…Violent abuses are MINUSTAH’s (the UN Haiti Mission’s) basic modi operandi for protecting US & other Western economic interests by targeting poor Haitians…

-Council on Hemispheric Affairs

A UN Security Council delegation is currently in Haiti to “review its mandate” and “evaluate” its efforts in the country. At the conclusion of this 4-day trip, the delegation will report on its findings. Given that the UN formally denies responsibility for the cholera outbreak ravaging the country, it won’t tally the 7,000 cholera deaths as part of its impact.

In light of this, it’s tempting to review yet again the “mountain of evidence” proving the UN’s fault for the outbreak. But there’s no need. The only remaining question about UN culpability is not whether they’re to blame for introducing cholera to Haiti, but whether the tools of international law will work on behalf of justice or on behalf of the powerful.

Instead, this post provides historical context for evaluating MINUSTAH’s public statements about the ongoing cholera crisis. Specifically, we compare similar public statements about a previous scandal to internal documents that only came to light years after the fact.

For those who aren’t familiar with the UN Mission’s history in Haiti, this post will show that MINUSTAH has used public denials not just to deflect responsibility, but to provide cover for continuing its “violent abuses.”

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MINUSTAH’s “Modi Operandi”: The Cité Soleil Raid

June 2005. The US Ambassador to Haiti, James Foley, tells MINUSTAH: Haitian business elites are “panicked” by the lack of visible security patrols in their neighborhoods. They believe gang activity is increasing. Foley wants a symbolic action to ease their minds – something “swift and aggressive.” He suggests the UN target Cité Soleil.

Labeled “the poorest place on the planet” by Mother Teresa, Cité Soleil is a slum in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. In 2005, it was a vital pillar of support for former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was deposed in a US-engineered coup the preceding year.

State Department cables reveal that after Foley’s request, MINUSTAH “coordinat[ed] with the private sector” to plan a response. That response began on July 6, when more than 1,400 UN “peacekeepers” and 41 Armored Personnel Vehicles encircled Cité Soleil at 3 a.m. In the ensuing 7-hour bloodbath, MINUSTAH soldiers sprayed 22,000 bullets into a residential neighborhood while blocking all routes of escape, resulting in the death of “untold dozens” of civilian casualties.

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How MINUSTAH Manages the Media

This is an old story, familiar to Haiti activists. The reason it’s worth revisiting now is the similarity between the UN’s response to the Cité Soleil massacre of 2005 and to the cholera outbreak of 2010.

Amidst the stonewalling and the unending chorus of ”no comment,”  a few statements cohered into a standard UN narrative about the Cité Soleil raid:

1. Downplay Impact: Few people died (specifically, the UN claimed to have only killed “gang leader” Dred Wilme and 5 of his associates);
2. Shift Blame: Gangs fired first – the UN was merely defending itself;
3. Cite Higher Cause: The raid was necessary to contain the gang threat.

These claims, it should be noted, range from dubious to blatantly false (for instance, human rights groups put the civilian death toll between 50 and 70, mostly women and children). However, the most interesting revelations came long after debate over the Cité Soleil raid had moved out of the headlines.

Last year, Wikileaks cables illuminated the disconnect between public and private statements about MINUSTAH actions in Cité Soleil. This is from a cable in which the State Department advocated for one such raid:

…Timothy Carney, then the top US diplomat in Haiti, acknowledged that “such an operation would inevitably cause unintended civilian casualties given the crowded conditions and flimsy construction of tightly packed housing in Cité Soleil.”

Compared with the fact that MINUSTAH publicly denied any civilian casualties, Carney’s statement is particularly damning. But the most damning aspect is that Carney’s comments came 1 year after the raid described above, when MINUSTAH was advocating for a repeat performance.

In other words, the public denial was not just a cover-up intended to deflect blame for its missteps. Rather, MINUSTAH sought to erect a façade that would allow it to knowingly continue endangering civilians in additional violent raids.

