Alex's answer to Why is Haiti so poor and very unstable?

MS in IO Psychology, Grand Canyon University (Graduated 2019) · Author has 601 answers and 149.8K answer views · 6mo ·

Before we can understand why Haiti is re-tard-ed we also have to understand how the country was re-tard-ed by foreign meddling from the ‘international community’ because their lack of development problem was not created in a vacuum apart from the burdens imposed on the country by Western powers. If you repeatedly drop a child on its head as baby and feed it a high sugar high trans-fat diet and give it lead contaminated water to drink it will likely grow up to be a re-tard-ed adult. It’s not much different when you impose an insurmountable debt on a country in its infancy and prevent it from engaging in foreign trade with others.

BTW re-tard and it’s past participle are not slurs; they are accurate descriptions of what occurs/occurred. Try that with any other actual slur.

re-tard-ed: to delay or impede the development or progress of : to slow up especially by preventing or hindering advance or accomplishment

After independence, Haiti was originally forced to pay France 150 million francs for the loss of the plantations and free labor. This was negotiated down to 100 million francs in 1838 the early 19th century equivalent to $21,685,135,571.48 in inflation adjusted dollars which is still greater than Haiti’s GDP 200 years later. Paying the debt, which took over a century to pay off, was the only means to gain French and western recognition of sovereignty and the ability to engage in foreign trade as well as the only way to avoid being bombarded by the French navy at the time.

In 1914 the Wilson admin sent marines to seize $500,000 in gold reserves from the Haitian treasury and transported it to New York. 110 years later that is the inflation adjusted equivalent of > $15 million. In 1915 the Wilson Admin invaded Haiti and imposed U.S. marshal law for nearly 20 years at the behest of Citibank, which was then known as National City Bank of New York, installing various puppet regimes, killing several thousand civilians, imposing a two year system of forced labor called the corvee to build highways for U.S. military transport and press censorship on the populace. The corvee system by itself resulted in 5,500 deaths.

Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations

U.S. Invasion and Occupation of Haiti, 1915–34 Following the assassination of the Haitian President in July of 1915, President Woodrow Wilson sent the United States Marines into Haiti to restore order and maintain political and economic stability in the Caribbean. This occupation continued until 1934. President Woodrow Wilson The United States Government's interests in Haiti existed for decades prior to its occupation. As a potential naval base for the United States, Haiti’s stability concerned U.S. diplomatic and defense officials who feared Haitian instability might result in foreign rule of Haiti. In 1868, President Andrew Johnson suggested the annexation of the island of Hispaniola, consisting of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, to secure a U.S. defensive and economic stake in the West Indies. From 1889 to 1891, Secretary of State James Blaine unsuccessfully sought a lease of Mole-Saint Nicolas, a city on Haiti’s northern coast strategically located for a naval base. In 1910, President William Howard Taft granted Haiti a large loan in hopes that Haiti could pay off its international debt, thus lessening foreign influence. The attempt failed due to the enormity of the debt and the internal instability of the country. France, as the former colonizer of Haiti, retained strong economic and diplomatic ties with the Haitian Government. In the 1824 Franco-Haitian Agreement, France agreed to recognize Haitian independence if Haiti paid a large indemnity. This kept Haiti in a constant state of debt and placed France in a position of power over Haiti’s trade and finances. Haitian Coat of Arms Although unhappy about the Haitians' close connection to France, the United States became increasingly concerned with heightened German activity and influence in Haiti. At the start of the 20th century, German presence increased with German merchants establishing trading branches in Haiti that dominated commercial business in the area. German men married Haitian women to get around laws denying foreigners land ownership and established roots in the community. The United States considered Germany its chief rival in the Caribbean and feared German control of Haiti would give them a powerful advantage in the region. As a result of increased instability in Haiti in the years before 1915, the United States heightened its activity to deter foreign influence. Between 1911 and 1915, seven presidents were assassinated or overthrown in Haiti, increasing

