Haiti News Update:
But a little history first:
I spent a week watching teams of Haitians burrow into collapsed supermarkets in search of survivors, work through the night to pull relatives from beneath tonnes of concrete, and organise themselves into communities of the displaced to better facilitate the distribution of food and water. But as aid bottle-necked at the airport and international response teams struggled to find their way, the questions began to surface: Why was it taking so long to get help to the people who needed it most? Was it really so dangerous on the streets that international rescuers needed to go home as darkness fell? Why were mainstream news organisations calling Haitians "looters" when they were taking food and water from destroyed stores in order to survive?
But as aid bottle-necked at the airport and international response teams struggled to find their way, the questions began to surface: Why was it taking so long to get help to the people who needed it most? Was it really so dangerous on the streets that international rescuers needed to go home as darkness fell? Why were mainstream news organisations calling Haitians "looters" when they were taking food and water from destroyed stores in order to survive?
Here’s a round-up of some of odds and ends that I haven’t gotten around to posting until now. First, there’s this piece for Haiti Liberte: WikiLeaks Reveal: Expecting Civilian Deaths, US Embassy Approved of Deadly Attack on Crowded Haitian Slum. The article describes how a top Embassy official agreed with private sector leaders like Reginald Boulos, who now holds influence over Haiti’s reconstruction, that MINUSTAH should attack Cite Soleil knowing full well that innocent Haitians would be killed by the “peacekeepers” during the operation.
First, there’s this piece for Haiti Liberte: WikiLeaks Reveal: Expecting Civilian Deaths, US Embassy Approved of Deadly Attack on Crowded Haitian Slum. The article describes how a top Embassy official agreed with private sector leaders like Reginald Boulos, who now holds influence over Haiti’s reconstruction, that MINUSTAH should attack Cite Soleil knowing full well that innocent Haitians would be killed by the “peacekeepers” during the operation.
(Boston, September 20, 2011)— The Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti calls on the United Nations to hold its peacekeeping troops, known by their French acronym MINUSTAH, legally accountable for human rights violations committed in Haiti. “MINUSTAH operates in Haiti with very little legal accountability for their action as a result of a legal waiver signed between the UN and the Government of Haiti,” according to Nicole Phillips, staff attorney at the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti. Phillips explains, “without this special treatment, the families of victims who died of cholera could be entitled to legal compensation under Haitian law for MINUSTAH’s negligence in disposing of their waste and for their failure to conduct an immediate investigation. Similarly, victims of sexual assault, including the 18-year old boy raped by the Uruguayan troops, could seek criminal action and civil damages against their MINUSTAH assailants in a Haitian court.”
“MINUSTAH operates in Haiti with very little legal accountability for their action as a result of a legal waiver signed between the UN and the Government of Haiti,” according to Nicole Phillips, staff attorney at the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti. Phillips explains, “without this special treatment, the families of victims who died of cholera could be entitled to legal compensation under Haitian law for MINUSTAH’s negligence in disposing of their waste and for their failure to conduct an immediate investigation. Similarly, victims of sexual assault, including the 18-year old boy raped by the Uruguayan troops, could seek criminal action and civil damages against their MINUSTAH assailants in a Haitian court.”
1. Death threat against offices of Haiti Liberté in Haiti On September 2, the office of Haiti Liberté newspaper in Port au Prince received death threats by telephone from an individual claiming to be Jodel Champlain. He is a notorious paramilitary, leader of the terrorist organization FRAPH founded in 1993, and accused murderer. In 2004, he was charged with two sets of murder, including the infamous Raboteau Massacre of 1994, by the illegal poast-2004 coup regime of Gerard Latortue. He was acquitted. Then 'minister of justice' Bernard Gousse indicated to the press at the time that is Chamblain were found guilty, he should be pardoned by the coup regime for his "important services to the nation." Chamblain appeared with Jean-Claude Duvalier as his chief-of-security upon Duvalier's return from exile on 16 January 2011. Read more on Chamblain here: http://en.wikipedia.org/...
