Haitian capital devastated by a Jan. 12 earthquake, but this plan must come
without the colonial mischief that has been used to undermine and destabilize
the Western hemisphere's first independent Black republic. That was the message
from panelists at a Feb. 27 Saviours' Day 2010 workshop on "Haiti
sovereignty, disaster relief & rebuilding with dignity."
halti_panel03-09-2010.jpg
(L-R) Marguerite Laurent, Harry Fouche, Dr. Ron Daniels, Lionel Jean Baptiste,
and Ramonski Luv, moderator.
The panelists reviewed the history of Haiti and explained why Western powers
have not allowed the island nation to escape their oppressive grip to truly be
independent and self sufficient. Panelists also recounted scenes of total
destruction, illness and death that many witnessed in tours of the country
since the earthquake struck.
Echoing throughout their remarks was the demand that Haitians at the grassroots
level be involved in the reconstruction of their country.
"The fight is for the empowerment of the people," said attorney Lionel Jean
Baptiste of the Haitian Congress to Fortify Haiti. "We must make direct
alliances with the folks at the bottom" and implement a program that focuses
on people instead of a program that generates money for Haiti's enemies, he
said.
Former Haitian Consul General Harry Fouche agreed. "We appreciated the
response," he said of the aid directed toward his country, "but as the
weeks went by we had a fear that the response was turning into an industry and
that aid may not reach our people. We must speak out that the money raised for
Haiti must be spent for Haiti."
Panelists noted that Haiti's 13-year struggle for independence—from 1791
until 1804—sparked a spirit of revolution among Black people in the Caribbean
and South America. Western powers have not forgiven Haiti for that and have
imposed embargoes and crippled the country with billions of dollars of debt
that still exists today.
The persecution continued when Haiti's first democratically elected president,
Jean Bertrand Aristide, spoke against colonial injustice and called for
reparations for Haiti and the return of money it was forced to pay France when
Haiti won its independence, panelists said. President Aristide was set upon by
the U.S. government and ultimately forced into exile in 2004 when the U.S.
military literally took him from office, they noted.
Even the administration of President Barack Obama appointed a "career
diplomat with ties to the C.I.A." as ambassador to Haiti while appointing
donors as ambassadors to Trinidad, the Bahamas and other Caribbean islands,
attorney Baptiste said.
Responding to a question from moderator Ramonski Luv, a popular Chicago radio
personality, attorney Marguerite Laurent of the Haitian Lawyers Leadership
Network (HLLN) said Haiti's crisis is man-made if you consider that Haiti's
poverty is man-made.
"U.S. policy wants (Haiti) to not subsidize public health or any social
justice when we have subsidized (the U.S.) for 300 years. Haiti has subsidized
Iowa farmers who have dumped their rice in Haiti. The U.S. told Haitian people,
'we will give you factory jobs so get off your land'. You told Haiti not to
invest in its people," she said.
dr_alim03-09-2010.jpg
Dr. Abdul Alim Muhammad Photos: Michael Muhammad
In a power point presentation, Nation of Islam Minister of Health Abdul Alim
Muhammad added another dimension to the question of Haiti's crisis being
man-made. He noted reports of evidence that the earthquake was a result of U.S.
military activities using high frequencies to cause shifting of earthquake
fault lines. The reports note that oil has been discovered off the coast of
Haiti and critics of U.S. policy speculate that the earthquake was caused so
foreign militaries would be allowed into the country under the guise of
humanitarian assistance.
With 20,000 U.S. troops in Haiti, one would think they would be distributing
food, Dr. Muhammad said. "The only troops I saw were protecting Citibank,"
he said.
Ron Daniels of the Haiti Support Project said the earthquake was "an equal
opportunity destroyer," but the silver lining is the devastation could bring
people together.
"The Haitian people must be at the center of designing a plan, not just the
political class, but the voices of those in the tent cities," he said.
"This is an opportunity to bridge some of the divides that traditionally have
been part of the fracturing of Haitian society."
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property of their respective owners.
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Ezili HLLN's 14-Points for the Voiceless in Haiti: For a Return of Haiti's
Sovereignty and for Disaster relief, Rebuilding with Human Rights, Healing and
Dignity
1. Haiti needs emergency humanitarian aid – rescue, recovery, relief and
rebuilding, not military occupation. End UN/US/Canada/France occupation of
Haiti.
2. End indirect aid to Haiti. Foreign Aid should go to Haiti not the churches
and NGOs. The Obama administration must support an international response that
respect Haitian sovereignty, not boost NGO profits and power in Haiti
3. Support the institutionalization of the rule of law
a. Return former president Aristide to Haiti so he may assist Haiti's
majority at this agonizing time and help in the relief and rebuilding of the
nation.
b. Support community organizing, community policing, transparency and
participatory democracy. Allow the largest political party in Haiti to duly
participate in elections.
4. Value life - Value life over political and economic interests. Value the
lives of the survivors not the "security" interests of the US and the
international community.
