If we really want to help Haiti, the advanced developed countries should start by giving Haiti debt forgiveness on the grounds of historical colonial domination.
Allison Killkenny wrote an interesting post on the recent history of Haiti’s debt bondage and ties it to a history of invasion and colonial machinations.
The massive destruction of the recent earthquake is but one outcome of this history of de-development and geo-political enslavement. Debt relief is only one part of compensation for this dishonorable past.
This debt relief would need to be financed by the countries that profited the most from its misery — France, the United States and to a lesser extent England (not positive on the last one but am sure they profited somehow).
Activists are calling for such steps, as part of the earthquake relief program. There are petitions trying to “convince global creditors to cancel Haiti’s $890 million international debt.”
I know my historical discourse is unlikely to play well with the American masses, even those who stress personal accountability and snicker at the thought of entitlements at others expenses. One would think their principles would extend to national accountability for past historical wrongs, especially to those countries enriched unjustly by the forceful conquer of others. Sadly, these two positions tend to hypocritically opposed.
Intellectual cohesion is not a American strength. Maybe compassion is, in terms of American charitability, but that clearly has its limits.
[tarboush tip: OooKhalid]
Related posts:
- US Debt Ceiling Raised to 600,000 Miles
- Too Little, Too Late: Human Solidarity & Haiti’s Disaster
- Colonial Archaelogy
- A Proposal for a New Month of Remembrance
- Proposal to Name Street After Qana
It's disturbing how so many preach accountability for impoverished nations while lacking the ability to see the continuing role played by previous colonial masters in maintaining this misery. It's disgusting that these nations owe hundreds of millions of dollars in debt to their former colonial masters, rather than demanding hundreds of millions in reperations.
Posted by MohammadKF | January 20, 2010, 5:47 pmThanks Will and Mohammad. Couldn't agree more. For anyone interested in the history and why the US and France owe Haiti, there is a great article at:
After the 1804 revolution, Haiti was the subject of a crippling economic embargo by France and the US. US sanctions lasted until 1863. France ultimately used its military power to force Haiti to pay reparations for the slaves who were freed. The reparations were 150 million francs. (France sold the entire Louisiana territory to the US for 80 million francs!)
Haiti was forced to borrow money from banks in France and the US to pay reparations to France. A major loan from the US to pay off the French was finally paid off in 1947. The current value of the money Haiti was forced to pay to French and US banks? Over $20 Billion – with a big B.
The US occupied and ruled Haiti by force from 1915 to 1934. President Woodrow Wilson sent troops to invade in 1915. Revolts by Haitians were put down by US military – killing over 2000 in one skirmish alone. For the next nineteen years, the US controlled customs in Haiti, collected taxes, and ran many governmental institutions. How many billions were siphoned off by the US during these 19 years?
Posted by Sean2009 | January 21, 2010, 12:31 pmSorry,
http://counterpunch.org/quigley01182010.html
Posted by Sean2009 | January 21, 2010, 12:33 pmCounterpunch? LOL
"Ours is muckraking with a radical attitude"
about CounterPunch
…and nothing makes us happier than when CounterPunch readers write in to say how useful they've found our newsletter in their battles against the war machine, big business and the rapers of nature.
Nice. Real objective source there.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 5:10 amAs always, a stellar rebuke, Eagle. Just stellar.
Posted by Sean2009 | January 22, 2010, 5:53 am"You’ve heard of “Blame America First” when it comes to the man-made problems of the world. Such may not usually be true but it sure sounds good if you’re a liberal – makes you seem smart and informed.
Bill Quigley has taken this concept to an entirely new level; he posits the notion that what is happening in Haiti as a result of the earthquake is actually America’s fault.
he US (with the agreement of the international community) was doing its best to assist Haiti in overcoming extraordinary hurdles just to keep the country from falling completely into an abyss of corruption and chaos.
You might immediately note that Mr. Quigley had little to say about the “democratically elected” leader of Haiti, Jean Bertrand Aristide. If you are trying to blame the US for what is happening in Haiti, it is best not to supply too much information about the “little priest” whose thugs used to roam the streets of Port au Prince placing burning tires around the necks of his political opponents.
Aristide’s first chance at power in 1991 started out well, with the full backing of the United States. But a parliamentary crisis led to Aristide believing he could rule by decree and he was summarily ousted by the military.
Bill Clinton righted the situation by forcing the military out and reinstating him, backing the Haitian president with American troops. But all of this was simply prologue to what happened in 2000. Aristide’s campaign of massive violence against the opposition caused a boycott of the elections and when his opponents protested, they were arrested or, more often, simply killed. Aristide himself was a accused of ordering assassinations. The police were helpless as Aristide’s gangs wandered the streets with impunity.
The elections was pronounced fraudulent by the OAS, no bastion of pro-American sentiment. Finally, in 2004, Aristide angered enough people that a bloody coup occurred. He maintains to this day that he as kidnapped by the US and ended up in South Africa. If so, we did the Haitian people a monumental favor.
So much for the “democratically elected leader” of Haiti."
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 8:24 amYour entire argument is cut-and-pasted verbatim from another site without attribution as if these are your own words. You spread the drivel over multiple posts to bombard the comments section and derail any attempts at serious discussion. This is known as "plagiarism" and "trolling" and is indicative of the essential cant and dishonesty with which you and other Zionists approach debate.
I find it hilarious that you would steal an article verbatim from a site named "Right Wing Nuthouse" without the slightest irony.
http://rightwingnuthouse.com/archives/2010/01/15/…
It suits you.
Posted by Sean2009 | January 22, 2010, 5:54 pmWhich facts are you disputing, exactly?
Your troll comments trying to derail the topic won't work, Sean.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 23, 2010, 4:43 amMoron.
Posted by Sean2009 | January 23, 2010, 6:14 amStill calling names? Stop being a troll.
SEAN2009
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 23, 2010, 7:01 amWhat about all that foreign aid we’ve cut off or funneled to NGO’s? Mr. Quigley’s screed is a little short on details. Allow me to remedy that.
