As part of the 14th commemoration of the historic monument "The Volunteer Hunters/Skirmishers of Saint Domingue", a delegation from the Ministry of Culture, led by Minister Jean Emmanuel Jacquet, made up of his Chief of Staff, Mrs. Dithny Joan Rahton, of the Director General of the Institute for the Protection of National Heritage (ISPAN) Patrick Durandis, and three other officials of the Ministry went to Savannah (Georgia) at the invitation of the "Haitian American Historical Society" (HAHS).

This both historical and cultural event was an opportunity for Minister Jacquet to show the importance of this memorial by recalling that the blood of our ancestors had flowed for the conquest of freedom and American independence.

This monument initiated by the late Daniel Fils-Aimé, Founder and former President of the HAHS, represents in the eyes of the free world, a testimony of the Haitian contribution, the sacrifices and the sufferings of our valiant warriors to the efforts of the American separatists.

In order to preserve on Francklin Square, in Savannah, the holder of the MCC asked the ISPAN to make an evaluation of the monument located on Francklin Square, with a view to restoring it.

While in Georgia, Minister Jacquet met with Van R. Johnson II, the Mayor of Savannah. The two spoke about history, culture, and the participation of people of color in the Battle of Savannah in 1779.

The officials of the HAHS honored two members of the Government : the Minister of Culture and that of Haitians living abroad, as well as the Ambassador of Haiti in Washington Edmond Bocchit, for their contribution and their participation in the success of the event.

The next day the Haitian delegation went to Fort Matanzas, in Saint-Augustine, Florida where is the fortified watchtower built in coquina, completed in 1742. The delegation concluded its trip to the United States with a visit to the former residence of Georges (Jorge) Biassou, one of the leaders of the Haitian revolution of 1791, who died on July 14, 1801 in Saint-Augustine.

HL/ HaitiLibre