HAITI AND THE INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM: Realities, facts and Perspectives - By: Pierre R Charleus
On January 12th 2010 Haiti, the poorest country in the western hemisphere, was struck by an earthquake of magnitude 7.0.The damage was devastating. More than 500,000 people were killed and an estimated 300,000 others injured. The unfortunate event has also caused 105,000 homes completely destroyed, more than 208,000 damaged, while 1.3 million people have left the capital, Port au Prince (mostly shattered) to seek shelter elsewhere. According to the Haitian authorities, the total value of the damages and losses are estimated to 7.9 billion US dollars, an equivalent to 120 per cent of Haiti's 2009 GDP according to economists. Since being sovereign from French slavery, this earthquake was the worst disaster in two centuries of this Island. That day, the struggle was watched live on television as the catastrophe continued to unfold. Women and children trapped under rubbles, adults searching for relatives, no electricity. Husbands and wives crying for help, communications systems down. Resiliently, neighbors helping each other, digging out of the rubbles without any sufficient tools, in search of possible survivors. The government officials, including the health care professionals have been trapped with no adequate emergency materials to treat the victims in critical medical condition. At that point, it was clear to the world that the Haitian authorities and the victims were overwhelmed by the scale of the unprecedented episodes, to which also they were incapable to respond immediately. As the international community has started to rush assistances to Haiti in the aftermath of the tragedy, one of my co-workers approached me arguing that, despite the generosity and compassion of the international community vis a vis this country, It [Haiti] will remain the same afterwards. Without a bit of hesitation, I quickly rejected that invalid assertion and also explained objectively that the failures of the international community, towards this nation, are mostly caused by the channels using to attain their end goal.
Therefore, I do strongly believe however other mechanisms should be introduced in perspective to facilitate any eventual stabilization of the political and economical realm of this county in order to prevent future cataclysms.
In that respect, I frame my argument within the core values of Interdependency paradigm through which the international community can use their economic tools in convergence with their instrumentalist institutions such as IMF, World Bank to accomplish durable solutions un Haiti. In fact, as the world has become more integrative, cooperative and less polarizing, relations between nation-states are taking a sharp turn towards inclusiveness.
Although, The International system is no longer viewed as anarchic as proponents of realism theoretical described it where balance of power through military capacities is relevant for security concerns but therefore, depends “on economic liberty, on a sense of hope and possibility at home and abroad”, according to James Traub a preeminent thinker and writer in foreign affairs for the New York Times1. In that regard, Mr. Traub proposes to emphasis a geo-strategic plan that can eliminate potential risks in a specific state and avoid its neighbors being affected directly. In that case, he concludes that “any social, natural and economic destabilization from a nation is a treat to its neighbors”. Over the recent years, Haiti has been shaped by many events that always force either a flow of refugees fleeing the country for political persecutions or seeking economical stabilities in Canada, United States or Dominican Republic. In respect to the current situation in Haiti, we can conclude that Mr. Straub’s conclusion expresses a clear mandate to the developed states to engage in direct and constructive efforts to facilitate failed neighboring states to gain sustainable economic development and political stability.
To implement that objective, cooperation through international institutions constitutes the preferable alternatives.
This venue, greatly explored by Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye in their theory of complex interdependence, outlines key points to consider in facilitating bold changes in democracy, human rights and good governance within a failed Nation2. Through instrumentalist Institutions, NGO’s including the civil actors as well,the international community can concentrate their constructive efforts to shape the internal system of Haiti in order to facilitate a continuing development.
To be attained, they would have to engage a convergent process to reinforce its national administrations, establish a progressive and democratic society and also promote an open economic development with of course a disengagement of a corrupted regime.
According to the latest report of the Canadian for International Development Agency (CIDA),3 Haiti is the second country, after Afghanistan that has received more financial support from Canada. However, because of the absence of a sustainable regime and good governance, the “development of that underdeveloped” country, to repeat the expression of Andre Gunter Frank, 4 remains an unachievable task. In the aftermath of the deadly Earthquake, precisely March 31st, the International Community in an emergency meeting at the United Nations, with members such as France, Canada, United States and other international partners have pledged $5.3 billion U.S. dollars for the next two years and $9.9 billion in total for the next three years and beyond to support effort to reconstruct Haiti.
