French Return to Haiti After 200 Years

[seemslikeadream]

Posted on Sun, Mar. 28, 2004

French Return to Haiti After 200 Years

PAISLEY DODDS

Associated Press


CAP-HAITIEN, Haiti - French troops patrolling this former colony for the first time in 200 years are getting warm welcomes from most Haitians, but some still want Paris to pay $22 billion in restitution called for by ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

The campaign to win restitution was a cornerstone of Aristide's embattled administration, which charged France had wrongly made Haiti pay for its independence after enslaving its people and stealing its riches.

Haiti became the world's first free black republic after declaring independence on Jan. 1, 1804. But France did not recognize Haiti's independence until 1838 - after Haiti began paying France an agreed amount of 90 million gold francs to compensate former plantation owners.

Speaking in November to honor the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Vertieres, which was fought just outside this colonial city, Aristide blamed Haiti's crushing poverty on having to pay off that debt. Payments continued into the 20th century.

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/8299326.htm

[seemslikeadream]

1. Bush Calls Chirac to Thank France on Haiti

PARIS (Reuters) - President Bush telephoned French President Jacques Chirac Tuesday to hail their countries' cooperation over the Haiti crisis, the latest sign of a gradual thaw in U.S.-French relations.
France and the United States, which fell out last year over Paris's opposition to the U.S.-led Iraq war, led pressure on Haiti President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to step down and have sent troops to restore order after an armed rebellion.

Bush called "to hail the excellent U.S.-French cooperation on Haiti and thank France for its efforts," Chirac spokeswoman Catherine Colonna said, adding that Chirac also expressed his satisfaction about the tight coordination of their diplomacy.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=4479813

[Rochambeau]

2. Even if I am

very very critic about Aristide's way to run the country after the first coup, I really believe that France has nothing to do in Haiti now as well as France had nothing to do in the last coup.

If France has something to do about Haiti it is to give back that money, the money of shame, converted and adjusted to it's current value in euros (I don't know how much it is but it should be hudge, many billions for sure) displayed on 10 or 20 years. Many things a country did bad to another can't be repared, it's sad but a fact, but to give that money back, for once, is highly possible. France's financial situation is bad now but it cannot be compared to the desastrous situation of Haiti and to close any debate, that money is not our!
The question is to who give that money back? Certainly not to the junta in power now. Certainly not to a foreign controlled organization (enough is enough!). But after fair elections, under control of the UN, where every candidate should be allowed to run (including Aristide of course. Nobody but the Haitians had to fire out Aristide if he really deserved it- and I still think that he did but it's not the point) to the Haitian people.

[DulceDecorum]

3. And the French will be leaving AGAIN shortly

PERMANENTLY.

The African Union is backing CARICOM to the hilt.
China is watching.
India is annoyed.
Latin America is not amused.
They are prepared -- to overcome.

The industrialised countries shared more than a fifth of all the world's people in 1950, but their portion declined to fewer than one sixth in 1985, the Army Conference study reveals. And current demographic projections show that the total population of all these nations combined will actually be less than either that of India or sub-Saharan Africa in 2025, and would barely equal the population of the Latin America-Caribbean region.

"By these projections a very different world would seem to be emerging," the Army report cautions. "Such trends speak to pressures for a systematically diminished role and status for today's industrial democracies. Even with relatively unfavorable assumptions about Third World economic growth, the share of global economic output of today's industrial democracies could decline. With a generalised and progressive industrialisation of current low-income areas, the Western diminution would be all the more rapid. Thus, one can easily envision a world more unreceptive, and ultimately more threatening, to the interests of the United States and its allies."

The Army Conference study concludes that the situation is likely to create "an international environment even more menacing to the security prospects of the Western alliance than was the Cold War for the past generation."
http://www.africa2000.com/BNDX/BAO301.htm

[seemslikeadream]

4. RESOLUTION ON HAITI AFRICAN UNION

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AFRICAN UNION UNION AFRICAINE UNIÃO AFRICANAP. O. Box 3243, Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA Tel.: 517700 Fax: [phone] E-mail: [e-mail] OF THE UNION 2ndExtraordinary Session 27 - 28 February 2004 SIRTE, LIBYA Ext/Assembly/AU/Dec.1-2 (II)DECISIONS
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Ext/Assembly/AU/Res.1 (II) RESOLUTION ON HAITI We, African Heads of State and Government, meeting on the occasion of the 2ndExtraordinary Summit meeting of the African Union, in Sirte, Libya; Recalling the AU Summit decision to encourage the full participation of the African Diaspora in building our Union; Gravely concerned at the rapidly deteriorating situation in Haiti, a member of the Caribbean Community of Nations, CARICOM; Noting the initiative taken by CARICOM to facilitate a speedy resolution of the conflict affecting Haiti, respecting both the rule of law and the Constitution of Haiti; Further noting the call made by CARICOM for the assistance to be extended to the Government of Haiti to enable it to restore law and order, protect the constitutional order and create the conditions for the provision of humanitarian assistance; Encouraged by the position taken by the Congressional Black Caucus of the United States of America in support of the CARICOM initiative; 1. RESOLVE to support the CARICOM initiative and extend whatever assistance we can to the people of Haiti; 2. CALL ON the United Nations Security Council to respond positively and speedily to the proposal made to it by CARICOM and appeal to all other countries to support CARICOM; 3. REAFFIRM our determination to strengthen our relations with CARICOM, and the rest of the African Diaspora; 4. ENCOURAGE the Chairperson of the African Union to keep developments in Haiti under review and, after due consultation, recommend any further appropriate action.

http://216.239.41.104/search?q=cache:O7NkruyeV-kJ:www.iss.co.za/AF/RegOrg/unity_to_union/pdfs/au/assembly/sirtefeb04/decagric.pdf+african+union+caricom&hl=en&ie=UTF-8