence Duperval Guillaume (acting) Evans Paul
Preceded by	René Préval
Succeeded by	Evans Paul (acting)
Personal details
Born	Michel Joseph Martelly (1961-02-12) 12 February 1961 (age 64) Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Political party	Repons Peyizan
Spouses	Unnamed first wife (until 1986; divorced) Sophia Martelly ​ (m. 1987)​
Children	4, including Olivier
Musical career
Genres	Compas
Occupation(s)	Musician composer
Instruments	Vocals keyboard
Years active	1988–2011 2016–present

Michel Joseph Martelly (born 12 February 1961) is a Haitian musician and politician. He served as the 42nd president of Haiti from May 2011 to February 2016. Before becoming president, Martelly was famous as a musician for over ten years. He was known by his stage name Sweet Micky.

Martelly often traveled between the United States and Haiti for his music and business. He mostly stayed in Florida when visiting the U.S. After his time as president, Martelly went back to making music. He sang a carnival song called "Bal Bannann nan."

As a singer and keyboard player, "Sweet Micky" was known for his Kompa music. This is a Haitian dance music style sung mostly in Haitian Creole. Martelly mixed Kompa with other music styles. He helped make a "new generation" of Kompa popular. This new style used smaller bands with synthesizers and electronic instruments. From 1989 to 2008, Martelly recorded many studio albums and live CDs.

In 2010, after a big earthquake hit Haiti, Martelly decided to run for president. He won the 2010–11 Haitian general election for his party, Repons Peyizan (which means Farmers' Response Party). He won after a second round of voting against another candidate, Mirlande Manigat. Martelly became the President of Haiti on 14 May 2011. He took over from René Préval. During his election campaign, he promised to bring back Haiti's military. The military had been ended in the 1990s. He finished his term as president in February 2016.

In recent years, Martelly has faced accusations regarding his time in office. On 17 November 2022, the Canadian government placed sanctions on him. They accused him of being involved in supporting criminal groups. On 20 August 2024, the United States also placed sanctions on him for similar reasons.

Early Life and Music Beginnings

Michel Martelly was born in Côtes-de-Fer, Haiti. His father, Gerard Martelly, worked for Shell Oil. His mother was Marie Madeleine Martelly. His grandfather, Auguste de Pradines, was a troubadour. A troubadour is a singer who writes songs. His grandfather wrote funny protest songs against the United States occupation of Haiti (1915–34).

After finishing high school, Martelly joined the Haitian Military Academy. However, he says he was expelled. In 1984, he moved to the United States. He worked in construction and went to a community college in Miami for a short time. In 1986, he returned to Haiti. In 1987, Martelly went back to Miami with his girlfriend, Sophia Saint-Rémy. They got married there. They returned to Haiti in 1988.

When he came back to Haiti, Martelly started his music career. He began playing keyboard in local places in Pétion-Ville and Kenscoff. These are nice suburbs of Port-au-Prince. Martelly sang fun, romantic songs with a slow méringue beat called Kompa.

Music Career

Martelly is seen as a leader in a special kind of compas music. This Haitian dance music is mostly sung in Haitian Creole. Martelly, who played keyboard, called himself the "President of Compas." He made a nouvelle génération (new generation) style popular. This style used smaller bands with fewer members. They used synthesizers and electronic instruments to make a bigger sound. Martelly's live shows and recordings often included jokes and funny comments about society and politics.

Recording Music

By 1988, Martelly's music and stage presence became very popular. That year, he recorded his first song, "Ou La La," which was a big hit. He followed this with "Konpas 'Foret des Pins'" in 1989. From about 1988 to 2008, Martelly, using his stage name Sweet Micky, recorded fourteen studio albums and many live CDs. His music included slow méringue, compas, troubadour style, carnival méringue, and rabòday.

In 1997, Martelly worked with the hip hop star Wyclef Jean from The Fugees. Martelly was featured on the song "The Carnival." Also in 1997, Martelly released an album with one of his most famous songs, "Pa Manyen" (which means "Don't Touch"). This song was based on "Angola" by Ramiro Mendes. "Pa Manyen" was included in many music collections, like Putumayo Presents: French Caribbean in 2003. His fame as a popular Kompa musician helped him become well-known as a politician later on.

Political Career

In 1992, Martelly played music for free at a protest. This protest was against a UN representative who was trying to bring back Jean-Bertrand Aristide after a 1991 Haitian coup d'état. Martelly said he did not want Aristide to return.