https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/haiti

Massacres perpetrated in the 20th Century in Haiti

1902: Civil war The government of Boisrond-Canal and General Nord Alexis fought Anténor Firmin’s rebel troops (Nord Alexis eventually prevailed and governed until 1908). 1902 (August 8): In Petit-Goâve, 450 civilians died in a fire which destroyed the town; it had allegedly been lit by the government forces of General Carrié to force out the pro-Firmin forces. Carrié later refuted the allegation. _ * (Gaillard, 1993: 70-73) 1902 (September 17): 10 “disarmed peasants” from the government forces were killed on orders of the pro-Firmin general Laborde Corvoisier after a battle in Limbé (in the North of the country). The first six were adolescents. They were killed in an infirmary where they were being treated for wounds received during the battle. The other four were killed by a firing squad “as an example,” following an order from Laborde Corvoisier. The approximate number of civilians and unarmed combatants killed during the civil war remains unknown but, according to historian Roger Gaillard, the peasants paid “a heavy price.” _ * (Gaillard, 1993: 180-181) 1902-1908: The dictatorial regime of Nord Alexis 1908 (March 14): At least 27 political opponents or alleged opponents, most of them from the intellectual and social elites, were arrested and executed in the evening of March 14; some were also mutilated. Massillon Coicou, one of the most prominent Haitian poets of the early 20th century, was the first victim of the killings (his death inspired Le Poète assassiné by the French poet Apollinaire.) Coicou’s body was decapitated, then thrown into a mass grave. _ During the entire duration of the dictatorship of Nord Alexis, opponents were subjected to summary executions, usually upon direct orders from Alexis himself. However, women and children were systematically excluded from repression (even the families of the leaders of the various rebellions against Alexis’s regime). After the fall and exile of Nord Alexis, the various political and military leaders responsible for the March 14 killing were tried and pardoned. _ *** (Jolibois, 1988: 46-48 and 213-54; Gaillard, 1995: 267-272 ; Gaillard, 1998: 86). 1915 (March 27): Guillaume Vilbrun Sam came to power after an insurrection and was elected President of Haiti 1915 (July 27): Armed supporters of President Vilbrun Sam and General Oscar Etienne’s troops slaughtered 167 political prisoners who had been jailed in the National Penitentiary (in Port-au-Prince) during the previous few days. They were killed in their cells by firing squads. The vast majority of the victims belonged to the social and intellectual elites of the capital. The following day, Vilbrun Sam and Etienne were dragged respectively from the consulates of France and of the Dominican Republic, where they had sought refuge, and were lynched by a mob. Several of the persons responsible for the killing (prison guards and soldiers) were tried and acquitted in July 1917. The lynching of Vilbrun Sam provided the pretext for the United States t

https://www.sciencespo.fr/mass-violence-war-massacre-resistance/en/document/massacres-perpetrated-20th-century-haiti.html

As Wikileaks exposed in exhumed diplomatic cables between the U.S. and Haiti, U.S.G. supported the dictatorships of Papa Doc Duvalier until 1963 and Baby Doc Duvalier from 1971 until his exile in 1986 in military aid that included both weapons and training that were ultimately used against the Haitian populace.

After the World bank, IMF and USAID encouraged Haiti to make sweeping economic reforms in the 1980s, as a condition of lending agreements and aid, including lowering tariffs on imported food and eliminating import quotas the U.S. began dumping heavily subsidized surplus food in Haitian markets at below market prices putting Haitian farmers out of business and making the country dependent on foreign imports and food aid. For instance, after Haiti eliminated import quotas on rice and lowered the tariff from 50% to 3% the U.S. began flooding the country with U.S. subsidized rice from the port of Miami. Today 80% of Haiti’s rice is imported. In 2016, USDA dumped 500 metric tons of peanuts in the country for free, putting 150,000 Haitian peanut farmers in jeopardy as they cannot give away their crops for free.

