The Answer:

The "Tonton Macoutes" [tonton´ mäk OO t´] was the personal police force of Hatian dictator Francois Duvalier. They were unpaid volunteers who regularly tortured and killed his opponents. When Duvalier's son, Jean-Claude, took over after Francois's death in 1971 he changed the group's name to National Security Volunteers. Its purpose, however, remained the same.

—The Editors