In 2006, Haiti was named the most corrupt nation on planet earth. Any foreign aid sent to Haiti had a better chance of sprouting wings and flying than ending up helping any Haitians. The elites in Haiti and family cronies make sure of that, enriching themselves by siphoning aid into ventures they control or own outright.
One thing not mentioned by Mr. Quigley; that corruption contributed to the vastness of the disaster because most of the buildings in Haiti are so poorly constructed due to short cuts taken by contractors who then pocket the difference.
Quigley probably didn’t bring this up in the article because there’s no way to blame America for it.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 8:32 amYes, but what about all that foreign aid we’ve cut off? What about allowing NGO’s to distribute the aid?
Quigley conveniently uses the year 2004 to complain about aid cutoffs to Haiti. In fact, from 2004-06, the US sent $230 million in developmental aid to that nation. The 2008 regular foreign aid appropriation was $287 million which doesn’t include another $45 million in food aid.
The idea that the only reason we withheld aid in 2001-2004 was because we were “mad” at the Haitian president is laughably childish. People were being murdered in the streets, chaos and corruption reigned in government, and Quigley wanted to continue business as usual? It wasn’t just America, either. The international community made most of these determinations based on the realistic notion that any money sent to Haiti would be used to enrich the ruling elite and not end up helping the people. That’s the bottom line, Quigley’s ignorance – or deliberate obfuscation of the facts – notwithstanding.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 8:32 amAnd Quigley may be the only lefty in America who begrudge poor people saving a few cents per pound on rice. An unfortunate by product of this is the flight from rural areas of farmers who can’t compete. We’ve seen the same thing in Africa and Asia as globalization makes its uneven and problematic journey around the world. There may be cause for criticism for subsidizing rice growers in the US. But to make the preposterous leap of logic that more people died as a result of US policy is a monumental stretch that even a high school debater wouldn’t make. It sounds logical but there is no empirical evidence that remotely supports it.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 8:34 amPerhaps Mr. Quigley wrote his article as satire. Morel likely, he’s simply an ignorant twit who cherry picked information that he thought would make his case that America is to blame for the large numbers of dead as a result of this tragedy.
Trying to draw attention to yourself by using a catastrophe to make an invalid, and ultimately silly point that you know will play well with those already disposed to believe the worst about their own country may be the height of cynical self promotion. Congratulations are in order for Mr. Quigley. He lived down to all the lowered expectations we’ve come to expect.
Not to mention Will trying to do the same thing.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 8:35 amFrom 1957 to 1986, Haiti was controlled by the father/son dictatorship of Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier and Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier. For nearly thirty years they diverted foreign assistance towards their own personal interests. While exactly how much money the Duvaliers stole is unknown, after Jean-Claude Duvalier was forced to step down an audit established that at least $500 million had been diverted in just his last six years. Once stolen, the money was used for a variety of purposes. A certain amount went directly to the Duvalier family. For example, Michele Duvalier famously spent $20,000 on a shopping trip to New York in the early 1980s. The money was also used to strengthen the Duvaliers’ control over Haiti, with payoffs to the Tonton Macoutes (Francois Duvalier's personal militia), Haitian soldiers, and local officials.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 21, 2010, 5:16 amWill and MohammadKF: grow a brain and learn what you are talking about. Intellectual cohesion is definitely not one of your strong points….
Haiti had a total external debt of 1.4 billion dollars at peak. 45% of this debt was accumulated under the Duvalier dictatorship. In April, Haiti was added to the World Bank and IMF's highly indebted poor country initiative (HIPC) following the election of new president René Préval. In September 2009, following a program of economic and social reforms, Haiti met the requirements for completion of the HIPC program, qualifying it for cancellation of its external debt obligations.
Haiti's largest creditor, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), is not part of the debt relief initiative. Haiti's debt to the IDB amounts to approximately half a billion dollars with debt service payments projected by the IMF to increase in the following years.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 21, 2010, 5:23 amI know my historical discourse is unlikely to play well with the American masses, even those who stress personal accountability and snicker at the thought of entitlements at others expenses. One would think their principles would extend to national accountability for past historical wrongs
What exactly has the U.S. historically done wrong to Haiti? And as your own link reveals, the U.S. has already forgiven Haiti's past debts.
When are the Arabs going to step up and make amends for what they participated in Haiti in 1912?
By the way, Israel sent sent 220 rescue workers and a field hospital to Haiti. What have the Palestinians sent? What have the Palestinians EVER contributed to humanity? They plan and fund operations, but all they've ever given the world are things like the Munich Olympics tragedy. Apparently the Palestinians like to CELEBRATE disasters.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 21, 2010, 7:26 amWill, "national accountability for past historical wrongs"? Dont you think thats a huge slippery slope? We had countless number of wars and invasions in the recorded history. What if every losing side starts to claim accountability for everything? Everyone is accountable in some way, particularly the countries of Europe, ME and Asia, who were responsible for most of the invasions in history. You want cashback for all of them?
Posted by rudy_Infidel | January 21, 2010, 2:56 pmDo you think the Germans should pay reparations for what they did to the Jews? I do. I don't think they should have paid reparations for WWI. It depends on the situation and the degree of fault of the aggressor. It may be impossible for colonial or imperialist nations to pay reparations for all their crimes, but they should certainly do so for the more egregious ones. Haiti, Palestine, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, East Timor and Guatemala would be close to the top on my list of nations we ought to pay reparations to, if only for the depth of suffering we have visited on them by direct attacks, coups, occupation or support of their oppressors.
Posted by Sean2009 | January 21, 2010, 6:00 pmSituations and degree is something which is hard to agree upon. Also, how far you are ready to go back in history to make wrongs right? How about Jews getting compensated for every persecution and expulsion they had to suffer throughout history? What about the indegenious people of South America, Africa, Australia and South Asia who where persecuted, forcibly converted and looted for centuries for being pagan/polytheist/Idol worshipper by europe and MiddleEastern countries in the name of religion and colonial expansion? Was that a fault of aggressor or just pointless ancient history?