How US Crop Dumping Keeps Haiti Poor and Dependent

Crop dumping is the transfer of massive amounts of food into an economy for free or at a below market price to feed “starving children.” The intention is lovely, but crop dumping destroys local economies and forces dependence on more foreign aid.

https://fee.org/articles/how-us-crop-dumping-keeps-haiti-poor-and-dependent/

Starved for Justice: International Complicity in Systematic Violations of the Right to Food in Haiti

Sandra C. Wisner, L.L.M., Leiden University; J.D., University of Windsor; B.A. (Hons), University of Toronto. Senior Staff Attorney at the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH). I would like to thank Alicia Yamin, Lecturer on Law and Senior Fellow at the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, Adjunct Senior Lecturer on Health Policy and Management, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, and Senior Advisor on Human Rights and Health Policy at Partners in Health; as well as Eszter Boldis and Jasmine Shin for their contributions to this article. Starved for Justice: International Complicity in Systematic Violations of the Right to Food in Haiti Sandra C. Wisner Abstract A series of international economic assistance programs in Haiti has led to a protracted and worsening food crisis in the country, amplifying the country’s vulnerability to starvation and malnutrition, as well as natural disasters, like earthquakes and pandemics. These economic programs, which dealt a crushing blow to the country’s domestic agriculture and left the erstwhile self-sustaining nation vulnerable to chronic food insecurity, have ultimately impeded the ability of Haitian people, and their future generations, to enjoy their right to food, health, education, work, and other fundamental human rights. The lack of responsibility taken by those who imposed these policies—among them, international financial institutions like the World Bank—reveals the need for foreign actor compliance with human rights obligations and remediation. This paper proposes that the food insecurity Haitians face today constitutes a violation of the right to food—a territorial and extraterritorial obligation that foreign actors have pledged themselves, both under the United Nations Charter and other human rights instruments, to promote and respect. As such, this paper outlines the emerging recognition of extraterritorial obligations (“ETOs”) around the globe; suggests available mechanisms at the domestic, regional, and international level for adjudication of cases arising from ETOs; and proposes ETOs’ application to traditional policies and remedies meant to protect individuals from harm and compensate them for harm caused. Table of Contents Introduction 411 I. Socio-Historical Context: Setting the Stage for Violations of the Right to Food 414 A. Blow to Haiti’s Agricultural Self-Sufficiency 415 B. The Effects of Over-Reliance on Food Insecurity 420 C. Undermining the Right to Food 424 D. Beyond Just Hunger: The Effects of Food Insecurity 426 II. National and Extra-Territorial Obligations and the Right to Food 431 A. Haiti’s Obligations 431 B. Extraterritorial Obligations: The United States and Other Member States of IFIs 433 III. Remedy and Representation 439 A. Judicial Remedies 440 B. Policy Measures 444 Conclusion 448 Introduction On August 14, 2021, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the southern peninsula of Haiti, followed shortly b

https://hrlr.law.columbia.edu/hrlr-online/starved-for-justice-international-complicity-in-systematic-violations-of-the-right-to-food-in-haiti/

Under the Bush Admin, CIA backed 2004 Coup against Haiti’s first democratically elected president, Jean Bertrand Aristide. This was confirmed by the former French ambassador to Haiti: NYT: Demanding Reparations and Ending Up in Exile

The Obama admin added to the dogpile not only by continuing agricultural dumping masquerading as humanitarian aid but also, as I noted 8 years ago in Haiti Open for Plunder, rewarding the vast majority of contracts to rebuild the island to American contractors and funding an industrial park for foreign factory owners built on valuable farmland seized from several hundred native farmers. A few U.S. and Canadian mining companies got cheap mining concessions amounting to 15% of Haiti’s territory, after the World bank and Haitian elites conspired to unilateral change the country’s mining regulations, including a North Carolina firm who had Hillary Clinton’s brother on the board of directors.

While it’s plausible that Haiti could have turned out the same as Jamaica, Trinidad, Barbados or any other majority black Caribbean tourist trap without foreign meddling stunting its development it could have also turned out the same way it currently exists. We’ll never know unless we could view an alternative timeline in a parallel world.

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