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MINUSTAH’s Cholera Denials: Troubling Parallels with Cité Soleil

This story contains striking parallels to MINUSTAH’s handling of the cholera epidemic. Consider the structure of the UN’s media strategy:

1. Downplay Impact: The UN initially suggested the outbreak was geographically contained;
2. Shift Blame: The UN pointed out that Haiti was “susceptible” due to lack of clean water infrastructure;
3. Cite Higher Cause: The UN emphasized that despite the regrettable reality of human casualties, it needs to stay to “combat lawlessness.”

While this structure may be standard fare for politicians and public agencies, there’s an insidious element of this formula as utilized by the UN in Haiti. In the case of the Cité Soleil raids, the UN knew it couldn’t admit excessive casualties because it intended to repeat similar raids in the future. Therefore, to own up was to constrain its future options.

In the case of cholera, the UN is faced with an even starker choice. Underpinning its public statements is an awareness that the UN can continue to occupy Haiti, or it can accept responsibility for cholera. But it likely can’t do both. Even if the UN only paid damages to the 5,000 victims represented by the recent cholera lawsuit, the cost would simply be too high to continue funding the Mission.

The logical disconnect from a humanitarian perspective is captured succinctly by the director of the Institute for Justice and Democracy in a recent interview:

There’s been slow funding for cholera treatment. There has not been slow funding for peacekeeping. One-tenth of all UN peacekeepers are in Haiti. Their budget for this year is $800 million. And that’s for a country that has not had a war in my lifetime, but does have a cholera epidemic.

Source: 

But after all, the motivation for MINUSTAH to be in Haiti is not humanitarian in nature. Final word goes to Harvard School of Public Health report entitled, “MINUSTAH: Keeping the Peace, or Conspiring Against It?“:

“MINUSTAH is… part of an interventionist geopolitical strategy rather than a humanitarian peace mission.”

Yesterday was the UN-sponsored International Day of Human Rights – a day laden with irony for the people of Haiti. The occasion sparked protests, writing, and petitions from Haitian activists.

Pairs well with: Haitians protesting in St. Marc, Haiti, to demand respect for their human rights in front of a UN sign bearing the mission’s name, MINUSTAH (left). A boy at the protest holding a sign that says, “Haitians have rights like everyone!” (right).

Photo credit: @gaetantguevara

Also pairs well with: This piece from Etant Dupain covering the protests: “It is a contradiction for the UN to celebrate their International Day for Human Rights while members of the mission are violating human rights in Haiti.”

Action Alert: Our partner group, the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti, began a petition asking the UN to honor cholera victims’ human rights in honor of human rights day. Consider signing here.

More International Forums on Reconstruction

After last week’s Invest in Haiti forum (critiqued here), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Haiti Reconstruction Forum took place in Miami on Thursday. The goal of the event was similar: promoting investment in Haiti.

Pairs well with: Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald reporter, live-tweeted the event. Her coverage was the only source for details of what was discussed at the forum, including:

1. the announcement of a potential IDB-financed “portable school” project;
2. praise for the industrial park;
3. more support for the hotel industry ;
4. an IDB-supported $700 million agriculture plan.

Also pairs well with: Carlson Hotels visited Haiti on the day of the forum to look into starting a hotel to rival the new, 173-room hotel built by Marriott. It appears that the international community plan for Haiti’s economy has distilled itself into the two T’s: Textiles and Tourism.

Construction begins on a new industrial park in Caracol, Haiti.

For the most part, these groups aren’t in dialogue with one another because they focus on different factors. The pro-investment group – Bill Clinton, President Martelly, and Foreign Minister Laurent Lamothe – don’t discuss worker’s rights and distributive justice issues.

Rather, they assume that “growing the economic pie” is sufficient for now: if problems exist with how the pie is divided, those can be addressed later. Meanwhile, those who do focus on justice issues continue to point out (rightly) the historical pattern of industry and investment only benefiting a few is clear.