Posted by rudy_Infidel | January 21, 2010, 6:52 pmEagle! my main man…… Have you even read Allison Killkenny report? All you have to do is click on the red words right at the beginning half of Will's article. Its that simple|!! If you are color blind, have a friend or relative point it out to you. There is no shame in being handicapped. It could well have been any of us if not you. It doesn't prove your racial inferiority if you are handicapped. We are all equal breathens, sons of Adam. Ofcourse, your lucky Hitler doesn't rule the world. Otherwise, you nor I would be sitting here having a conversation. But you better be prepared, caus them neo-nazis are coming back to a neighborhood near you!!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Nazi_Party
http://ukpoliticstoday.blogspot.com/2009/07/briti…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitt_Ariskt_Motst%C3…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Action
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pamyat
Posted by OooKhalid | January 21, 2010, 6:17 pmOfcourse, you'r lucky Hitler doesn't rule the world.
I agree. If the Arabs had their way at the time, he would have won!
Nazis ‘shipped arms to Palestinians’
British National Archives unveil presence of Nazi S.S. agents in Mandatory Palestine, working closely with Palestinian leaders
Nazis planned Palestine subversion
British secret intelligence files have been released in London…
The Germans planned – with the support of the Grand Mufti – to arm Palestinian villagers and incite them to rise up against the Jews.
In 1941 there was a pro-Nazi coup attempt in Iraq. One of the Iraqi coup plotters was Gen. Tufah Khariallah. Tufah Khariallah is the uncle and mentor who raised SADDAM HUSSEIN.
MORE HERE
And you are always going to find some small wacky groups of neo-Nazis. Neo-Nazism is not anywhere near as prolific as the fascism at work in the world today: Islamofascism.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 4:57 amWOW….thats a long post. What are you trying to prove??The Imperialist nominated Husayni could be a die-hard Nazi for all I care. So??
But if you are going to do an intellecxtaul backflip deduction and state that becaus an Imperialist nominated puppet was a supposed Nazi, all Arabs are Naizs. Then my main man, i'd have to tell you that the best thing you can do for yourself is to get an education.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 22, 2010, 10:23 amAllison Kilkenny is a far-left wacko. She writes for the Huffington Post, the Beast, 236.com, Counterpunch.org ,Alternet.org, and Wiretap Magazine. 'Nuff said.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 5:06 amNow if you had read the article then you would have learnt, I quote..
//The United States began its occupation of Haiti in 1915 when Woodrow Wilson sent 330 U.S. Marines to Port-au-Prince. The reason for the invasion, according to the Secretary of the Navy, Admiral William Deville Bundy, was to “protect American and foreign” interests. Of course, the public was told the purpose of the mission was to “re-establish peace and order.” Sound familiar? Galeano writes:
The occupying army suspended the salary of the Haitian president until he agreed to sign off on the liquidation of the Bank of the Nation, which became a branch of City Bank of New York. The president and other blacks were barred entry into the private hotels, restaurants, and clubs of the foreign occupying power. The occupiers didn’t dare reestablish slavery, but they did impose forced labor for the building of public works. And they killed a lot of people. It wasn’t easy to quell the fires of resistance.
The guerrilla chief, Charlemagne Peralte, was exhibited in the public square, crucified on a door to teach the people a lesson.
And those were the acts of Marines, the civilized people.
When the occupiers left in 1934, they left behind a National Guard that they had created, and the ruler François Duvalier, who Galeano compared to such tyrants as Trujillo and Somoza. Duvalier was responsible for the deaths of around 30,000 people and the exile of thousands more. In 1971, Duvalier died and his son became ruler//
Posted by OooKhalid | January 21, 2010, 6:33 pmWait-you mean the same Duvalier whom Eagle just said is the man responsible for most of Haiti's debt?
Shocking.
Posted by MohammadKF | January 21, 2010, 9:27 pmDuvalier, having won acclaim in fighting diseases, earning him the nickname "Papa Doc", and opposing a military coup, was elected President in 1956 on a populist and black nationalist platform. His rule, based on a purged military, a rural milita and the use of personality cult and vodoo, resulted in a brain drain from which the country has not recovered. Ruling as President for Life since 1964, he was succeeded by his son, Jean-Claude Duvalier, nicknamed "Baby Doc".
In 1946, Duvalier aligned himself with President Dumarsais Estimé and was appointed director general of the National Public Health Service. In 1949, Duvalier served as minister of both health and labour but when General Paul Magloire ousted President Estimé in a coup d'état, Duvalier left the government and was forced into hiding until an amnesty was declared in 1956.[9]
In December 1956, Magloire resigned and left Haiti to be ruled by a succession of provisional governments. On September 22, 1957, presidential elections pitted Louis Déjoie, a mulatto land-owner and industrialist from the north of Haiti, against Duvalier, who was backed by the military. Duvalier campaigned as a populist leader, using a noiriste strategy of challenging the mulatto elite and appealing to the Afro-Haitian majority. He described his opponent as part of the ruling mulatto class that was making life difficult for the country's rural black majority. The election resulted in Duvalier defeating Déjoie with 678,860 votes. Déjoie polled 264,830 votes.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 5:24 amDuvalier's government was soon accused of being one of the most repressive in the hemisphere. Within the country, Duvalier used both political murder and expulsion to suppress his opponents; estimates of those killed are as high as 30,000.
But did the US Army try and intervene to restore democracy? Keep dreaming! As long as Duvalier kept borrowing from the IMF and WB for his own personal use (Keeping Haiti in perpetual debt, just as Western powers want it), Duvalier was their man.
However when Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the rebel priest, and enemy of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, became president in 1991. He only lasted a few months before
the U.S. government helped to oust him, brought him to the United States, subjected him to Washington’s treatment, and then sent him back a few years later, in the arms of Marines, to resume his post. Then once again, in 2004, the U.S. helped to remove him from power, and yet again there was killing. And yet again the Marines came back, as they always seem to, like the flu.
