Kevin Pina

Kevin Pina is a U.S journalist and filmmaker. He is known for his extensive coverage of human rights abuses in Haiti following the ouster of Jean-Bertrand Aristide on February 29, 2004 and the installation of the interim government of Gerard Latortue and Boniface Alexandre in March 2004. Pina reported on events in Haiti from 2003-2006 as a Special Correspondent for the radio program Flashpoints heard on KPFA - the flagship station of Pacifica Radio based in Berkeley, California. Pina is also the Founding Editor of the Haiti Information Project (HIP) [http://www.teledyol.net/HIP/about.html] , a non-profit news agency based in Port au Prince and Northern California, and an Associate Editor for the Black Commentator, an online magazine.

Kevin Pina began reporting from Haiti in 1991 for the KPFA News in the United States. He reported on human rights violations committed by the Haitian military in the poor neighborhood of Cite Soleil following the coup of September 30, 1991 that was led by Raoul Cedras and Michel François.

Pina's first documentary on Haiti, "Haiti: Harvest of Hope," focused on the formation of Aristide's Lavalas political movement, the military coup of 1991 and Aristide's eventual return from exile in October 1994. The Kreyol version of "Haiti: Harvest of Hope" was narrated by Haitian poet Jean-Claude Martineau and premiered in Haiti on Haitian Mother's Day in May 1995. The English version is narrated by the actor Roscoe Lee Brown and was released for distribution in the U.S. in 1997.

In early January 1999, Pina moved to Port au Prince, Haiti where he lived and worked for the next seven years. In 2001 and 2003 he was hired for short stints as an independent consultant for Television Nationale d'Haiti (TNH), a government owned station, to teach camera and digital editing. Pina was contracted concurrently for a similar position with the privately owned station Tele-Haiti in 2003, and later became the Station Manager for Haiti's largest privately owned television station TeleMax in early 2004.

According to Yves Engler and Anthony Fenton in their book "Haiti: Waging War on the Poor Majority" , Pina was beaten by an off-duty SWAT officer of the Haitian National Police on June 4, 2005. [http://www.amazon.com/dp/1552661687] In subsequent interviews, Pina said he believed this was retribution for his actions during a demonstration on May 18, 2005 where he and several Haitian journalists blocked police from firing on unarmed protestors. A Brazilian military commander, working for the United Nations mission in Haiti known as MINUSTAH , gave orders to have Pina's picture taken during the demonstration while threatening, "You are always making trouble for us. I have taken your picture and I am going to give it to the Haitian police. They will get you." [http://haitiaction.net/News/HIP/5_18_5/5_18_5.html]

Pina was arrested in Haiti on Sept. 9, 2005 and held in jail for three days after covering a search by Judge Jean Pérs Paul in the church of prisoner of conscience Father Gérard Jean-Juste. Pina later said he had gone to St. Claire's parish because he had received information that the judge intended to plant weapons in Jean-Juste's rectory to justify holding the priest in prison. [http://www.haitiaction.net/News/HIP/9_30_5/9_30_5.html]

In addition to "Haiti: Harvest of Hope" [http://www.teledyol.net/KP/HoH/HoH.html] , Pina released a second video entitled "Haiti: The UNtold Story". [http://www.teledyol.net/KP/HUS/HUS.html] The film chronicles human rights abuses by the Haitian police and a military assault on July 6, 2005 [http://haitiaction.net/News/HIP/7_12_5.html] by United Nations forces where residents accuse them of massacring civilians in the impoverished neighborhood of Cite Soleil. Pina's latest documentary, "Haiti: We must kill the BANDITS", [http://www.haitiinformationproject.net/] was released in March 2007.

Pina's film credits and videography include "El Salvador: In the Name of Democracy" (1985), "Berkeley in the Sixties" (1990), "Amazonia: Voices from the Rainforest" (1990), "Haiti: Harvest of Hope" (1997), "Haiti: The UNtold Story" (2005) and "HAITI: We Must Kill the Bandits" "] (2007).