In this piece, we take a different approach to critiquing the industrial development vision represented by the Invest in Haiti forum. The stated goal of those supporting the industrial park in Caracol, as reflected by Bill Clinton’s quote (see below), is to create jobs that will lead to economic growth and development.

“We are here to build a modern economy… and in the process, give Haitians the means to build a modern state.” – Bill Clinton, Nov 30, 2011

The question behind this post is: even if the distributional and justice-related concerns are ignored for the time being, does the vision they’ve outlined stand up to macro-economic scrutiny? The answer is, unfortunately, a resounding “no.” The remainder of this post explores the macro-economic reasons why this is the case.

Building a Modern Economy?

Backward and Forward Linkages

This unwieldy macro-economic term actually describes a simple concept, best illustrated by example. The ultimate case study of successful backward and forward linkages is the tire industry in Brazil (PDF). The production of tires in Brazil was a huge boon to rubber plantations (backward linkage). Eventually, Brazil’s status as a tire manufacturer attracted auto manufacturers (forward linkage), and the three industries grew together – resulting in huge growth rates in Brazil.

So what are the prospects for linkages in Haiti?  Again, Bill Clinton’s speech is instructive on this point:

I want to say a special word of thanks to Sae-A and to Chairman Kim for… not only bringing 20,000 jobs to Haiti. But… there were once 100,000 people assembling clothes in Haiti, but they never even had their own textile mill. They’ll have their own textile mill for the first time now. – Bill Clinton, Nov 30, 2011

The fact that Haiti will now have a textile mill differentiates this round of investment from past textile manufacturing efforts. That’s because previously, Haiti had to rely on imported textile materials for assembly and immediate re-export. In other words, the mill opens up the possibility for a backward linkage with cotton growers. However, this would first require revitalizing Haiti’s cotton production, which peaked before the reign of the Duvaliers and has fallen steadily since.

As for forward linkages, there’s not much on the horizon. A 2008 Overseas Development Institute paper entitled, “The Role of Textile and Clothing Industries in Growth and Development Strategies” (PDF) only discusses backward linkages, with one exception. They vaguely suggest that “business support systems” that develop around the garment industry “may facilitate the transition into higher value added activities.” In other words, unlike with tires, clothing doesn’t lead to anything of higher value – which is traditionally how emerging industries spark growth – except for by fostering business culture.

Integration into Global Value Chains

The global value chain is, quite simply, the chain of economic relationships that constitute a production process. On one end of the value chain is a cotton grower; on the other, a person wearing a finished clothing product.

It’s important to consider “integration” into these chains because there’s lots of research suggesting global value chains are “sticky.” That is, once buyers and sellers at different links in the chain develop relationships, they’re not prone to go shopping around for new relationships to replace them. This phenomenon is described by a recent World Bank paper entitled, “Clothing and Export Diversification: Still a Route to Growth for Low Income Countries?” (PDF):

These chains initially emerged in the clothing sector in the 1950s and 1960s as buyers in developed countries contracted out production to low-wage developing countries. Over the past 4 decades these chains have matured and the sourcing networks have spread over a large number of countries… The mature global chains of today restrict the opportunities that the clothing sector offers developing countries for diversification and growth.

In other words, prospects are at best uncertain that Haiti can capture a larger share of textile value chains than it currently commands. While favorable trade preference arrangements may assist Haiti in the short-term gain access to US markets, even that isn’t a sure bet. In the past, duty-free and other tax-exempt statuses haven’t been adequate to lure many manufacturers to Haiti.

Realistic Expectations for the Industrial Park

This is not going to modernize Haiti’s economy. Without forward linkages, there’s no real prospect for diversifying into higher-value sectors. But even if it’s unlikely for Haiti to break into established global value chains, it already has a place in several in the textile industry. Therefore, enhancing the sector could have a positive welfare effect – if the benefits are distributed in an equitable fashion. And this, of course, brings us back to the political factors discussed earlier.

A Better Economic Model?