Worse than the destruction of ongoing occupation, however, was the “help” Haiti received from The World Bank (the pet project of the United States,) and IMF. Haiti obeyed all orders from its financial overlords. It slashed tariffs and subsidies, and other protectionist policies, and yet its credit was frozen. The majority, rice farmers, became beggars. Now, Haiti imports rice from the United States since national production has practically been outlawed.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 22, 2010, 10:15 amOn September 22, 1957, presidential elections pitted Louis Déjoie, a mulatto land-owner and industrialist from the north of Haiti, against Duvalier, who was backed by the military. The election resulted in Duvalier defeating Déjoie with 678,860 votes. Déjoie polled 264,830 votes. After being sworn in on October 22, Duvalier exiled most of the major supporters of Déjoie and had a new constitution adopted in 1957.
President Duvalier promoted and patronised members of the black majority in the civil service and the army. In mid-1958, the army, which had supported Duvalier earlier, tried to oust him in another coup but failed. In response, Duvalier replaced the chief of staff with a more reliable officer and then proceeded to create his own power base within the army by turning the army's Presidential Guard into an elite corps aimed at maintaining Duvalier's power. After this, Duvalier dismissed the entire general staff and replaced it with officers owing their positions and their loyalty to him.
In 1959, he also created a rural militia, the Milice Volontaires de la Sécurité Nationale commonly referred to as the Tonton Macoutes. Duvalier expelled almost all of Haiti's foreign-born bishops.
Aristide’s first chance at power in 1991 started out well, with the full backing of the United States. But a parliamentary crisis led to Aristide believing he could rule by decree and he was summarily ousted by the military.
Bill Clinton righted the situation by forcing the military out and reinstating him, backing the Haitian president with American troops. But all of this was simply prologue to what happened in 2000. Aristide’s campaign of massive violence against the opposition caused a boycott of the elections and when his opponents protested, they were arrested or, more often, simply killed. Aristide himself was a accused of ordering assassinations. The police were helpless as Aristide’s gangs wandered the streets with impunity.
The elections was pronounced fraudulent by the OAS, no bastion of pro-American sentiment. Finally, in 2004, Aristide angered enough people that a bloody coup occurred. He maintains to this day that he as kidnapped by the US and ended up in South Africa. If so, we did the Haitian people a monumental favor.
So much for the “democratically elected leader” of Haiti."
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 12:06 pmHowever when Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the rebel priest, and enemy of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, became president in 1991. He only lasted a few months before the U.S. government helped to oust him
THAT IS WRONG. On September 30, 1991, after his own government, led by Prime Minister René Préval, failed a non-confidence vote by the FNCD-controlled parliament, Aristide attempted to rule alone. The army performed a coup against him. He was deposed on September 29, 1991, and, in accordance with the requirements of Article 149 of the Haitian Constitution, Superior Court Justice Joseph Nérette was installed as President Provisoire to serve until elections were held within 90 days of Aristide's resignation. These elections were scheduled, but were cancelled. Real power was held by army commander Raoul Cédras.
Then once again, in 2004, the U.S. helped to remove him from power
THAT IS WRONG. Under U.S. and international pressure, the military regime backed down and U.S. troops were deployed in the country. On October 15, 1994, Aristide returned to Haiti to complete his term in office. Aristide disbanded the Haitian army, and established a civilian police force. Aristide's first term ended in February 1996.
In late 1996, Aristide broke from the OPL (Organisation Politique "Lavalas") over what he called its "distance from the people" and created a new political party, the Fanmi Lavalas. The OPL, holding the majority in the Sénat and the Chambre des Députés, renamed itself the Organisation du Peuple en Lutte, maintaining the OPL acronym. The Fanmi Lavalas won the 2000 legislative election but the opposition leaders claimed that a number of the seats were invalid. Aristide then was elected later that year in an election which was boycotted by most opposition political parties. "In the 2000 presidential and parliamentary elections, President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and his Fanmi Lavalas party claimed victory with a turnout that hardly rose above 10 per cent of the voters. The opposition, as well as members of the international community, contested the results and accused the government of manipulating them." Aristide's party controlled the Provisional Election Commission. It declared the official results when counting had barely even began. It ignored the constitutional requirement for run-off. At the time, however, CNN Election Watch reported a turnout of 60% with over 92% voting for Aristide. Only later did the above figure of a 10% voter turnout appear.
After a violent rebellion in 2004, Aristide was forced out of Haiti.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 12:25 pmLegacy of misery
Papa Doc and his son Baby Doc Duvalier were the infamous Haitian rulers who stripped the country of its resources and left a culture of fear and misrule. Lord Leslie Griffiths tells Witness about meeting the Duvaliers.
* Duration: 10 minutes
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 12:37 pmJournalist Eduardo Galeano? Wow you people are pulling out all the leftist wackos.
"Eduardo Hughes Galeano combines fiction, journalism, political analysis, and history. The author himself has denied that he is a historian saying, "I'm a writer obsessed with remembering, with remembering the past of America above all and above all that of Latin America, intimate land condemned to amnesia."
Just admit it… This whole idea of trying to turn the Haiti disaster into a blame-the-U.S.-fest is just not working. LOL
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 5:16 amWhen the occupiers left in 1934, they left behind a National Guard that they had created, and the ruler François Duvalier
COMPLETELY WRONG. François Duvalier became president in 1957. Where is all this mixed-up info coming from?
Sténio Vincent was President of Haiti from November 18, 1930 to May 15, 1941. In October 1930 Haitians chose a national assembly for the first time since 1918. It in turn elected as president Sténio Joseph Vincent.
Élie Lescot was the President of Haiti from May 15, 1941 to January 11, 1946.
Dumarsais Estimé served as the President of Haïti from 16 August 1946 until 10 May 1950. He was overthrown by the Haitian army, held under house arrest, then exiled to Paris.
