Above: a carnival float in Gonaïves, Haiti (Photo: MC Haiti)
By the Caribbean Journal staff
Haiti has officially begun its national carnival facilities in the city of Gonaïves in the Artibonite department.
This is the third consecutive year that Haiti’s carnival is being held outside of the capital, Port-au-Prince, part of a wider campaign by Haiti President Michel Martelly to push “decentralization” in the country.
Above: preparation for Carnival in Gonaives
In 2012, Haiti held its national carnival in Les Cayes, while last year’s carnival was held in the city of Cap-Haitien on the country’s northern coast.
Gonaïves is known as Haiti’s “city of independence,” as the place where Jean-Jacques Dessalines first declared the country’s independence from France.
The carnival lasts from Sunday through Tuesday in the city of around 300,000 people.
In a statement, Martelly said he hoped the carnival was an “opportunity for Haiti to sell a better image of itself and attract tourists.”