QUEBEC (CP) - A lawyer representing a Haitian man charged in an alleged teen prostitution ring will be investigated by the Quebec Bar Association for saying it's normal for people from the Caribbean island to be involved in prostitution.

"He's black, he's Haitian," Yves-Andre Le Bouthillier said in an interview this week outside the court about his client, Andre Pelissier, who has been charged with pimping.

"Prostitution in that environment is normal.

"It's part of their culture, like it's part of Jamaican culture to smoke cannabis."

Pierre Gagnon, president of the bar association, said Thursday the statement touches two cultural communities and can't be ignored.

"The Quebec Bar Association disassociates itself from such a statement," he told RDI, Radio-Canada's all-news channel.

Gagnon said an independent committee will look into the matter to decide if a complaint will be laid and sanctions taken against Le Bouthillier.

Alix Joseph, who works with an organization to help integrate Haitians into their new environment, told RDI the comments were insulting.

"I think it's a slap in the face for the Haitian community," Joseph said.

He said Le Bouthillier should be made to apologize and he suggested the provincial bar association make him take cultural sensitivity training.

Joseph acknowledged that prostitution does exist in Haiti but said it doesn't involve minors.

Le Bouthillier said Thursday his comments had been "misinterpreted" by the media.

"What I said is that in Haiti there is a lot of prostitution."

Pelissier is being tried separately from others charged in the alleged prostitution ring.

A judge recently decided to move the trial of others accused in the alleged ring to Montreal from Quebec City to ensure a fair trial.