Fall of Jean-Claude Duvalier (1986)

On February 7, 1986, Jean-Claude Duvalier fled Haiti on a U.S. Air Force C-141 transport plane to exile in France, ending nearly thirty years of Duvalier family rule. The fall came after months of popular uprising against the regime, particularly in provincial cities like Gonaïves, Cap-Haïtien, and Les Cayes, where demonstrators were shot by security forces. The U.S. government, which had long supported the Duvaliers, brokered the departure to prevent a revolution. The night of Duvalier's departure and the days that followed saw the Dechoukaj — 'uprooting' — a popular reckoning in which Macoutes were hunted, killed, and their property destroyed by crowds across Haiti. A military-civilian council (CNG) assumed power, promising elections.