Haiti
Although Haiti averages about 302 people per square kilometer, its
population is concentrated most heavily in urban areas, coastal
plains, and valleys. About 95% of Haitians are of African descent.
The rest of the population is mostly of mixed Caucasian-African
ancestry. A few are of European or Levantine heritage. Sixty percent
of the population lives in rural areas.
French is one of two official languages, but it is spoken fluently
by only about 10% of the people. All Haitians speak Creole, the
country's other official language. English and Spanish are
increasingly used as second languages among the young and in the
business sector.
The dominant religion is Roman Catholicism. Increasing numbers of
Haitians have converted to Protestantism through the work of
missionaries active throughout the country. Much of the population
also practices voudou (voodoo), recognized by the government as a
religion in April 2003. Haitians tend to see no conflict in these
African-rooted beliefs coexisting with Christian faith.
Although public education is free, the cost is still quite high for
Haitian families who must pay for uniforms, textbooks, supplies, and
other inputs. Due to weak state provision of education services,
private and parochial schools account for approximately 90% of
primary schools, and only 65% of primary school-aged children are
actually enrolled. At the secondary level, the figure drops to
around 20%. Less than 35% of those who enter will complete primary
school. Though Haitians place a high value on education, few can
afford to send their children to secondary school and primary school
enrollment is dropping due to economic factors. Remittances sent by
Haitians living abroad are important in paying educational costs.
Large-scale emigration, principally to the U.S.--but also to Canada,
the Dominican Republic, The Bahamas and other Caribbean neighbors,
and France--has created what Haitians refer to as the Eleventh
Department or the Diaspora. About one of every eight Haitians lives
abroad. |
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The Spaniards used the island of Hispaniola (of which Haiti is the
western part and the Dominican Republic the eastern) as a launching
point from which to explore the rest of the Western Hemisphere.
French buccaneers later used the western third of the island as a
point from which to harass English and Spanish ships. In 1697, Spain
ceded the western third of Hispaniola to France. As piracy was
gradually suppressed, some French adventurers became planters,
making Saint Domingue, as the French portion of the island was
known, the "pearl of the Antilles"--one of the richest colonies in
the 18th century French empire.
During this period, African slaves were brought to work on sugarcane
and coffee plantations. In 1791, the slave population revolted--led
by Toussaint L'Ouverture, Jean Jacques Dessalines, and Henri
Christophe--and gained control of the northern part of the French
colony, waging a war of attrition against the French.
By January 1804, local forces defeated an army sent by Napoleon
Bonaparte, established independence from France, and renamed the
area Haiti. The impending defeat of the French in Haiti is widely
credited with contributing to Napoleon's decision to sell the
Louisiana territory to the United States in 1803. Haiti is the
world's oldest black republic and the second-oldest republic in the
Western Hemisphere, after the United States. Although Haiti actively
assisted the independence movements of many Latin American
countries, the independent nation of former slaves was excluded from
the hemisphere's first regional meeting of independent nations, in
Panama in 1826, and did not receive U.S. diplomatic recognition
until 1862.
Two separate regimes--north and south--emerged after independence
but were unified in 1820. Two years later, Haiti occupied Santo
Domingo, the eastern, Spanish-speaking part of Hispaniola. In 1844,
however, Santo Domingo broke away from Haiti and became the
Dominican Republic. With 22 changes of government from 1843 to 1915,
Haiti experienced numerous periods of intense political and economic
disorder, prompting the United States military intervention of 1915.
Following a 19-year occupation, U.S. military forces were withdrawn
in 1934, and Haiti regained sovereign rule.
From February 7, 1986--when the 29-year dictatorship of the Duvalier
family ended--until 1991, Haiti was ruled by a series of provisional
governments. In March 1987, a constitution was ratified that
provides for an elected, bicameral parliament; an elected president
that serves as head of state; and a prime minister, cabinet,
ministers, and supreme court appointed by the president with
parliament's consent. The Haitian Constitution also provides for
political decentralization through the election of mayors and
administrative bodies responsible for local government.
In December 1990, Jean-Bertrand Aristide won 67% of the vote in a
presidential election that international observers deemed largely
free and fair. Aristide took office on February 7, 1991, but was
overthrown that September in a violent coup led by army elements and
supported by many of the country's economic elite. The coup
contributed to a large-scale exodus of Haitians by boat. From
October 1991 to September 1994 a de facto military regime governed
Haiti. Several thousand Haitians may have been killed during the de
facto military rule. Various OAS and UN initiatives to end the
political crisis through the peaceful restoration of the
constitutionally elected government failed. On July 31, 1994, the UN
Security Council adopted Resolution 940, which authorized member
states to use all necessary means to facilitate the departure of
Haiti's military leadership and to restore Haiti's constitutionally
elected government to power.
The United States took the lead in forming a multinational force
(MNF) to carry out the UN's mandate by means of a military
intervention. In mid-September, with U.S. troops prepared to enter
Haiti by force, Gen. Raoul Cedras and other top leaders agreed to
accept the intervention of the MNF. On September 19, 1994, the first
contingents of what became a 21,000-member international force
touched down in Haiti to oversee the end of military rule and the
restoration of the constitutional government. President Aristide and
other elected officials in exile returned on October 15.