There are, however, other models. Costa Rica, for instance, is one case of a small island nation that achieved a foothold in a higher-value industry despite its low-income status. That transition is described in the paper, “Costa Rica’s Development Strategy Based on Human Capital and Technology: How It Got There, the Impact of Intel, and Lessons for Other Countries” (PDF).

The point isn’t to suggest that this is the right model for Haiti. Rather, the point is that there are models besides from the low-wage, textile-driven development envisioned by Martelly and Clinton, which has a proven track record of failure.

Photo Credit: Flickr/USAID_Images

President Martelly plans to create 500,000 jobs in three years. Some of these will come from a new Marriott hotel being planned in downtown Port-au-Prince, but he intends even more to come from a new industrial park in Caracol, Haiti.

Pairs Well With: This investigation finding that the garment industry – which will take center stage in the new industrial park – has been fraught with union suppression.

Also Pairs Well With: This Haiti Grassroots Watch investigation highlighting the wage suppression, poor working conditions, and bad track record of “sweatshop-led development” in Haiti.

USAID begins construction at the industrial park in Caracol, Haiti.

MINUSTAH Poll & Doublespeak

A new poll finds that two-thirds of Haitians want the immediate withdrawal of UN forces.

Pairs Well With: The headline-making line about the UN, however, came from Nigel Fisher, deputy Special Rep of the Secretary General for Haiti. In a press conference this week, he claimed that “only media and elites” want the UN out of the country – just days after the poll’s release.

Quick Hits

The US government decided to lift an 18-year arms embargo, which was only intermittently observed while in place.

The World Bank approved a $255 million plan to provide housing and education in Port-au-Prince in response to the disbanding of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission.

This time, we outline the steps you can take to get involved in a better way. These steps apply whether you’re an NGO looking to do work in Haiti, or a donor looking to give money. The Haiti Justice Alliance was established with the belief that these steps are critical to successfully working for real change in Haiti:

1. Research the history of the problem you want to work on as well as the method you want to use to get involved;
2. Empower people in Haiti through partnership rather than unilateral action;
3. Complement existing efforts rather than duplicating them.

Why Don’t More People Do This Already?

There are, of course, many who work in Haiti effectively, but several obstacles make this regrettably uncommon.

For starters, US government involvement reads like a laundry list of pitfalls to avoid in Haiti. People who take their cues from US aid programs are almost certain to get it wrong.

Unfortunately, the private sector also sets a bad example, because profits outweigh assessing the effectiveness or appropriateness of an intervention.

For instance, our last post explained why donating food aid to Haiti is destructive. Yet, the US Potato Board excitedly promotes shipping emergency food to Haiti – not because it’s effective, but because it contains US-grown dehydrated potatoes. Similarly, the Hilton Hotel chain promotes sending used hotel soap to countries like Haiti – not because it’s appropriate, but because it helps Hilton deal with its excess soap bars in a PR-friendly fashion.

In other words, there are examples of ineffective, inappropriate aid work everywhere you turn. Which is why it’s important to discuss an alternative approach.

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Realizing Our Ideals for Engaging in Haiti

“US government actions in Haiti have been dominated by, what we call ‘interests.’ But without your support – the support of US citizens – it would’ve been much worse.” – Lavarice

Lavarice Gaudin Speaking in a Class at St. Olaf College.

At every speaking engagement, Lavarice gave some version of that collective compliment to those of us engaged in Haiti activism. But his words were not meant as blanket praise of every do-gooder’s efforts. Indeed, he consistently reinforced the notion that there are effective and ineffective/inappropriate ways to get involved. We’ve distilled his points down to three principles: research, empower and complement.

Research

Research the history of the problem, as well as the approach you want to take to solve it. While many issues in Haiti are complex, getting started in the right direction doesn’t require dissertation-level study.

