Anti-Duvalier protest movement Anti-Duvalier protest movement The Anti-Duvalier protest movement was a series of demonstrations in Haiti from 23 May 1984 – 7 February 1986, that led to the overthrow of President Jean-Claude Duvalier and the Duvalier dynasty regime. Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier was elected to presidency in the 1957 general election, and he declared himself “President for life” following the 1964 constitutional referendum. In the aftermath of the 1958 coup d'état attempt, to keep the populace subservient, Papa Doc created a paramilitary force called the Tonton Macoutes (), notorious of its use of violence and intimidation. In 1970, the force was renamed
Jean-Claude Duvalier in response to increased corruption among the Duvaliers and the Bennett family's dealings, which included selling Haitian cadavers to foreign medical schools and trafficking in narcotics. Increased political repression added to the volatility of the situation. The marriage also estranged the old-line Duvalierists in the government from the younger technocrats whom Duvalier had appointed, including Jean-Marie Chanoine, Frantz Merceron, Frantz-Robert Estime and Theo Achille. The Duvalierists' spiritual leader, Duvalier's mother, Simone Ovide Duvalier, was eventually expelled from Haiti, reportedly at the request of Michèle Duvalier. With his wife Duvalier had two children, François Nicolas and Anya. Over time, Michèle grew