WHY have the Haitians been so poor so long?

Part one: Past

When it comes to foreign policies, our nation seems prone to respond to the symptoms rather than seeking out the causes of such problems. Thus, serious problems are not resolved. The relations of the USA and Haiti go back at least to our second president, John Adams, who eyed the Caribbean islands as possible “take over” colonies. Haiti has suffered US interference many times since then. However, the causes of her poverty didn’t begin with us.

Probably few of our citizens read the magazine envío, which focuses on Latin America and the Caribbean countries. The January/February 2010 issue presents an analysis that I wish to share (pages 1-3 of that issue). Quote marks “” will indicate words of the envío editors; but for reasons of brevity, I’ve summarized their elaborations. (I do hope readers will seek out and read the full article, entitled “For Suffering Haiti, The First Word…”)
The envío editors set forth eight “devils” that account for much of Haitians’ suffering these past several centuries. Of course, the recent earthquake they experienced greatly added to their present tragedy.

“The first devil was called Spain. At the end of the 15th century, Spaniards invaded the Americas…” Columbus and his sailors committed mass murders. New diseases were introduced. The indigenous Taino population, then about half a million, became 30,000 in 20 years. No Taino remained after 50 years.

“The second devil was called France.” They drove the Spaniards out of the western portion of Hispañola and took over Haiti. Slaves from Africa were introduced to work on sugar plantations. Slaves died by the thousands, but were continually replaced. Such slavery certainly didn’t manifest France’s claim to liberty, equality, and fraternity! The slaves finally rebelled against French cruelty, led by François Dominique Toussaint Louverture, defeating the troops of Napoleon. Thus, in 1804, Haiti declared its independence and was the first country to legally abolish slavery. But their land had been greatly damaged by the huge sugar plantations, by deforestation, and by the ravages of war. A third of their population had died from the battles.

“The third devil was called Europe.” With defeat, France blockaded the island. No nation recognized Haiti’s independence. Europe supported France’s claim for 150 million gold francs in “war damages” to be paid by Haiti. Haiti, being abandoned, was saddled, having to use its resources to pay “the French debt.” Europe did not want a nation of former slaves to succeed.

“The fourth devil was called the United States. US bankers lent money to Haiti to build railroads and banana plantations.” However, the loans (and ever-increasing interest rates) became too large for the poor republic to pay, and it was clear they would be in perpetual debt to others. (See John Perkins, Confession of an Economic Hit Man, which indicates how major countries keep the poor ones in perpetual debt, and under control.) Thus, Haiti remained beholden to “outsiders,” without relief. President Wilson sent in the Marines in 1915. The customs house and tax collection offices were occupied and the gold reserves were taken to New York to “protect” them. The US withdrew in 1934 after 19 years of occupation. The Marines left a well-trained national guard behind to stop any future rebellion by the Haitians. Our Secretary of State justified the long occupation saying, “the Negro race is incapable of governing itself.”

“The fifth devil was called François Duvalier, the infamous ‘Papa Doc.’” This “leader,” backed by the US army, terrorized the populace and created a vicious militia called “tonton macoute” that committed many atrocities and killed 30,000 people. Upon his death, his son Jean Claude (Baby Doc) succeeded him. In 1986, after 30 years of tyranny, a popular movement deposed Jean Claude. Finally, Haiti could hold a democratic election.

“The sixth devil was called the Vatican. In 1991, Jean Bertrand Aristide, a very popular priest coming out of the base communities in Haiti, launched a campaign and won the presidency.” Pope John Paul II, an opponent of Liberation Theology, opposed Aristide. Aristide was “allowed” to serve only a few months before the US government facilitated his overthrow. The Haitian general that led the coup had been trained at the School of the Americas. The Vatican promptly accepted the government of the new “dictator.” Aristide now resides in South Africa, displaced from his own country. “To erase the evidence of US and Vatican participation in General Cedras’ organized slaughter, the Marines carried off 160,000 pages of secret Haitian archives.”

“The seventh devil was called the International Monetary Fund. In 1996 René Préval was elected president of Haiti…he wasn’t really president at all…since… the IMF and World Bank were the ones that controlled the Haitian economy.” Haitians used to grow their own rice but were forced into the “free market” by the IMF. “The peasant rice growers, who were the majority, became either beggars or boat people. Today, Haiti buys all its rice from the United States.” And it’s all transgenic rice.

Now, will there be an eighth “devil”? “The earthquake that destroyed Haiti didn’t start on January 12 [2010] but more than 500 years ago.” Will we see a free Haiti, with dignity, much less poverty, having hope?

[Coming next will be part II, Concern with Haiti’s Future]