Haiti: Anti Martelly, corruption protests staged in the capital Port-au-Prince

Thousands of critics of Haiti’s President Michel Martelly staged protest marches on Monday, some ripping down billboards of the president and vowing to drive him from power.

Protesters in the capital, Port-au-Prince, called for Martelly’s departure from the office he’s held since 2011. Demonstrators also tore down posters and billboards bearing Martelly’s face.

Martelly, his prime minister, Laurent Lamothe, and the first lady attended a church ceremony in the northern city of Cap-Haitien, the site of another, smaller protest on Monday, a national holiday that commemorates a battle that led to Haiti’s independence from France in 1804.

The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Haiti on Saturday urged Martelly and opposition parties to sort out their differences in a peaceful manner. The world body also dispatched armed troops for the demonstration.

The mounting tension between Martelly and his opponents stems in part from the government’s failure to hold legislative and local elections that are two years overdue. The U.N., U.S. and others have pressured officials to organize the vote before year’s end, but it most likely won’t happen until next year.

Protesters also accuse his government of corruption.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press