Consummating a U.S. takeover (of haiti)

[Hannah Bell]

While demonstrators in the street outside protest the continuing U.S. and UN military occupation of Haiti, now over six years old, and the Haitian people's exclusion from deliberations on the country's reconstruction, dignitaries inside--like UN Special Envoy to Haiti Bill Clinton, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Haitian President René Préval--will unveil a plan with lots of pomp and ceremony, but which boils down to just one thing: Washington's takeover of the "new" Haiti.

Hyperbole? Unfortunately, no. The lead editorial in the March 28 New York Times, which generally articulates the thinking of the U.S. power elite, lays it out clearly:

The plan envisions a multidonor trust fund managed by the World Bank that pools money for big projects and avoids wasteful redundancy. The Haitian Development Authority would approve the projects; outside auditors would oversee the spending. (Our emphasis added.)

Translation: The World Bank, not Haiti, will run the show, a council of foreigners (with a sprinkling of token Haitians) will rubber-stamp directives, and other foreign overseers will supervise the Haitians carrying out the directives.

http://socialistworker.org/2010/04/05/consummating-a-takeover

[Mind_your_head]

1. Tough call b/c Haiti needs help.....largely b/c it never GOT any help/relief

before the earthquake, of course.....Haitian land-grab? Probably. What's good/bad/possible anymore...I dunno anymore....

[aquart]

6. Did poor Haitians own any land?

Did they have a hope of ever owning any land? With their businesses destroyed, WHAT OPTION DID YOU PROPOSE?

[Hannah Bell]

9. yes. in fact, land ownership in haiti following the revolution was widely dispersed.

that's why the typical farmer was on about an acre or less.

grabbing the remaining smallholdings is definitely on the agenda.

[Matariki]

10. Yes. Haiti's land ownership laws are very strict

Foreigners can't easily own land, if at all.

[frazzled]

2. Believe me ... the last thing the US wants to do is take over Haiti

You've got to stop reading the Socialist Worker. It will ruin your health (not to mention your mind).

[Greyhound]

5. We've had a vested and active interest in raping Haiti for well over a century, why would you have

us "believe you" that suddenly things are different?

[Hannah Bell]

7. did the nyt & wapo find those weapons of mass destruction yet? still wai-tinggggggg.

oh, & how bout that "social security crisis," eh? did you know that we just "can't afford" to have grandparents anymore....


yes, those eminently reliable rags...of the ownership class.

[Skink]

3. We need to keep an eye on Guantanamo.

sailing through the Winward passage means you can wee Haiti or Cuba or both.

[On the Road]

4. Huh?

"...the Haitian people's exclusion from deliberations on the country's reconstruction, dignitaries inside--like UN Special Envoy to Haiti Bill Clinton, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Haitian President René Préval will unveil a plan...."

Preval isn't a strongman -- he was elected by the Haitian people.

[Hannah Bell]

8. not sure what you're responding to. i don't see anything like that.

[On the Road]

11. In the Same Sentence

the article said that (a) the elected president of Haiti was meeting with Clinton and other dignitaries and (b) the Haitian people were unrepresented.