For instance, if you Google “why can’t Haiti produce enough food” and “causes of hunger in Haiti,” 10 out of the 20 first-page results discuss cheap food imports/food aid undermining Haiti’s agriculture. Even if you hadn’t heard it before, this would give you reason to suspect that importing food is part of the problem, not part of the solution. Thus alerted, you can easily seek out the expert practitioners and academics that have quantified the negative impact of food imports.

An equally important part of your research should be asking the people you seek to help what they need. To continue with the current theme: listening to Haitians or reading their writing clearly shows that people want to grow food rather than take food donations.

Empower

Outside help only spurs sustainable development when foreign groups cultivate equal partnerships with those they hope to assist. Longtime Haiti activist Paul Farmer emphasizes this by urging outside NGOs to “accompany” local efforts rather than dictating terms to them. The anonymous development blogger “J.” echoes this when he explains that aid has failed in Haiti because “outsiders have never once been up to the task of being part of the Haiti conversation without simultaneously imposing our will.”

The logic is straightforward: Haitian citizens and the Haitian government will be there long after aid workers leave. Therefore, if the systems you implement bypass Haitians, their impact inherently can’t be sustainable. And, as the next section discusses, bypassing Haitian groups may not just be unsustainable, but actively harmful.

Complement

If an NGO is already working in the sector you want to work in – particularly a Haitian-run NGO – it’s simply irresponsible to start a separate project. For donors, if you want to fund work in a sector, find an NGO with a history doing that type of work instead of backing the newest start-up.

Policymakers admit that aid is “fragmented,” and therefore less effective, because of the many NGOs doing redundant work. However, the phenomenon of ever more foreigners coming in with new projects is more than ineffective. It starves locally run efforts of the human and financial resources necessary to work do their own work.

How Does The Haiti Justice Alliance Fit In?

Our work is guided by the principles listed above. We produce and publicize research about Haiti’s problems and the right and wrong ways to address them. We also bring Haitian leaders to Minnesota, so folks here can hear directly about Haiti’s needs from people who know them best.

When it comes to action, we seek to empower Haitian grassroots efforts by connecting them with financial resources, as well as interns and professional expertise to assist them in their work.  Our very organizational structure was established on the principle that it is better to strengthen existing efforts rather than duplicate them.

As goes without saying, these principles could be applied to work in other countries as well. The sad truth, however, is that the history of US work in Haiti is chock-full of historical ignorance, unilateral action, and disregard for Haitian initiatives.

Getting involved in one of HJA’s student chapters (at Carleton, St. Olaf, or the University of Minnesota), or becoming an HJA supporter, is a great way to support doing the right type of work in Haiti.

The Minister of Justice, Josué Pierre-Louis, resigned yesterday under pressure from Haitian parliament. He was charged with participating in the illegal arrest of an opposition party parliamentarian, Arnel Belizaire. Most believe the arrest was retribution for a public spat between Belizaire and the President.

Security

President Michel Martelly delayed the re-establishment of the Haitian army pending a ‘civilian commission’ recommendation, due on Jan. 1. Most likely this change occurred because of insufficient funds, or pressure from international actors.

Pairs Well With: The homicide rate in Haiti is not only lower than implied by the media, but is actually well below the average for Latin America and the Caribbean, according to a new study.

Also Pairs Well With: Our post urging everyone to move past the debate over lawlessness in Haiti, which is one of the main justifications for bringing back the army.

Economy and Trade

The Ministry of Trade seeks to attract investors, declaring: Haiti is open for business (h/t @moiracathleen).

Pairs Well With: Two articles showing how wage and union suppression have been used to deny the benefits of foreign investment to Haiti’s poor. In other words, investment is great – but only if the right regulations are in place.

The emergence of a vibrant entrepreneurial class in Haiti is one of the best defenses against predatory foreign investment. That’s why it’s exciting to hear that one of our partner groups, the What If? Foundation, is starting a club focused on developing students’ entrepreneurial skills.

Pairs Well With: Haiti’s first annual Global Entrepreneurship Day just concluded, which serves as another positive model of promoting Haitian-driven business ideas, as imposed to foreign-imposed ones.

