On corruption

Here's a comment I left in james_nicoll's journal, in response to someone who opined that Haiti really needs a "better class of corrupt politician":

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I've been trying to formulate a response to this. I don't want to deny that there is corruption among Haitian politicians; there clearly are many corrupt politicians in Haiti.

But having said that, I think that the stories of corruption in Haiti are used unfairly against Haiti. I think Aristide, for example, was trashed in the media as having become "another Duvalier" -- both corrupt and involved in human rights abuses -- when those things don't appear to be supported by any available evidence.

I further think that stories of corruption have been used to handwave about why neoliberal reforms in Haiti don't actually appear to be helping the country. "Why, if there wasn't so much corruption, our aid would be more effective." The book, Bad Samaritans talks about this trend, and it manifests in Haiti near-perfectly.

Lastly, the stories of "corrupt politicians" in Haiti has utility for countries like the U.S. and Canada: we use it to justify excluding the Haitian government from having any say over the way that our countries are restructuring the Haitian state. I mean, just eight months ago or thereabouts, Bev Oda, the minister in charge of CIDA rejected the Haitian government's explicit request to have more say over the types of projects that Canada funds in Haiti saying that Haiti must "do more to combat corruption." In my opinion, this emphasis on corruption acts as a smokescreen to disenfranchise the Haitian people from the running of their country.

I've met with Haitian officials at all levels of governments. Most of them seemed like honest folk trying to do something productive with no resources whatsoever. (On the other hand, there are senators I wouldn't trust at all). The western idea that Haiti is overrun with corrupt politicians is part of a narrative that serves our governments' agenda for Haiti.

Second, 6.1, quake hits this morning

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A strong aftershock struck near the Haitian capital on Wednesday morning, shaking buildings and setting off screams of terror from the thousands of residents who have been camped outside since last week’s powerful earthquake.

The aftershock, which had a magnitude 6.1, came around 6 a.m. about 35 miles west of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and was the most powerful to hit Haiti since the initial earthquake on Jan. 12.

The latest temblor came a day after American military helicopters landed in the capital, signs of the growing international relief operation here. But the troops’ presence underscored the rising complaints that the Haitian government had all but disappeared in the week since a huge earthquake struck.

Haiti's long history of foreign intervention, including an American occupation, normally makes the influx of foreigners a delicate issue.

But with the government of President René Préval largely out of public view and the needs so huge, many Haitians are shunting aside their concerns about sovereignty and welcoming anybody willing to help — in camouflage or not.

"It is not ideal to have a foreign army here, but look at the situation," said Énide Edoword, 24, a waitress who was standing Tuesday in a camp of displaced people. "We are living amid filth and hunger and thirst after a catastrophe."

— Strong Aftershock Hits Near Haitian Capital

I just got an email saying, "We are all OK after the second esrthquake, but it scared the hell out of us. I have not moved so fast since I was in [high school]."

On the Issue of Aid

A letter I sent to the New Internationalist tonight: ( She writes letters )

THAC Press Release - Event Announcement

Just five days before a magnitude 7 earthquake hit Haiti, an American and Canadian human rights/social justice delegation was finishing up an 11-day fact-finding mission. During their delegation, they met with grassroots groups, victims of violence, human rights leaders, and even visited the prison.

The delegation had already presented its findings to the Haitian media, and was preparing to present its conclusions to the Canadian and American governments when disaster struck the country. But rather than make those conclusions invalid, the earthquake has emphasized the importance of those findings: for example, findings about aid, and the extent to which assistance is reaching the people on the ground.

BC Holmes is a representative of the Toronto Haiti Action Committee, and a participant in the delegation, her eighth trip to Haiti since 2002. At 7:00pm on Thursday, January 28th, 2010, she will present a report of the delegation's findings: ineffectual aid, flawed elections processes, and an ongoing attack on Haitian wages so that the country remains mired in poverty. And rich countries like Canada and the United States are not just passive observers of these problems: our governments are, at best, deeply complicit and at worst, actively promoting an agenda for Haiti that will allow us to profit at Haiti's expense.

She will also discuss the Haitian earthquake and the international response to this terrible tragedy.

When: 7pm on Thursday, January 28, 2010
Where: OISE (252 Bloor St. W., Toronto), Room 213, Second Floor
Cost: Free!