Paul Magloire was a Haïtian military ruler from 1950 to 1956.
In December 1956, Magloire resigned and left Haiti to be ruled by a succession of provisional governments.
François Duvalier was the President of Haiti from 1957 to his death.
The United States occupied the island from 1915 to 1934. This occupation was initially resisted by a peasant revolt termed the "cacos" insurrection which was led by Charlemagne Péralte. Accusations of "indiscriminate" killing by US Marines were formally investigated by US Brigadier General George Barnett who concluded that 3250 "natives" were killed. A later investigation noted that 98 Marines perished in the conflict as well. The Haitian administration dismantled the constitutional system, built roads, and established the National Guards that ran the country after the Marines left.
Scholars agree that Haiti was in much better shape after the occupation than before, but some accuse the US of estabishing a "shaky" foundation that left the country with a doomed financial structure. This was due to a 1922 $40 million loan owed to the US as well as the country's national treasury and to the Banque Nationale owned by a New York bank. The result was a financial system that siphoned the country's wealth to offshore creditors instead of reinvesting it in the country's economy.
The US occupation forces established a boundary between Haiti and the Dominican Republic by taking disputed land from the latter.
When the US left in 1937, Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo – in an event known as the Parsley Massacre – ordered his Army to kill Haitians living on the Dominican side of the border. In a "three-day genocidal spree", he murdered between 10,000 and 20,000 Haitians. He then developed a uniquely Dominican policy of racial discrimination, Antihaitianismo ("anti-Haitianism"), targeting the mostly-black inhabitants of his neighboring country.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 12:56 pmThe guerrilla chief, Charlemagne Peralte….
In 1910, an international consortium of banks refinanced Haiti’s international debt and took control of the country’s treasury. In 1914, the bank refused to issue gold payments to the Haitian government and asked the U.S. military to protect the gold reserves. On December 17, 1914, U.S. marines landed in Haiti and moved the gold to the bank’s New York vaults. Eight months later, the marines again landed in Port au Prince, Haiti’s capital, this time claiming the need to protect foreign lives and property. They placed Port au Prince under martial law, ruthlessly subdued armed resistance in rural areas, and began training a new Haitian militia. Charlemagne Péralte led a resistance movement. In this “call to arms” and letter to the French minister, Péralte attacked President Wilson as a hypocrite for claiming to respect the sovereignty of small nations of Europe while occupying Haiti and urged Haitians to resist the Americans.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 22, 2010, 1:07 pmGAZA CITY (AFP) – The United Nations on Wednesday said it was "deeply concerned" about the deterioration of the health care system in the Gaza Strip due to Israeli closures of the Hamas-ruled territory.
A year after Israel's devastating offensive in Gaza the borders of the impoverished territory remain mostly sealed, preventing hundreds of patients each month from leaving to receive timely advanced care, officials said.
"We are deeply concerned about the current health system in Gaza and in particular its capacity and ability to deliver proper standards of health care to the people of Gaza," UN Humanitarian Coordinator Max Gaylard said.
"This adverse situation is not like Haiti. Haiti has been destroyed by an earthquake," he told reporters at Gaza's main Al-Shifa hospital. "The circumstances here are entirely man-made and can be fixed accordingly."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100120/wl_mideast_a…
Posted by OooKhalid | January 23, 2010, 4:28 pmFrom 2004-06, the US sent $230 million in developmental aid to that nation. The 2008 regular foreign aid appropriation was $287 MILLION which doesn’t include another $45 million in food aid.
The idea that the only reason we withheld aid in 2001-2004 was because we were “mad” at the Haitian president is laughably childish. People were being murdered in the streets, chaos and corruption reigned in government. It wasn’t just America, either. The international community made most of these determinations based on the realistic notion that any money sent to Haiti would be used to enrich the ruling elite and not end up helping the people.
Haiti had a total external debt of 1.4 billion dollars at peak. 45% of this debt was accumulated under the Duvalier dictatorship. In April, Haiti was added to the World Bank and IMF's highly indebted poor country initiative (HIPC) following the election of new president René Préval. In September 2009, following a program of economic and social reforms, Haiti met the requirements for completion of the HIPC program, qualifying it for cancellation of its external debt obligations.
Most of the buildings in Haiti are so poorly constructed due to short cuts taken by contractors who then POCKET THE DIFFERENCE.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 23, 2010, 4:52 amThe U.S. has worked to break Haiti for over 200 years. We owe Haiti. Not charity. We owe Haiti as a matter of justice. Reparations. And not the $100 million promised by President Obama either – that is Powerball money. The U.S. owes Haiti Billions – with a big B.
The U.S. has worked for centuries to break Haiti. The U.S. has used Haiti like a plantation. The U.S. helped bleed the country economically since it freed itself, repeatedly invaded the country militarily, supported dictators who abused the people, used the country as a dumping ground for our own economic advantage, ruined their roads and agriculture, and toppled popularly elected officials. The U.S. has even used Haiti like the old plantation owner and slipped over there repeatedly for sexual recreation.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 23, 2010, 2:36 pmIn 1804, when Haiti achieved its freedom from France in the world’s first successful slave revolution, the United States refused to recognize the country. The U.S. continued to refuse recognition to Haiti for 60 more years. Why? Because the U.S. continued to enslave millions of its own citizens and feared recognizing Haiti would encourage slave revolution in the U.S.
After the 1804 revolution, Haiti was the subject of a crippling economic embargo by France and the U.S. U.S. sanctions lasted until 1863. France ultimately used its military power to force Haiti to pay reparations for the slaves who were freed. The reparations were 150 million francs. (France sold the entire Louisiana territory to the U.S. for 80 million francs!)
