By: Olivia Fang
On February 21st, 2023, Haiti’s women’s national soccer team beat Chile 2-1, qualifying them for the 2023 Women’s World Cup (Pro Soccer Wire). It was a triumphant moment, as it was the team’s first time qualifying for the Women’s World Cup (The Washington Post). However, just a week before the match, something devastating happened. After less than 3 years of a supposed “lifetime ban,” on February 14th, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the former president of the Haitian football federation, 75-year-old Yves Jean-Bart, was not guilty of sexual assault, due to “insufficient evidence” (DW).
Jean-Bart oversaw both the Haitian national football federation and the Centre Technique National in Croix-des-Bouquets, known as “The Ranch”, which allowed players as young as 12 to train. Players and referees alike have described the Ranch as “full of sexual abuse and exploitation”, stating that the staff and officials knew of this, but did nothing to help or protect the girls (HRW). In early 2020, accusations of Jean-Bart sexually assaulting young players, as well as threatening victims that tried to speak out, came to light. In November 2020, FIFPro, the global association for footballers, declared that Jean-Bart was guilty of sexually assaulting multiple female players, including minors, issuing him a lifetime ban from professional soccer (HRW).
However, now that Jean-Bart has returned, the lives of his accusers are at risk. A few of his threats have already been documented, stating “You got into something that will be dangerous for you and your family…You have been to FIFA…I know where to find you, mark my word.” (HRW). In the past, FIFA mismanaged multiple sexual assault cases, leading to many players being deterred from speaking out due to the possibility of their identities being discovered. In an interview with the Washington Post regarding Yves Jean-Bart’s actions, Baraya, a pseudonym created for a former Haitian player, says that she “wanted to speak out, but did not trust FIFA with her story.”
Near the time of accusations against Haiti, FIFA promised to create an “independent body to oversee cases of sexual abuse and harassment”, which has yet to happen. Julie Ann Rivers-Cochran, Executive Director for The Army of Survivors, criticized FIFA, stating that the federation “cannot say they have created a safe place for athletes when reinstating Jean-Bart only further silences and minimizes the stories of those who reported” (HRW).
This incident is simply one example of how FIFA has failed to do enough to protect its female athletes. Other cases have emerged in the past, such as the federation refusing to suspend
Argentinian coach Diego Guacci after 5 players came forward with accusations of mistreatment and sexual harassment (The Washington Post). At the end of her interview, Baraya recalls that while she was happy for her country qualifying, she was scared for the team, knowing that Jean-Bart was reinstated (The Washington Post). “In the end, FIFA doesn’t support us in anything.”