“Canada has made a significant contribution to stability in Haiti,” noted George W. Bush, in remarks to the media after meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper in July 2006 (1).
Three years after Canada helped lead a coup d'état against the democratically elected government of Haiti, almost no one in Ottawa has been held accountable for this crime against the sovereignty of the hemisphere’s poorest nation.
Should a Leftist government ever win an election in Canada, we have to prepare the ground in Canada's political culture, that teaches people that foreign meddling in a country's domestic politics is illegal and unwelcome.
For this reason, we in Canada who are appalled, shamed, and saddened by the crimes of the Paul Martin Liberals against Haiti, and the perpetuation of these policies by fellow imperialist Stephen Harper, must work much harder to see that those responsible for this disgrace are punished.
Given Canada’s intimate involvement in Haiti over the past three years, it is unacceptable that this country’s elites have not been held accountable, and that the general public has been kept largely in ignorance. A 2006 study, published in the medical journal The Lancet, estimated that an additional 8000 people had died violently in Port-au-Prince alone following the coup.
Massacres have been reported over the three years of military occupation, including some carried out by UN forces. Violent attacks have continued, particularly in the poor slums like Cité Soleil, which are considered strongholds of Lavalas support. The UN’s participation in these operations has been ongoing, despite the February 2006 election of Réné Préval, a former close comrade of Aristide who was also the elected president between 1996 and 2001.
6 comments:
You are correct we should stay out of other countries business unless they are a direct threat.
They should be allowed to slaughter each other, and we can only hope they can learn a valuable lesson from that.
We should never put our people in harms way to keep the peace, it is to dangerous.
Glad you've embraced the non-interventionism of 20th century conservatism Wayne.
I'd just like to add that the Haitians wouldn't be slaughtering themselves were they left alone.
The folks conducting the massacres and the natives thereby benefiting are a tiny minority who would not have the power to do what they do were it not for our funding them and the US also training them.
If they did try to pull their shit in a free and sovereign Haiti, they'd be quickly wiped out and the country would be peaceful.
I wonder if you have been to Haiti or speak French or Kryeole? Do you know of the accusations against Aristide from within his own nation? How much money he is accused of stealing? His deals with the Telecom compnay? The Coop Bank scandal? How much Ira Kurzban- his lawyer and now on the board of IJDH was paid for his services? Or are you just repeating what others have said? It seems there is a campaign afoot to bring him back which would be horribly destablizing for the entire region - just when Haiti is getting calm and- if not on her feet- at least on her needs. Please be informed of all aspects of this situation.
Babette,
Thanks for the comments. And, no, I never did hear of the things you mentioned.
I was aware of allegations of drug traffiking, funding criminal gangs, etc., etc., ... but whenever I asked questions for details on a few right-wing websites, or in the mainstream media, I got nothing.
When I get the time, I'll google those search terms that you've provided. I'm quite busy these days, but I'm very interested in Haiti, so I will get around to it.
No, I speak neither French nor Creole. But then again, bush II doesn't speak Arabic.
Finally, whatever Aristide's deeds, he was the democratically elected president of Haiti, and imperialist nations have no mandate to invade a sovereign nation and change governments, whatever that dreck of a "responsibility to protect" manifesto says.
If the Haitian people wanted him gone, a free election would have been the way to go about it.
Go to thekormisarscoop.com to read the allegations on the rigged telecom deal. And read Michael Diebert's book "Notes from the Last Testament" - he was on the ground in Haiti for years and speaks fluent Kreyole. The coup against Arisitide was home grown. He was not kidnapped. The disinformation that is being spread is from his lawyer- Ira Kurzban- who was paid over $4 million for his services. He sits on the board of IJDH.Aristide was ranked as a press predator by Reporters without Borders. We need more people to do some real research on this, please.
Well, I don't trust reporters without borders.
And you haven't addressed the fact that Canada/the US/France orchestrated his downfall.
What were Canadian soldiers doing there, guarding the runway in Port au Prince?
I don't need to speak Creyole to ask these questions.
Again, I'll look at your sources, but my position is not based on the fact that Aristide is innocent. It's based on the fact that this was a foreign-directed insurgency. Entirely illegitimate.
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