Haiti was forced to borrow money from banks in France and the U.S. to pay reparations to France. A major loan from the U.S. to pay off the French was finally paid off in 1947. The current value of the money Haiti was forced to pay to French and U.S. banks? Over $20 Billion – with a big B.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 23, 2010, 2:36 pmFrom 1957 to 1986 Haiti was forced to live under U.S. backed dictators “Papa Doc” and “Baby Doc” Duvlaier. The U.S. supported these dictators economically and militarily because they did what the U.S. wanted and were politically “anti-communist” – now translatable as against human rights for their people. Duvalier stole millions from Haiti and ran up hundreds of millions in debt that Haiti still owes. Ten thousand Haitians lost their lives. Estimates say that Haiti owes $1.3 billion in external debt and that 40% of that debt was run up by the U.S.-backed Duvaliers.
Thirty years ago Haiti imported no rice. Today Haiti imports nearly all its rice. Though Haiti was the sugar growing capital of the Caribbean, it now imports sugar as well. Why? The U.S. and the U.S. dominated world financial institutions – the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank – forced Haiti to open its markets to the world. Then the U.S. dumped millions of tons of U.S. subsidized rice and sugar into Haiti – undercutting their farmers and ruining Haitian agriculture. By ruining Haitian agriculture, the U.S. has forced Haiti into becoming the third largest world market for U.S. rice. Good for U.S. farmers, bad for Haiti.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 23, 2010, 2:37 pmIn 2004, the U.S. again destroyed democracy in Haiti when they supported the coup against Haiti’s elected President Aristide.
Haiti is even used for sexual recreation just like the old time plantations. Check the news carefully and you will find numerous stories of abuse of minors by missionaries, soldiers and charity workers. Plus there are the frequent sexual vacations taken to Haiti by people from the U.S. and elsewhere. What is owed for that? What value would you put on it if it was your sisters and brothers?
U.S. based corporations have for years been teaming up with Haitian elite to run sweatshops teeming with tens of thousands of Haitians who earn less than $2 a day.
The Haitian people have resisted the economic and military power of the U.S. and others ever since their independence. Like all of us, Haitians made their own mistakes as well. But U.S. power has forced Haitians to pay great prices – deaths, debt and abuse.
It is time for the people of the U.S. to join with Haitians and reverse the course of U.S. -Haitian relations.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 23, 2010, 2:37 pmIn 2004, the U.S. again destroyed democracy in Haiti when they supported the coup against Haiti’s elected President Aristide.
WRONG. The U.S. supported President Aristide against the military coup. You are all mixed up!
A parliamentary crisis led to Aristide believing he could rule by decree and he was summarily ousted by the military. Bill Clinton righted the situation by forcing the military out and reinstating him, backing the Haitian president with American troops.
OooKhalid what you have pasted is a lot of lies and propaganda. I will try to walk you through it.
The U.S. has worked to break Haiti for over 200 years
WRONG. The U.S. has been Haiti biggest supporter.
The Haitian Revolution (1791–1803) is the period of violent conflict in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, leading to the elimination of slavery and the establishment of Haiti as the first republic ruled by people of African ancestry.
Although an independent government was created in Haiti, its society continued to be deeply affected by the patterns established under French colonial rule.
The post-rebellion racial elite (referred to as mulattoes) were descended from both Africans and white planters. Some had received an education, served in the French military, and even acquired land and wealth. Lighter complected than most Haitians, who were descendants only of enslaved Africans, the mulattoes dominated politics and economics.
On 1 January 1804, Dessalines, the new leader under the dictatorial 1801 constitution, declared Haiti a free republic. Haiti was the first independent nation in Latin America, the first post-colonial independent black-led nation in the world, and the only nation whose independence was gained as part of a successful slave rebellion. The country was crippled by years of war, its agriculture devastated, its formal commerce nonexistent, and the people uneducated and mostly unskilled.[19][1]
Haiti agreed to make reparations to French slaveholders in 1825 in the amount of 150 million francs, reduced in 1838 to 60 million francs, in exchange for French recognition of its independence and to achieve freedom from French aggression. This indemnity bankrupted the Haitian treasury and mortgaged Haiti's future to the French banks providing the funds for the large first installment, permanently affecting Haiti's ability to be prosperous.[20]
The end of the Haitian Revolution in 1804 marked the end of colonialism in Haiti, but the social conflict cultivated under slavery continued to affect the population. The revolution left in power an affranchi élite as well as the formidable Haitian army. France continued the slavery system in Martinique and Guadeloupe. Great Britain was able to abolish its slave trade in 1807 and in 1833 abolished slavery completely in the British West Indies. France formally recognized Haiti as an independent nation in 1834, as did the United States in 1862.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:16 amThe Haitian Revolution stood as a model for achieving emancipation for slaves in the United States, which was a good thing definitely!
Haiti was the first country in the Americas to abolish slavery. Meanwhile, the western world scorned the tiny island. Thomas Jefferson, that famous slave owner and champion of liberty, warned Haiti had created a bad example during its revolution, and argued it was necessary to “confine the plague to the island.”
After the 1804 revolution, Haiti was the subject of a crippling economic embargo by France and the U.S. U.S. sanctions lasted until 1863. France ultimately used its military power to force Haiti to pay reparations for the slaves who were freed. The reparations were 150 million francs which were reduced to 90 million francs in 1938. (France sold the entire Louisiana territory to the U.S. for 80 million francs!)
National authority was disputed by factions of the army, the elite class, and the growing commercial class, increasingly made up of numerous immigrant businessmen: Germans, Americans, French and English. On more than one occasion, French, U.S., German and British forces allegedly claimed large sums of money from the vaults of the National Bank of Haiti. Expatriates bankrolled and armed opposing groups. In addition, national governments intervened in Haitian affairs. In 1892 the German government supported suppression of the reform movement of Anténor Firmin. In January 1914, British, German and United States forces entered Haiti, ostensibly to protect their citizens from civil unrest.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 26, 2010, 3:14 pmFrom 1957 to 1986 Haiti was forced to live under U.S. backed dictators “Papa Doc” and “Baby Doc” Duvlaier.
WRONG.