The reconstruction process should be implemented within the core value of the theoretical Interdependence paradigm for numerous factors. First of all, Haiti’s circumstances after the earthquake are similar to conditions of many devastated nations-states after World War l in 1914.To Harmonize Europe then, idealist like US President Woodrow Wilson proposed the creation of today’s United Nations. The League of Nations then, was created with the main objective to help facilitate relation nation-states through collaboration at different levels.
Second, since Haiti is part of the international system, its anarchism and recurrent degradation constitute a gigantic regional and inter-regional threat. Therefore, as Keohane and Nye mentioned, the International Community involvement must be considered to help alleviate its development not “in spite of self interest, but because of self interest:”
However, the achievement of any subsequent plan to create economic stability and social development by any foreign institutions could be facing many obstacles masterminded by proponents of dependency theorists on the ground.
In fact, these neo-Marxists with a nationalist umbrella (faux nationalist) 5often argued that Haiti has never been poor but became impoverished.
That impoverishment has been done in two different levels according to Haitian Neo-Marxist. First, they underlined slavery under which the colonialist exploiter France has occupied the Island in the 17th Century. Second, the incorporation into the world economy through the structuralism /globalization by expansionist “first-world” powers constitute another main reason behind Haiti malignant misery argue Haitian’s neo-marxist. In that regard, Haitian faux nationalist neo-marxist, consider the capitalism and its infusion into the national economy and investment as a form of neo colonialism and rejects its implementation vehemently. In the meantime, political leaders and activists occasionally hijacked the grassroots’ unawareness which they also use to orchestrate their political campaign against what they called capitalist-imperialism in order to meet their political will.
A tangible reference is dated to 1990 when Haiti has experienced its first democratic election supervised then by the United Nations.
Through this election emerged a former priest to the highest office. At that time, former President Jean Bertrand Aristide has campaigned fervently against imperialism.
However, when being ousted by a military coup, he has primarily chosen to take refuge in the United States, which has felicitated also his return to power through a coalition force hugely composed of the United States and Canada in 19946.
To summarize, we can conclude that any qualitative plan to modernize the country after the catastrophic earthquake, would not be an easy assignment for the International Community. Internal political leaders through their usual hypocritical attitudes toward their own citizens will continue to regard International institutions such as IMF, IBRD as modern “tools of imperialism”. Clearly, nevertheless, “the faux nationalists “must not forget that 11 days prior to the earthquake, Haiti has just celebrated its 204 years of being an independent nation. Despite being a free nation, the trend of quality life and economic deprivation never stop digressing.
For example, Haiti has the highest rate than in other countries in the region in maternal and infant mortality, and less than half of its population has access to a decent health care has reported the world Health organization.7
Moreover, less than half of the citizens have access to drinking water, while 30% of children are suffering from chronic malnutrition and 40% of households are living in food insecurity. These data gathered by the WHO prior to the earthquake constitute valid premises to conclude there is an immense threat. That menace also requires an immediate attention in deterrence of any plausible catastrophe in the future with regional consequences. To succeed, the International Community will also depend tremendously in using internal experts who understand the complexities on the grounds. Those professionals with Haitian background, and western education, are scattered across the globe and formed the so-called Haitian Diaspora. Their inclusion into the process will facilitate the path of the development with a rapid growth and sustainability of the country for its future generation.
The alliance of democracy and development needs “not new members but also a new purpose”, stated political pundits. This alliance can no longer be just a protective arm of one around the other ones’ shoulder, it also has to be a way for both to work together to construct a strong international system.
Pierre R.Charleus
York University,Canada.
Pierre.r.charleus@gmail.com
Foot notes 1-James Traub (The Freedom Agenda: Why America Must Spread Democracy (Just Not the Way George Bush Did 2- 1977). Power and Interdependence: World Politics in Transition 3- www.cida.gc.ca key word Haiti-CIDA -funded projects (http://www.acdicida.gc.ca/cidaweb/cpo.nsf/fWebCSAZEn?ReadForm&idx=00&CC=HT) 4-Andre Gunter Frank (The Development of Underdevelopment, 1966, MRP) 5-Faux nationalist (My personal view of Haitian politicians. The Political argument always based on nationalism while most of them carry a double nationality) 6 In 1986 Baby doc Jean C.Duvalier has left Haiti after violent protests ending a 30yrs ruling between himself and his father Papa Doc. 7 Health: A right for all, the challenge of Haiti. Report published by W.H.O in 2002.
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