5. Respect Haitian human rights and dignity. Stop criminalizing the poor in
Haiti. UN/International community's Haitian victims in Haiti since the 2004
US/UN/Canada/France regime change.
The UN has enacted Guiding Principles for Internally Displaced People. Make
them required reading for every official and non-governmental person and
organization. Non-governmental organizations like charities and international
aid groups are extremely powerful in Haiti - they too must respect the human
dignity and human rights of all people.
6. Value Family - Help reunite displaced families
The Obama administration must support an international response to the tragic
Haiti earthquake that values family and is sensitive to the human agony of
family lost and separated in Haiti.
Extend the Temporary Protective Status cutoff date from January 12, 2010 to
December 31, 2010, allowing patients and those who are accompanying their USC
children post January 12 to enjoy said benefit. Provide humanitarian parole and
equal application of TPS.
7. Rebuilt Haiti
The Obama administration must support an international response that use its
power to uphold Haitian-led, Haiti-capacity building relief and rebuilding
efforts that sustains human rights, healing and dignity.
Support the launching by Haiti of national public works projects to rebuild
infrastructure, sanitation systems, communication, public schools, literacy
programs, public health hospitals and clinics, reinforce outback village units
with affordable housing, firehouses, health clinics, legal offices, clerks
offices, art & job training, communication, sanitation systems, access to safe
drinking water units. Expand Haiti's national handicraft industry, folkloric
music training and education on Vodun, Haitian history of struggle and
resistance, Kreyòl, traditional dance movements and significance, basic sacred
drumming, vèvè writing and psychology/philosophy, basic herbal healing.
8. Relief, rebuilding and redevelopment should be designed by Haitians and
their collaborators, not USAID, the UN or the "international community."
Stop the stranglehold of USAID, its other international counterparts and the
over 10,000 NGOs over Haiti. Their grip must be loosened if a new paradigm is
to be installed for the people of Haiti that promotes Haitian self-reliance not
Haitian dependency
USAID has a history of mistreating the Haitian majority, feeding dependency,
starving democracy and should not be the US agency overseeing the US relief
effort. And if they are, oversight and accountability are needed.
a. Oversight and accountability.
b. Support Haitians and to rebuild Haiti
c. Promote Haitian self-reliance, self-respect, self-determination, not
dependency, injustice and indignities
9. Prioritize jobs and skills transfer to Haitian nationals
10. Debt Cancellation
a. Immediately cancel all debts owed by Haiti to the multilateral financial
institutions (IMF, WB and IDB);
b. Suspends all debt service payments to these institutions until the debts
are completely canceled; and,
c. Provides that all additional funds to Haiti for the rescue, relief,
rebuilding and redevelopment are to be given in the form of grants, not loan
debts.
11. All international adoptions or evacuations of "disaster orphans" must stop.
12. Encourage maximum leveraging of Diaspora remittances
a. Release all Haitians in US jails who are not accused of any crimes so
that they may apply for Temporary Protected Status (TPS.)
b. Support with tax-incentives direct capital investment/Haitian
remittances in Haiti; and,
c. Ending the militarization of aid and the US/UN occupation shall
protected and not diminish the value and use of Diaspora remittances because
their shall be less violence, less demonstrations against the occupation and
more normalcy so the people may invest the remittances in school fees,
education, small business enterprises, and not funerals and lawyers to
incarcerated relatives..
13. End free trade, began fair trade.
Support domestic food production, indigenous Haiti manufacturing and job
creation. Stop IFIs policies that limit social spending, require that Haiti
remove tariffs on food and other imports, privatize public enterprises, exempt
foreign investors from taxes on their profits. Support grassroots, indigenous
Haiti capacity building organizations.
Protect workers rights and provide a living wage, especially in the export
assembly industry.
Haiti needs food sovereignty, domestic manufacturing, local entrepreneurship,
fair wage jobs, affordable and clean energy.
Support Haiti in subsidizing domestic food production, domestic manufacturing,
organic food market from Haiti, local job creation, valid reforestation, fair
wages not free trade wages, public works projects, sustainable development and
a good working culture that values workers' rights and health. Support Haiti
entrepreneurship, Konbit culture and equitable distribution and profit sharing
from the assets of the country. Support Haiti's fuel sovereignty, clean
alternative fuel and valid reforestation alternatives suited to Haiti's
reality. After the emergency relief stage of the earthquake emergency,
calibrate food aid so to assist and not further destroy Haiti's food
production.
14. Raise funds to support the work of Ezili Dantò/HLLN Nou La!- We are Here -
earthquake relief efforts
********
Ezili HLLN's 14-Points with talking points
(for more info, check the http://bit.ly/9lXlRF and our website
-http://www.ezilidanto.com/)
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Forwarded by Ezili's Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network
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A National Mobilization for Haitian Relief and a Call to Unite to Help Haiti
Farrakhan offers guidance, warns America of the need to change course
View archived webcast @ http://www.noi.org/webcast/
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Changing Haiti's Paradigm
HLLN 14-points to Return Haiti's Sovereignty and Mobilize For Conscious Relief
and Rebuilding with Human Rights, Healing and Dignity
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