On September 22, 1957, presidential elections pitted Louis Déjoie, a mulatto land-owner and industrialist from the north of Haiti, against Duvalier, who was backed by the military. Duvalier campaigned as a populist leader, using a noiriste strategy of challenging the mulatto elite and appealing to the Afro-Haitian majority. He described his opponent as part of the ruling mulatto class that was making life difficult for the country's rural black majority. The election resulted in Duvalier defeating Déjoie with 678,860 votes. Déjoie polled 264,830 votes.
HE WAS ELECTED BY HAITIINS
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:23 amSoon after assuming the presidency, however, his dark side emerged.
An authority on Haiti's national religion of voodoo, he modelled himself on its most macabre deity – a spirit figure named Baron Samedi who wore dark glasses, a black tuxedo and white top-hat and spoke in a strange, nasal voice.
Though married to a mulatto merchant's daughter, Simone Ovide, by whom he had four children including Baby Doc, he also adopted the mystical baron's penchant for rum and debauchery, satisfying his exotic sexual fantasies with whichever young Haitian girl caught his eye.
But it was through the dreaded Tonton Moucoutes that he took an iron grip of the country.
More powerful than the army and police, they roved the countryside plundering at will. So-called 'state enemies' were snatched away to be tortured in the bloody dungeons of Fort Dimanche.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 26, 2010, 3:38 pmAfter being sworn in on October 22, Duvalier exiled most of the major supporters of Déjoie and had a new consitution adopted in 1957.
President Duvalier promoted and patronised members of the black majority in the civil service and the army. In mid-1958, the army, which had supported Duvalier earlier, tried to oust him in another coup but failed. In response, Duvalier replaced the chief of staff with a more reliable officer and then proceeded to create his own power base within the army by turning the army's Presidential Guard into an elite corps aimed at maintaining Duvalier's power. After this, Duvalier dismissed the entire general staff and replaced it with officers owing their positions and their loyalty to him.
In 1959, he also created a rural militia, the Milice Volontaires de la Sécurité Nationale (MVSN, English: National Security Volunteers), commonly referred to as the Tonton Macoutes after a Creole term for the bogeyman, to extend and bolster support for the regime in the countryside. The Macoutes, which by 1961 had twice the numbers of the regular army, never developed into a real military force but still was more than a mere secret police.
In the name of nationalism, Duvalier expelled almost all of Haiti's foreign-born bishops, an act that earned him excommunication from the Catholic church.In 1966, Duvalier managed to persuade the Holy See to allow him to nominate the Catholic hierarchy for Haiti
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:35 amIn 1961, he began violating the provisions of the 1957 constitution: first he replaced the bicameral legislature with a unicameral body. Then he decreed presidential elections, though his term was to expire only in 1963 and the constitution prohibited reelection. The election, in which he was the sole candidate, resulted in and official tally of 1,320,748 votes to zero.
The New York Times commented: "Latin America has witnessed many fraudulent elections throughout its history but none has been more outrageous than the one which has just taken place in Haiti."
On June 14, 1964, Duvalier held a constitutional referendum making him "President for Life", a title previously held by seven Haitan presidents.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:37 amU.S.-backed Duvaliers
WRONG.
His relationship with the United States proved difficult. In his early years, Duvalier often rebuked the United States for its friendly relations with the Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo (killed in 1961), while leaving Haiti, "the poor negro Republic out in the cold". The Kennedy administration (1961/63) was particularly disturbed by Duvalier's repressive and authoritarian rule and allegations that he misappropriated aid money, then a substantial part of the Haitian budget, and a Marine mission to train Tonton Macoutes. Acting on the charges, Washington cut off most of its economic assistance in mid-1962, pending stricter accounting procedures which Duvalier refused. Duvalier publicly renounced all aid from Washington on nationalist grounds, portraying himself as a "principled and lonely opponent of domination by a great power."
STOP BELIEVING LIES
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:42 amDuvaliers were backed by US especially after Kennedy's assassination.
After Kennedy's assassination in November 1963 – which Duvalier later claimed resulted from a curse that he had placed on him. – the U.S. eased its pressure on Duvalier, grudgingly accepting Duvalier as a bulwark against communism. Duvalier skillfully exploited tensions between the United States and Cuba, emphasizing his anti-communist credentials and Haiti's strategic location as a means of winning U.S. support:
“ Communism has established centres of infection… No area in the world is as vital to American security as the Caribbean… We need a massive injection of money to reset the country on its feet, and this injection can come only from our great, capable friend and neighbor the United States."
Duvalier enraged Fidel Castro of Cuba by voting against the country in a OAS meeting and subsequently at the UN where a trade embargo was imposed on Cuba. Cuba answered by breaking off diplomatic relations and Duvalier subsequently instituted a campaign to rid Haiti of communists.
So you see Duvaliers were of vital interest to US anti-communists strategy and this US sponsored tyrant was responsible for murdering 30,000 of his people and exiling thousands more. Due to this, Haitians (this nation of huge potentials) were deprived of its intelligentsia like doctors and engineers and university professors.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 26, 2010, 3:28 pmDictator of the Month: May 2002
Duvalier came under pressure from the government of John F. Kennedy due to evidence of corruption over aid. Aid was officially suspended in 1962 but the pressure eased following the death of Kennedy. The country assumed the mantle of an anti-communist presence to balance that of nearby Cuba. After Kennedy's assassination, Duvalier claimed that the killing was a result of his placing a curse on Kennedy.
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:44 amThe Haitian people have resisted the economic and military power of the U.S. and others ever since their independence.
WRONG.
U.S. power has forced Haitians to pay great prices – deaths, debt and abuse.
WRONG.
Sexual recreation, sweatshops, abuse, ect. ITS ALL PROPAGANDA. Why are you seeking out that kind of garbage and promoting it? Why don't you seek the truth?
Take a look at THIS PICTURE. What does the sign on the right say?
Why do you think the Haitians would write that?