On September 2, the office of Haiti Liberté newspaper in Port au Prince received death threats by telephone from an individual claiming to be Jodel Champlain. He is a notorious paramilitary, leader of the terrorist organization FRAPH founded in 1993, and accused murderer. In 2004, he was charged with two sets of murder, including the infamous Raboteau Massacre of 1994, by the illegal poast-2004 coup regime of Gerard Latortue. He was acquitted. Then 'minister of justice' Bernard Gousse indicated to the press at the time that is Chamblain were found guilty, he should be pardoned by the coup regime for his "important services to the nation."
Chamblain appeared with Jean-Claude Duvalier as his chief-of-security upon Duvalier's return from exile on 16 January 2011. Read more on Chamblain here: http://en.wikipedia.org/...
Clinton already has a remarkable degree of influence over Haiti’s economic policies: in the country’s political circles he is referred to as the “governor of Haiti.” In addition to being the United Nations’ special envoy for the country, he is co-president of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission (IHRC, or CIRH in French and Spanish), which was established to monitor international aid for reconstruction after a January 2010 earthquake. (The other co-president is acting prime minister Jean-Max Bellerive, a holdover from the previous administration serving because so far the Parliament has refused to approve any of Martelly’s choices for prime minister.) The CIRH has received much of the blame for the slow pace of reconstruction, and its mandate expires in October. The position on Martelly’s advisory council seems to guarantee Clinton a leading role in Haiti even if the CIRH is closed down. (AlterPresse, Haiti, Sept. 8; Haïti Libre, Haiti, Sept. 9)
The leader of the Papaye Peasant Movement (MPP) Chavannes Jean Baptiste goes further. He says that this ratification would be a total abandonment of what remains of Haiti's national sovereignty. He protests against foreign interference in the appointment of a U.N. official whose presence on the political spectrum would be aimed at consolidating a trusteeship over Haiti. He also condemns the flagrant violation of Article 157 of the Constitution, whose provisions regarding the number of years of residency are incompatible with the current situation of the Prime Minister designate
The story of Martelly's presidency is more troubled even than the article suggests. Below is aneditorial from Haiti Liberte several weeks ago that explains some deeper meaning to Martelly's visit to Chilein August. It is likely that Martelly and MINUSTAH are anticipating rebellion in Haitias the misery in the displacement camps and cholera zones drags on and worsens.
Monday, September 12 : "...we have no obligation to take as a person, who not only will be the cause of a violation of the Constitution, but also, who will bury the strand of sovereignty that we still have in the country." http://www.haitilibre.com/... Tuesday, September 13 : "...I do not know what Mr. Conille will do, or the tendency of other Senators, just for me, Gary Conille symbolizes guardianship, he symbolizes all that we believe that should not be done in the countr [...] Mr Conille is a person who came in the suitcase of Mr. Clinton, can you imagine if Mr. Conille becomes Prime Minister [...] He is the representative of the United Nations, it is the United Nations [...] there is no one who can guarantee me that if he became Prime Minister, he will defend the interests of Haiti..." http://www.haitilibre.com/...
Tuesday, September 13 : "...I do not know what Mr. Conille will do, or the tendency of other Senators, just for me, Gary Conille symbolizes guardianship, he symbolizes all that we believe that should not be done in the countr [...] Mr Conille is a person who came in the suitcase of Mr. Clinton, can you imagine if Mr. Conille becomes Prime Minister [...] He is the representative of the United Nations, it is the United Nations [...] there is no one who can guarantee me that if he became Prime Minister, he will defend the interests of Haiti..." http://www.haitilibre.com/...
Bill Clinton’s chief of staff proposed for prime minister The U.S. doesn’t just rely on Minustah to protect its interests. Michel Martelly would have never become Haiti’s president if the U.S. hadn’t stepped into the counting of the first round of ballots in the November elections. On Jan. 30, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited Haiti to get the vote count accepted which put Martelly into the election’s second round to be held in March. Since he was inaugurated on May 14, Martelly has proposed two far-rightist politicians as candidates for prime minister, but the majority in Haiti’s parliament rejected them.
The U.S. doesn’t just rely on Minustah to protect its interests. Michel Martelly would have never become Haiti’s president if the U.S. hadn’t stepped into the counting of the first round of ballots in the November elections.
On Jan. 30, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited Haiti to get the vote count accepted which put Martelly into the election’s second round to be held in March.
Since he was inaugurated on May 14, Martelly has proposed two far-rightist politicians as candidates for prime minister, but the majority in Haiti’s parliament rejected them.
