Marie-Denise Fabien Jean-Louis was born on 14 February 1944 in the city of
Gonaïves in northern Haiti. She attended the
Louis Pasteur University in
Strasbourg, France, from 1962 until 1973, receiving a
Doctor of Medicine degree in
anesthesiology. On 19 February 1991, following the
1990–91 Haitian general election, Jean-Louis was appointed
Minister of Foreign Affairs by Prime Minister
René Préval, becoming the first woman to hold the position. Due to her complete lack of diplomatic experience and her ties to the
Duvalier regime, her appointment was strongly opposed by President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide's
Lavalas movement. As Haiti's international representative, she participated in the 1991 meeting of the
Organization of American States and gave a speech to the
United Nations Commission on Human Rights. During her tenure, Jean-Louis engaged in a
diplomatic dispute with the Dominican Republic following the deportation of over 100 Haitians from the country. She also met with officials from The Bahamas, namely her counterpart
Clement T. Maynard, regarding the
influx of Haitian migrants into that country. On 19 September 1991, President Aristide dismissed both Jean-Louis and Health Minister
Daniel Henrys from their positions due to pressure from the Lavalas. She was replaced as minister by
Jean-Robert Sabalat, the former head of the
Provisional Electoral Council. Ten days later, elements in the
Haitian military launched a
successful coup, overthrowing Aristide's government. Following the coup, Jean-Louis went into hiding and her home was searched by soldiers. In 1992, Jean-Louis was a member of the Executive Committee of the
Pan American Health Organization. == References ==