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 5:52 amThe United States began its occupation of Haiti in 1915 when Woodrow Wilson sent 330 U.S. Marines to Port-au-Prince. The reason for the invasion, according to the Secretary of the Navy, Admiral William Deville Bundy, was to “protect American and foreign” interests. Of course, the public was told the purpose of the mission was to “re-establish peace and order.” "The occupying army suspended the salary of the Haitian president until he agreed to sign off on the liquidation of the Bank of the Nation, which became a branch of City Bank of New York. The president and other blacks were barred entry into the private hotels, restaurants, and clubs of the foreign occupying power. The occupiers didn’t dare reestablish slavery, but they did impose forced labor for the building of public works. And they killed a lot of people. It wasn’t easy to quell the fires of resistance.
The guerrilla chief, Charlemagne Peralte, was exhibited in the public square, crucified on a door to teach the people a lesson."
And those were the acts of Marines, the "civilized people".
Posted by OooKhalid | January 26, 2010, 3:30 pmYou should just stop posting this stuff you don't even understand.
Posted by Haiti | January 27, 2010, 9:18 amSure i understand this Grade-2 stuff. It called IMPERIALISM! Learn it .
Posted by OooKhalid | January 28, 2010, 3:48 pmHaiti earthquake damage: How much aid has the US given Haiti in past crises?
From 2004-06, the US sent $230 million in developmental aid to that nation.
The 2008 regular foreign aid appropriation was $287 MILLION which doesn’t include another $45 million in food aid.
Congress provided $100 million for hurricane relief and reconstruction assistance for Haiti and other Caribbean countries in the FY 2009 continuing appropriations resolution, signed September 2008
in August and September 2008, the US Government committed over $30 million in humanitarian assistance to affected Haitian populations in response to the hurricanes in Haiti.
Again, why do you suppose the Haitians wrote that on that sign?
Posted by eagle007blogger | January 24, 2010, 6:02 amThe Wild White West can keep al its aid which amounts to peanuts compared to the money which is owed to Haiti.
There should really be a scientific study to the real amount the Wild-White-West owes Little-Black-Haiti. Which i'm sure would amount to Billions if not a Trillion….. We don't need Western hypocrisy and their Hollywood style charade of how much they care about us 'savages'.
Keep your aid! and give me back my money beeeyach!!
Posted by OooKhalid | January 27, 2010, 6:29 amUh, the Haitians do not agree with you.
And what is this "us" business? You're not Haitian. America is Haiti's best friend.
Posted by Haiti | January 27, 2010, 9:16 amWhat's with the racism?
Posted by frogwoman | February 10, 2010, 2:05 amAccusations are abound that Zionazi Israelis are back to their barbaric habits of exploitations. Now in another continent, in a little country called Haiti. Yes! Israelis are desperate to show the humane side of their nations after all the negative PR they have been 'unjustly' been getting from the mainstream media recently after they won the 'hearts and minds' of their fellow humans in Gaza.
Not content on harvesting organs from dead or dying(under suspicious circumstances) Palestinians, the Zionazis have allegedly found a window of opportunity to save lives(mostly Jewish) using the organs from dead or dying(under suspicious circumstances) Haitians.
http://www.youtube.com/user/AfriSynergy
It is unknown how truthful AfriSynergy's claim of Zionuts excesses are, however looking into Israel's past barbaric behavior, it is not something unlikely!
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/articles/34/Israel-…
Posted by OooKhalid | January 26, 2010, 3:52 pmU.S. is sending more troops then humanitarian workers to Haiti . The flu is back!!
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=116762&s…
You can be sure that history will repeat itself. The U.S will not leave until it has secured another tyrant to suppress the masses while borrowing Billions from American banks to run this perpetual circle of debt, death and destruction for Haitians. The new leader would probably be 'elected' under US occupied 'democracy'…. until the next uprising and subsequent US occupation.
Death and destruction follows where ever this 21st century Roman Empire goes. Pretty soon the people of Haiti will be chanting 'Death to Israel. Death to America.' on the streets of Port-au-Prince . Mark my words.
Posted by OooKhalid | January 27, 2010, 7:24 amHaitians are grateful. They are not Islamist scumbags like this OooKhalid guy, who is just trying to exploit this tragic event for his own political purposes.
Posted by Haiti | January 27, 2010, 9:20 amWhat's with the bigotry?
Posted by MohammadKF | January 27, 2010, 12:24 pmhttp://www.kabobfest.com/2010/01/proposal-haiti-d…
Posted by frogwoman | February 10, 2010, 2:05 amWe shouldn't be bigoted against terrorists or people like OooKhalid who refer to the "Wild White West" and "Little Black Haiti" and who are obviously trying to use a terrible natural disaster for their own political purposes… namely to criticize the U.S. because they disagree with policies in the Middle East which have nothing to do with Haiti.
Posted by frogwoman | February 10, 2010, 2:09 amHaitians are grateful. They are not Islamist scumbags like this OooKhalid guy, who is just trying to exploit this tragic event for his own political purposes.
Posted by Haiti | January 27, 2010, 9:20 amOooKhalid your little article was debunked by eagle, see above.
And you do not speak for the Haitians.
Posted by what | January 27, 2010, 10:19 amOooKhalid your little article was thoroughly debunked above.
And you do not speak for the Haitians.
Posted by Haiti | January 27, 2010, 10:23 amIf I create a sock puppet named "Haiti," do I get to speak for Haitians too?
Posted by Sean2009 | January 27, 2010, 7:22 pmSean, I'm not sure if these folks straightened out their censorship settings yet or not but I just wanted to let you know I left a few comments yesterday dismissing your usual ridiculousness but they got auto-deleted. I'm not going to bother with trying to keep up with discussions here anymore, since they hosed everything up twice in 1 week and wasted a lot of my time. Don't take that as meaning that your BS goes un-noticed.
Posted by programmer craig | January 27, 2010, 7:52 pmDo you have a point Or do you just troll
Posted by xzfbvgsdv | January 27, 2010, 8:50 pm