In mid-October 2010, a cholera epidemic flared up in Haiti. The epidemic continues, and over 6,000 Haitians have died of the cholera. Until Fall 2010 there had been no record of cholera on the island of Hispaniola. A United Nations (U.N., MINUSTAH) base was discovered to be dumping raw sewage, and it was immediately suspected of being the source of the cholera. Dr. Renaud Piarroux is a major scientific authority on cholera epidemics, an expert in infectious diseases and parasitology. He holds an M.D. in Pediatrics and a Ph.D. in Microbiology, and he is currently a Professor of Parasitology at Aix Marseille University, Marseille, France. He was the lead researcher of a scientific article that tracked Haiti’s cholera contamination to the U.N. MINUSTAH Nepalese military camp upstream of the Artibonite River and its Meille tributary. More details about Dr. Piarroux and his work follow the interview.
Dr. Renaud Piarroux is a major scientific authority on cholera epidemics, an expert in infectious diseases and parasitology. He holds an M.D. in Pediatrics and a Ph.D. in Microbiology, and he is currently a Professor of Parasitology at Aix Marseille University, Marseille, France. He was the lead researcher of a scientific article that tracked Haiti’s cholera contamination to the U.N. MINUSTAH Nepalese military camp upstream of the Artibonite River and its Meille tributary. More details about Dr. Piarroux and his work follow the interview.
What the 2010 earthquake in Haiti did to the island nation's education system may, in the long run, be less damaging than what privatization advocates, backed by powerful foreign interests, may do.... Some 90 percent of schools in Haiti are private schools, and according to UN statistics, primary school tuition can often represent 40 percent of a poor family's income--forcing parents, at the very least, to choose which of their children they'll send to school. Only about two-thirds of Haiti's kids were enrolled in primary school before the earthquake, and less than a third reach sixth grade. Secondary schools enrolled only one in five eligible-age children, which is one reason why the illiteracy rate in Haiti is over half -- 57.24 percent. Poverty and lack of access to education has led to mass child servitude, known as the restavèk system, with an estimated 225,000 Haitian youth living in a state of bondage.... "There's a real opportunity here, I can taste it. That is why I've flown [to Haiti] so many times." Meet Paul Vallas. The 58-year-old Vallas is the former CEO of the Chicago and Philadelphia public school systems and was hired in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as superintendent of the Recovery School District of Louisiana that oversaw the transformation of the New Orleans school system.
Some 90 percent of schools in Haiti are private schools, and according to UN statistics, primary school tuition can often represent 40 percent of a poor family's income--forcing parents, at the very least, to choose which of their children they'll send to school. Only about two-thirds of Haiti's kids were enrolled in primary school before the earthquake, and less than a third reach sixth grade.
Secondary schools enrolled only one in five eligible-age children, which is one reason why the illiteracy rate in Haiti is over half -- 57.24 percent. Poverty and lack of access to education has led to mass child servitude, known as the restavèk system, with an estimated 225,000 Haitian youth living in a state of bondage....
"There's a real opportunity here, I can taste it. That is why I've flown [to Haiti] so many times." Meet Paul Vallas. The 58-year-old Vallas is the former CEO of the Chicago and Philadelphia public school systems and was hired in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as superintendent of the Recovery School District of Louisiana that oversaw the transformation of the New Orleans school system.
Given the urgency of Haiti's needs and the weakness of its institutions, the only option was hands-on international assistance, but even this faced an insuperable difficulty. Farmer argues that the origins of government failure in Haiti were hostile external interventions, first by France in the colonial era and then by the United States, the most recent instance being U.S. involvement in the murky exile of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2004. A democratically elected populist politician with a large following among the poor, Aristide was ousted by gang-related violence and has since blamed his loss of power on the intervention of the United States, which facilitated his exile. Thus, both deep history and recent events have left Haitians with a widespread suspicion of external intervention, which has severely constrained even benign assistance.
So far, at least, it has not. Months after the visit, Canaraan is without signs of progress or construction, and residents former optimism is increasingly guarded, if not abandoned outright. The future of textile factories in Canaraan remains a question without an answer, but it is worth asking why powerful actors, both Haitian and international, continually present them as a cure-all for Haitiâns many ills. Factory projects have been a staple of USAID projects for a generation, and enjoy the prominent and high-profile support of figures such as Bill Clinton and Ban Ki Moon. The Factory Solution predates the earthquake, and has not been shaken by it. It now represents the single most significant international effort to impact the economic lives of Haitian people.