Aid to Haiti

The Center for Economic and Policy Research again picks up on a story that HJA previously covered: the fact that USAID’s reliance on enormous contracts decreases the quality of its aid to Haiti.

Pairs Well With: HJA’s two pieces that focus on the effect of tied aid contracts and “indefinite quantity contracts” (IQCs), which are used because they’re administratively cheap, even though they produce terrible results.

Although he offered unique insights each time, several common themes emerged. This post picks up one of those themes for further discussion.

Power and Politics in the US-Haiti Relationship

“The US relationship with Haiti is like somebody who breaks your legs, and then asks: why are you crippled?” – Lavarice Gaudin

Lavarice Gaudin at the University of Minnesota. Photo Credit: Paul Miller.

I want to elaborate on this quote using three examples. The first illustrates what happens when the US unilaterally imposes its will on Haiti in the name of helping. The second conveys how the US often employs blame-the-victim rhetoric after these impositions of will. Finally, the third shows how the US government sometimes inadvertently acknowledges the harmful impact of its own policies.

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Creole Pigs: Destroying the Bank Account for Haiti’s Rural Poor

Lavarice shared the following anecdote to illustrate one of the worst sides of US engagement with Haiti. In the 1970s and 1980s, the US sought to safeguard against a global swine flu epidemic.

As part of assessments in several countries, the US determined that as many as 1/3 of Haiti’s pigs were sick. Aggressively pursuing its goal of containment, the US “pressur[ed] Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier into slaughtering virtually all Creole pigs.” USAID then sent pigs from Iowa to Haiti to replace the 1.3 million it had just sentenced to death.

The imported pigs were ill-suited to Haiti. Their need for pricy vaccinations and their dietary selectivity earned them the title, “le prince aux quatre pieds” (the four-footed prince). Shortly thereafter, all these pigs died off.

This dealt an enormous blow to Haiti’s farmers: in addition to losing an important source of protein, they lost their bank account for emergency spending. This anecdote not only illustrates American arrogance, but also capture the consequences that result when USAID intervenes unilaterally, without meaningful Haitian input.

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Lack of Clean Water Infrastructure in Haiti: A Problem of Our Own Making?

As we wrote last December, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a loan for Haiti in 2000 to improve water and sanitation infrastructure. The US illegally blocked the loan as part of an “unjust aid embargo” based on distaste for the incoming government in Haiti and baseless claims of electoral fraud.

Based on this action alone, the US deserves harsh criticism. However, recent actions have compounded US culpability in this arena.

After cholera struck Haiti in 2010, the UN became the focal point of an international investigation into the origin of the outbreak. The UN-commissioned report on the topic heavily emphasized “risk factors” like “poor sanitation infrastructure (PDF).” In doing so, it sought to downplay the overwhelming evidence suggesting the UN introduced the disease.

The diabolical aspect of US/UN[i] action here is this. Experts linked the spread of cholera to the under-development of clean water systems in the same region of Haiti the IDB loan would have targeted. Partners in Health even directly related the outbreak to the blocked loans from the IDB. In other words, the international community is using a problem that it perpetuated to excuse itself from responsibility for cholera.

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Regular Rice Distribution: Good Then, Bad Now?

USAID/Famine Early Warning System (FEWS) released an interesting document in April of 2010. It contained the following quote qualifying its use of emergency food after the quake:

“Large-scale distributions of food aid not procured in Haiti (PDF) would have significant negative impacts in the medium and long term…”

Just one month prior, it had become politically defensible – indeed, even fashionable – to acknowledge that regular food imports harmed Haiti. This transition occurred when Bill Clinton testified before Congress that rice imports and free food aid destroyed Haiti’s agriculture system.

It’s tempting to say that the USAID/FEWS network was simply echoing new advances in knowledge. Unfortunately, that would also be untrue. The basic truth that providing a good for free – or subsidizing it – disadvantages those producing it at full cost is a timeless economic insight. In fact, this insight was the basis for a 1980s US law restricting US aid from supporting poor country farmers who might compete with US agricultural exports.

