ABSTRACT
Haiti has a population of c. 8.5 million and forms the western territorial area of Hispaniola, an island of which the eastern part is the Dominican Republic. Almost all the original inhabitants of the island (Arawak Indians) died of diseases brought in by Europeans in the 16th century. Haiti, ceded to France by Spain in 1697, was constantly suffering from slave uprisings against the French rulers. In 1804 it became independent, but stability was elusive, as clashes between mulattos (of mixed African and European descent) and African Haitians were a constant phenomenon. Once the USA had established control of the western hemisphere, it swiftly moved to acquire Haiti, establishing a virtual colony there. The Americans did their best to exploit Haiti’s sugar and coffee trade, but very little to integrate Haitians into civil and political institutions, thus ignoring nationbuilding processes. The USA withdrew from Haiti in 1935, leaving behind a chaotic situation with the security forces in power, which it tried to control. After the Second World War Franc¸ois Duvalier and his son, Jean Claude, ruled Haiti in a dictatorial fashion from 1957 to 1986. In a county where violence of all sorts is endemic and where poverty is a mass phenomenon (Haiti is one of the poorest countries on earth), the Duvaliers organized special security forces to deal with rebels, the famous Tontons Macoutes (Creole for ‘bogeymen’). Eventually, Duvalier was ousted from power by a coup in 1986 and free elections, for the first time ever, were organized in 1990, bringing into power Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Aristide tried to launch a number of reforms, particularly in the security apparatus, but he failed. In September 1991 he was overthrown by another violent coup, headed by Gen. Raul Cedras, which resulted in thousands of deaths. Under UN mediation, Cedras and Aristide met in New York and agreed that Aristide should return to Haiti to reorganize the security apparatus under UN supervision. Yet, the UN mission failed to accomplish its objectives, as it found fierce resistance by the ‘bogeymen’. The UN enforced sanctions on Haiti and authorized a 28-nation military force, led by the USA, to invade the country. More than 21,000 troops landed in Haiti in September 1994. However, assassinations had already become routine and poverty levels had increased. Once again, American forces failed to achieve any results, whereas Aristide had to organize his own security forces in order to survive politically. This increased dissatisfaction and
tension among the main rivals and a policy of tit-for-tat ensued. Haiti became virtually ungovernable, with thousands of refugees pouring into Florida. When President Bill Clinton refused to take any more refugees, Aristide rebuked Clinton by saying he created a ‘floating Berlin Wall’. In 2004 Aristide, under US pressure, resigned, leaving the political and economic situation in Haiti even more precarious than in the 1990s.