In 1997, Martelly took part in "Knowledge Is Power." This was a music video that taught people about preventing HIV. He also did humanitarian work as the president of the Fondation Rose et Blanc. This foundation was started by his wife Sophia and him. It helped poor people in the country. Because of this work, the Haitian Government chose him as the Good Will Haitian Ambassador for the Protection of the Environment.

In 2004, after another 2004 Haitian coup d'état against Aristide, Gérard Latortue became prime minister. Latortue was a friend of Martelly's. Martelly was living in Florida at this time, but he moved back to Haiti in 2007.

After the 2010 earthquake, Martelly ran for President of Haiti. He used his fame as a musician to gain support. He held musical rallies that drew large crowds. He also had support from important figures like Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton. On 3 February 2011, it was announced that he would be in a second round of elections. On 4 April 2011, it was announced that Martelly had won the presidential election with over 60% of the votes.

Presidency

Martelly meets with Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero in Madrid, 7 July 2011

Michel Martelly became the President of Haiti on 14 May 2011. This was a historic moment because it was the first time in Haiti that a president peacefully gave power to someone from the opposition. After the earthquake, Martelly promised to make changes for the country's rebuilding.

In August 2011, Martelly announced a plan to bring back Haiti's military. This plan caused some debate. Many people who work for human rights were worried. They remembered that the military had been involved in bad actions in the past.

In September 2011, Martelly created an advisory board. This board included business leaders and politicians like former U.S. President Bill Clinton. Martelly hoped this board would help improve Haiti's economy.

In February 2012, Martelly's Prime Minister, Garry Conille, resigned. He was replaced in May by Laurent Lamothe.

During his presidency, Martelly faced protests. People were unhappy about the high cost of living and accusations of corruption. Elections for the Senate and local officials were delayed many times. This led to more protests. The Prime Minister, Laurent Lamothe, resigned in December 2014 and was replaced by Evans Paul. But protests continued, with some people calling for Martelly to resign.

On 13 January 2015, the parliament was dissolved. Thousands of protesters in Port-au-Prince again asked for the president to resign. Police used tear gas to control the crowds. Martelly asked protesters to keep public order. He said he had made a deal with the opposition to form a new government. New election dates were announced in March 2015. Martelly could not run for president again because Haiti's rules do not allow presidents to serve two terms in a row.

On 9 August 2015, Haiti held its first election under President Michel Martelly. Citizens voted for members of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. Some polling stations had to close because of violence. The first round of Haiti's presidential election was on 25 October 2015.

After the results were announced, some candidates said they did not believe them. They said the results were "anti-democratic." Supporters of these candidates protested in the streets. They threw rocks and burned tires. Police used tear gas.

Martelly resigned as president on 10 February 2016. Haiti was without a president for a week. On 17 February 2016, Jocelerme Privert became the interim (temporary) president. There were accusations of fraud in the 2015 elections. Privert set up a group to check the election results. In May 2016, this group found that the elections had problems and suggested a new election.

In 2015, Pras from the Fugees finished a documentary film called Sweet Micky for President. The film shows Martelly's journey to becoming President of Haiti.

Canadian Government Sanctions

On 17 November 2022, the Government of Canada placed sanctions on Martelly. They also sanctioned former Prime Ministers Laurent Lamothe and Jean Henry Ceant. The sanctions against Martelly were because of accusations of supporting criminal groups in Haiti. The Canadian Prime Minister's office stated that Martelly was "suspected of protecting and enabling the illegal activities of armed criminal gangs."

Personal Life and Later Music

Martelly divorced his first wife in 1986. He has a brother named Girard.

It is believed that Martelly lives in Haiti. He also used to own homes in Palm Beach, Florida. He lives with his wife, Sophia Saint–Rémy, and their four children: Olivier, Sandro, Yani, and Malaika. In 2006, Martelly said he was retiring from music. But two years later, he announced he was returning with a new song, Magouyè. He is a cousin of the hotel manager and musician Richard Morse.

In April 2012, Martelly was flown to the United States for medical treatment. Doctors found he had a pulmonary embolism. This was thought to be caused by his arm being still after shoulder surgery.

Honours

•  Panama:
  • Collar of the Order of Manuel Amador Guerrero (February 18, 2014)
•  Taiwan:
  • Grand Cordon of the Order of Brilliant Jade (April 22, 2014)

Discography

See also

In Spanish: Michel Martelly para niños