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Here's something I wrote about this in 1994 while Aristide was in the US. Tht is followed by a very good analysis by Greg Guma who was then editor of Toward freedom. Thanks, But No Thanks, Uncle Sam Summer 1994 This piece is about Haiti. That small country in the Caribbean which sahres the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic. Haiti -- where in, in 1804, Toussaint L'Ouverture helped foment and lead a rebellion of slaves against their colonial masters in an action which to this day inspires people in similar circumstances around the world. Haiti -- where the United States, in all its magnaminity, invaded in 1915 and stayed for twenty some years, establishing a legacy which continues to haunt the nation's people to this day. Haiti -- where a rebel priest, Bertrand Aristide, who sees his religion as a liberating force here on earth, was elected president in 1990 by the majority of Haitians in a resounding denial of the US legacy of corrupt, murderous leadership. Haiti -- where that same popular government was overthrown a year later by military officers aided by the United States. Which brings us to today. Today, when liberal/leftists from the US scramble to be the first to call for a US military invasion of the island, either by Marines or Rangers or by a CIA-created army of exiles. An invasion whose purpose would supposedly be the restoration of Aristide to power. Sounds pretty noble, right? Well, given the history of the US in the region, such a result seems pretty unlikely. If one reads the finer print in the press releases emanating from Washington on this subject, the plan most likely to gain favor does not involve the restoration of Aristide, but calls instead for a US occupation of the island, the "retraining" of the current corrupt, vicious police force, and new elections. New elections whose outcome would be predetermined by the United States, just like those in Panama, Grenada, Nicaragua, and who knows where else. It seems pretty safe to assume that the true victors in any such elections would not be the Haitian people, but some combination of the least sadistic and corrupt supporters of the current military regime and the more rightist supporters of the coalition which put Aristide in power in 1990. As for those re-trained police forces, of course the trainers would come from the United States. In fact, they would probably come straight from the School of the Americas -- that great training ground for such heroes of democracy as the men responsible for the murder of six Jesuits in El Salvador in 1989, among others. In short, the US plan hopes to pave the way for continued exploitation of the country's cheap labor force without the threat of a leftist popular government or the public relations disaster of a regime which brutally murders dozens of its subjects every day. For those confused liberals, let me remind you: opposing US military intervention does /not /mean supporting the murderers currently in power in Haiti. /It merely means opposing US intervention./ Even if the purpose of any such intervention were the restoration of Aristide, his position would be considerably weakened. According to an article in the May 25, 1994 edition of /Haiti Progress/, an independent Haitian weekly, members of the peasant coalition Mouvman Peyizan Papay ( a coalition of over 2,000 peasant, worker, youth, and women's groups) reported that most of the Haitians they work with "oppose any form of military intervention and said they believe that continued resistance, local organizing, and the embargo are the few tools the Haitian peoplehave to regain their president."An obvious example of this type of approach working is South Africa. After years of struggle and international sanctions against that country's racist policy of apartheid, Nelson Mandela and the popular organization he belongs to -- the African National Congress -- was elected to power. The emotions and commitment which accompanied that victory were widespread and deep. Furthermore, since the popular organizations conducted the struggle all along, they owe nothing to any government or corporation now that they have won. As we do what we can to support the Haitian people and their struggle, we should keep the example of South Africa in mind. The seemingly easy solution of a military invasion is not as simple as it looks. link to Guma's article: http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Haiti/Regime_Change_Haiti.html ________________________________________________ Send list submissions to: [email protected] Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