Further north of Port-au-Prince, the North Pole Initiative plans to build 2,000 homes, connected to new factories through a rapid-transit bus route, and 100 acres of industrial greenhouses. Mevs hopes to grow genetically modified chocolate-coffee plants, which are under development in the Dominican Republic, in some of the greenhouses. Clinton family influence on Haiti’s redevelopment doesn’t end with Bill. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton oversees the U.S. Agency for International Development, which controls $1.14 billion in public reconstruction funds for Haiti. That money is expected to be spent through the end of the 2012 fiscal year. Once USAID approves funding for public or private projects, they are sent to the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission for approval, which is co-chaired by Bill Clinton and Haiti’s former prime minister, Jean-Max Bellerive.
Clinton family influence on Haiti’s redevelopment doesn’t end with Bill. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton oversees the U.S. Agency for International Development, which controls $1.14 billion in public reconstruction funds for Haiti. That money is expected to be spent through the end of the 2012 fiscal year.
Once USAID approves funding for public or private projects, they are sent to the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission for approval, which is co-chaired by Bill Clinton and Haiti’s former prime minister, Jean-Max Bellerive.
When Pres. Aristide opened his Univeristy, several young Haitians from the remote and poor area in Haiti applied at the medical school. They were not able to continue their studies after the 2004 coup d'etat because the US backed de facto Government Gerard Latortue unallowed the univeristy to reopen his door. Instead, the government let the US and then after MINUSTAH[UN mission] Brazilian troops occupied the space of the University for few years that followed the the overthrowing.Thanks to the help of the Cuban government, they fled to Cuba and finished their degree there. They are now proudly serving their communities.
The bodies of five Haitian women and five men were recovered by search-and-rescue teams, according to Morgan. It was not immediately clear whether there were any children on board.
The continued influx of Haitians to the Turks and Caicos Islands “threatens paradise”, according to a confidential cable from the United States of America’s (USA) Embassy in Nassau, The Bahamas. The US Embassy also declared in another confidential cable created on February 1st, 2010, that TCI’s “migrant handling capabilities are at breaking point”. These two classified cables, which painted a very grim picture of the illegal immigration problem in the Turks and Caicos Islands, were among those released on August 30th about the Nassau Embassy, by whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks. The confidential cable which stated the Haitian influx “threatened paradise” was classified by a Robert Witajewski on January 27, 2004. That particular cable stated: “If the Bahamians are anxious and concerned about the impact of a large illegal Haitian presence in their country, citizens of the Turks and Caicos, with less than 10 percent of the population of The Bahamas, are petrified. ....
Reliable Haiti Sources
Axis of Logic
IJDH Does amazing work in Haiti. I donate to them whenever I can. Please support IJDH's work.
IJDH draws on its founders’ internationally-acclaimed success accompanying Haiti’s poor majority in the fields of law, medicine and social justice activism. We seek the restoration of the rule of law and democracy in the short term, and work for the long-term sustainable change necessary to avert Haiti’s next crisis.
— Paul Farmer, Co-Founder, Partners in Health
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti:
@KatzOnEarth Jonathan M. Katz Danticat: To make a difference support grassroots women's organizations ... that deal with gender violence including FAVILEK & @IJDH
6 Jul via web Unfavorite Undo Retweet Reply
Haiti’s grassroots movement – including labor unions, women’s groups, educators and human rights activists, support committees for political prisoners, and agricultural cooperatives – are funneling needed aid to those most hit by the earthquake. They are doing what they can – with the most limited of funds – to make a difference. Please take this chance to lend them your support. All donations to the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund will be forwarded to our partners on the ground to help them rebuild what has been destroyed.
Haiti diary book day posted on Sundays (biweekly) : Current book is The Black Jacobins: Chapter 4 You can see our book list is here. Have a recommendation?
Public Archive has three excellent articles about Haiti: The Black Jacobins and The Black Jacobins Online
Haiti slavery- Indulgence had the white colonial in its grip from childhood. "I want an egg," said a colonial child. "There are none." "Then I want two." This notorious anecdote was characteristic. (The Black Jacobins, P29)