Also known as: 2004 coup, Aristide's second ouster, 2004 removal of Aristide, February 2004 coup
Last updated: April 26, 2026
On February 29, 2004, Jean-Bertrand Aristide was removed from power in a convergence of armed rebellion, elite opposition, and foreign intervention. The coup opened the post-Aristide order of MINUSTAH military occupation and consolidated donor and NGO governance in Haiti. Robert Fatton argues Aristide's fall also reflected internal failures including chimère politics and the erosion of institutional accountability, while Laurent Dubois frames the subsequent order as one in which outsiders again treated Haitians as objects rather than subjects of political reconstruction.
coup-haiti — triggers the events of *Brother, I'm Dying*; the political backdrop for *The Dew Breaker*
Was removed from power again in 2004; his departure opened the institutional order of NGOs, donors, and MINUSTAH that defined the post-Aristide period.
coup-haiti — the anti-Lavalas political order his presidency extended; the gang dynamics the coup period unleashed
coup-haiti — *Bicentenaire* is the direct literary response; the coup and bicentennial coincide
coup-haiti — the coup whose anti-Lavalas logic his presidency extended and institutionalized
coup-haiti — the coup that produced the Latortue interregnum Préval ended with his 2006 victory
The aid architecture that captured reconstruction had already bypassed Haitian institutions after the 2004 coup
The 1991 coup preceded and set conditions for the second removal of Aristide in 2004
The 2004 coup restructured Haiti's political landscape in ways that shaped the 2010 earthquake response
The coup precipitated a restructuring of the Haitian state around external management
The coup ended Lavalas's hold on the presidency and repressed its political movement
2004 Coup Haiti
2004 Coup Haiti
2004 Coup Haiti
2004 Coup Haiti
If you use rasin.ai data or findings in your research, please cite us:
Chicago
"2004 Coup Haiti." 2004. Rasin.ai, 2026. https://rasin.ai/connections/events/2004-coup-haiti. Accessed 2026-05-05.