Therefore, it’s incorrect to understand the new policy statement as the US learning from the experience of having wrecked Haiti’s agriculture. Rather, agricultural dumping under the guise of “aid” used to be an important economic endeavor for the US. Now, however, we’re focused on using our aid for other business purposes, such as replacing Haitian seed distribution networks with Monsanto seed. Because of this, USAID can be honest in discussing the ramifications of food aid imports, whereas it couldn’t before.

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What’s a non-profit to do?

The sad truth is that many NGOs who seek to help Haiti reinforce these patterns, but there are easy steps that can be taken to avoid this. These steps begin with recognizing the role that politics and power play in the relationship between the US and Haiti

If a group of people have historically been exploited for profit, then it’s impossible to better their circumstances without affecting power relations. Thus, if an NGO is unwilling to consider issues of power – and the associated political realities – it can’t contribute to meaningful, structural changes.

One example of this, directly related to Lavarice’s work, is that many NGOs donate food from the US to Haiti. Because this policy was crafted to support US farmers, and is now acknowledged by its creators to be harmful, there’s no excuse to continue donating food in the name of helping Haiti. Without embracing the political history of this approach, however, it’s much harder to understand why it’s so harmful.

The Haiti Justice Alliance cultivates a keen awareness of issues of power and politics. Promoting this awareness among people in the US is central to our mission, and it reflects the values of our partner groups.

Lavarice’s words last week underscored the need to take this approach. In our next post, we’ll further discuss how to translate appreciating the importance of power and politics into actionable steps to help create a better future for Haiti.

“It may have been good for some of my farmers in Arkansas, but… it was a mistake. I have to live everyday with the consequences of the loss of capacity to produce a rice crop in Haiti to feed those people because of what I did; nobody else.” – Former Pres. Bill Clinton

The above quote speaks to a profoundly important shift in Haiti since the 1980s: the replacement of most locally grown rice with US imports. Although Haiti produced enough rice to feed itself just 35 years ago, that era has long since passed. Today, the USA Rice Federation brags that Haiti is one of the 5 largest export markets (PDF) for American rice.

In this quote, Bill Clinton admitted something that Haitians have long known. By destroying its rice production system, the US “imposed” upon Haiti decades of devastating hunger. One of the Haitians fighting to reverse this trend is a visionary agricultural activist named Lavarice Gaudin. The Haiti Justice Alliance is thrilled to announce that Lavarice will be joining us in Minnesota from Nov. 6-10.

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Repeating the Mistakes of the Past

Lavarice’s desire to rejuvenate Haitian agriculture is born of awareness that suppressing it is what created the current hunger crisis. Unfortunately, many who work to alleviate Haiti’s burden of hunger do so without similarly educating themselves.

If there’s any doubt whether these misguided efforts can be dangerous, Clinton’s quote should clearly illustrate that tragedy can result from good intentions. Unfortunately, many NGOs and governments agencies still use the “outdated approaches” bemoaned by experts – the same ones that led to the destruction of Haiti’s agriculture.

Yet these harmful approaches are not accidental: they’re institutionalized in US law. The 1986 Bumpers Amendment to the Foreign Assistance Act prohibits US foreign aid from supporting crop production that might “compete with US exports.” One consequence of this Amendment is that it creates perverse incentives for Haitian farmers: any farmer who grows Haiti’s main staple – rice – risks being disqualified from receiving US assistance over fear of competition.

More immediately, this Amendment is one of the reasons the US government continues to import thousands of megatons of food aid to Haiti. While the persistence of these practices is disheartening to those advocating just approaches, it should also be unsurprising. After all, according to the Congressional Research Service, “national security” and “commercial interests” both rank above “humanitarian concerns” (PDF) as objectives for foreign aid.

