ME Mario Joseph, a Haitian lawyer well known for his involvement in high-profile cases, died in hospital on March 31, 2025, at the age of 62, after being involved in a car accident two days earlier.

Joseph co-directed the International Lawyers Office in Port-au-Prince, which represented victims of human rights violations.

"Mario never forgot his humble origins. Although he won international awards and honorary degrees, he worked tirelessly every day against the injustice that afflicted too many Haitians," said Brian Concannon, executive director of the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti, a Boston-based nonprofit organization where Joseph served as attorney director.

Joseph represented dozens of political prisoners before Haitian courts and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

He led the prosecution of the year 2000 Raboteau massacre, a landmark trial in a country where politicians and senior officials are rarely charged, let alone prosecuted.

Joseph's law firm was also involved in a lawsuit on behalf of 5,000 cholera victims who accused the UN of introducing the disease into Haiti, which killed nearly 10,000 Haitians.

In addition, he represented women whose children were the children of UN peacekeepers and sought child support against the absent fathers and the UN.

TB/ iciHaiti