Nationwide local and parliamentary elections in June 1995 returned a
pro-Aristide, multi-party coalition called the Lavalas Political
Organization (OPL) to power at all levels. In accordance with the
constitutional bar on succeeding himself, President Aristide agreed
to step aside and support a presidential election in December 1995.
Rene Preval, a prominent Aristide political ally, took 88% of the
vote, and was sworn in to a 5-year term on February 7, 1996, during
what was Haiti's first-ever transition between two democratically
elected presidents.
In late 1996, former President Aristide broke from the OPL and
created a new political party, the Lavalas Family (FL). The OPL,
holding the majority of the Parliament, renamed itself the
Struggling People's Organization. Initial results of elections in
April 1997 for the renewal of one-third of the Senate and creation
of commune-level assemblies and town delegations showed victories
for FL candidates in most races. However, the elections, which drew
only about 5% of registered voters, were plagued with allegations of
fraud and not certified by most international observers as free and
fair.
The government was unable to organize local and parliamentary
elections due in late 1998. In early January 1999, President Preval
dismissed legislators whose terms had expired--the entire Chamber of
Deputies and all but nine members of the Senate--and converted local
elected officials into state employees. The President and Prime
Minister then ruled by decree, establishing a cabinet composed
almost entirely of FL partisans. First round elections for local
councils--ASEC and CASEC, municipal governments, town delegates, the
Chamber of Deputies, and two-thirds of the Senate took place on May
21, 2000. The election drew the participation of a multitude of
candidates from a wide array of political parties and a voter
turnout of more than 60%. Manipulated vote counting by the
Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) prevented run-off elections for
eight Senate seats and gave the FL a virtual sweep in the first
round. Although the flawed vote count undercut the credibility of
the election, Haiti's new Parliament, including the contested
Senators, was convened on August 28, 2000.
After this flawed election, Haiti's main bilateral donors
re-channeled their assistance away from the government and announced
they would not support or send observers to the November elections.
Most opposition parties regrouped in an alliance that became the
Democratic Convergence. Elections for President and nine Senators
took place on November 26, 2000. All major opposition parties
boycotted these elections, in which voter participation was
estimated at 5%. Jean-Bertrand Aristide emerged as the easy victor
of these controversial elections, and the candidates of his FL party
swept all contested Senate seats. On February 7, 2001, Jean-Bertrand
Aristide was inaugurated as President.
The political stalemate continued, and violence ensued. On July 28,
2001, unknown gunmen attacked police facilities in Port-au-Prince
and the provinces. A subsequent government crackdown on opposition
party members and former soldiers further increased tensions between
Lavalas and Convergence. On December 17, 2001, unidentified gunmen
attacked the National Palace in Port-au-Prince. Following the
assault, pro-government groups attacked the offices and homes of
several opposition leaders. One opposition member was killed.
Negotiations between FL and Democratic Convergence were suspended
indefinitely.
In January 2002, the OAS Permanent Council adopted Resolution 806 on
Haiti that called for government action to address the political
stalemate, growing violence, and deterioration in respect for human
rights. It also authorized OAS establishment of a Special Mission in
Haiti to support implementation of steps called for in Resolution
806. The OAS Special Mission worked with the government on plans to
strengthen Haiti's democratic institutions in security, justice,
human rights, and governance.
Security continued to deteriorate. Protest strikes and attacks on
opposition demonstrations by government-supported gangs hardened
attitudes on both sides. The opposition issued a public call for
Aristide's removal and announced plans for a transitional
government. In March 2003, a high-level joint delegation of the OAS
and Caribbean Community (CARICOM) presented demands to President
Aristide to restore public security; select new leadership for the
Haitian National Police; arrest a notorious gang leader; and disarm
the security forces used by government politicians to intimidate
opponents.
Events spiraled downward: government-paid thugs violently disrupted
a civil society public ceremony July 12 in Cite Soleil; police
attacked civil society marches in Cap Haitien August 30 and
September 14 and prevented an opposition march scheduled for October
5. Political instability grew throughout fall 2003. In Gonaives,
hitherto pro-Aristide gang members led a violent rebellion against
government authorities in the city. Government-sponsored repression
of opposition protests reached a nadir when on December 5
pro-government gangs entered Haiti's state university campus and
broke the legs of the Rector.
Following a meeting with Aristide at the Summit of the Americas in
January 2004, Caribbean Community leaders proposed a plan to resolve
the political crisis that President Aristide stated he accepted . A
high-level international delegation came to Haiti February 21 to
obtain agreement on a specific implementation timetable. President
Aristide agreed, but the opposition "Democratic Platform" group of
political parties and civil society expressed reservations.
Meanwhile, the violence in Gonaives culminated February 5 in the
"Artibonite Resistance Front" seizing control of the city. Other
armed groups opposed to the Aristide government quickly emerged and
succeeded in seizing control of many towns, mostly with little
resistance from government authorities. By February 28, 2004, a
rebel group led by a former police chief, Guy Philippe, advanced to
within 25 miles of the capital. On February 29, 2004 Aristide
submitted his resignation as President of Haiti and flew on a
chartered plane to Africa. |
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