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Supporting Just Solutions: Lavarice’s Vision for Agriculture

As the US government continues to pour money into harmful food donations ($173 million in 2010), it’s more important than ever to promote just alternatives. In this spirit, we hope you’ll join us in learning from and supporting Lavarice’s work in Haiti.

Lavarice, who has “a passion for agricultural self-sufficiency in Haiti,” manages the What If? Foundation’s work on the ground in Haiti. What If? sponsors several community initiatives in a poor parish of Port-au-Prince, including scholarship, summer camp, and after-school programs. Its flagship effort, however, is a food distribution program that has historically provided to community members upwards of 3,000 much-needed meals each weekday.

Breaking with the typical model for food aid, Lavarice has helped propel the Foundation’s food program to use its buying power to support local farmers. In September of 2010, he rented land for a teaching farm, hiring local farmers to plant and tend the crops.

The advantage of Lavarice’s work extends well beyond generating produce, which is donated to the organization’s meal program. By successfully supporting food distribution with locally grown crops, Lavarice demonstrates a viable alternative to the harmful imported food approach. In addition to modeling agricultural self-sufficiency, Lavarice invites groups of children in the summer and after-school camp to learn about growing food and composting.

The Haiti Justice Alliance delegation visited Lavarice’s farm in May, where we saw that his farm was thriving (see below). We hope that his work and vision can inspire further action, as well as a broader discussion about the right way to support food and agriculture efforts in Haiti.

Lavarice discussing his farm with the HJA delegation. Photo Credit: Natalie Miller.

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Please Join Us To Share Lavarice’s Vision

Lavarice has several presentations lined up, all of which are open to everyone. We hope you’ll join us to hear more about his exciting work, his personal story, and his inspiring vision for Haiti’s agriculture.

• St. Olaf College, Nov. 7, 4:30 PM, Viking Theater
  Title: Sustainable Agriculture as a Human Right: Perspectives from Haiti and Northfield. For this panel presentation, Lavarice will be joined by local agricultural activist Reginaldo Haslett-Maroquin of the Rural Enterprise Center.
• Carleton College, Nov. 8, 7:30 PM, Weitz Center Larson Meeting Room (236)
  Title: Haiti’s Struggle for Justice and Food Sovereignty.
• University of Minnesota, Nov. 9, 5:00 PM, Nolte Room 140
  Tentative Title: Hunger and Injustice in Haiti: How To Move Forward.

You can also meet with Lavarice during several small group discussions. For more information about public presentations or smaller gatherings, please contact Nathan: nathan.yaffe@gmail.com.

President Martelly’s third nominee for Prime Minister, Garry Conille, is formally ratified by both houses, ending a political impasse.

Pairs Well With: Account of how Jeff Sachs’ doctrine of “economic shock therapy” – a hallmark of neoliberal economic policy in poor countries – shapes Conille’s economic view.

Also Pairs Well With: Discussion of Conille’s background and professional history. Conille says, “I am not the candidate that the blan [international community] is sending back to Haiti. I am the candidate that Haiti strategically put inside the blan to better understand the blan and to come back and help Haiti.”

Newly ratified Prime Minister Garry Conille. Photo credit: Miami Herald.

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A major project of one of our partner groups, the Aristide Foundation University (UniFA) Medical School, re-opened last week. The Medical School has been closed since the US-backed coup that removed President Aristide in 2004, when US marines began using it as a base.

Pairs Well With: A review of President Martelly’s primary education plan. As one of the few social policy programs he has outlined in any detail, the focus on schooling is significant. Nonetheless, the review points out that with a projected funding gap of $80 million per year, the “sustainability of the program is unclear.”

The Harvard Group published an well-documented review of the recent human rights abuses perpetrated by MINUSTAH, the UN Mission in Haiti.

Pairs Well With: Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel penned a powerful sign-on letter demanding that contributing nations of Latin America withdraw their UN troops in Haiti:

It is unconscionable that our countries, which have all experienced foreign aggression, should be among those to trample the sovereignty of a country that has experienced countless brutal interventions since courageously breaking the chains of slavery and colonialism.