H A I T I E D U C A T I O N F U N D

4

Christopher ColumbusArrived in 1492 when his ship ran aground

Named the island Hispaniola

Found gold in what is now the Dominican Republic and other Spanish settlers flocked to the island

They forced the aboriginals to mine and raise food

The aboriginals were treated so poorly that by 1530 only a few were left alive and the Spanish brought in Africans as slaves.

The Spanish Leave

• Spanish settlers leave for more prosperous settlements in Mexico and Peru

• 1606- King of Spain ordered remaining settlers to move to Santa Domingo in the Dominican Republic

• French, English and Dutch settlers took over the northern and western coasts and became buccaneers that stole Spanish silver and gold

• In 1667, Spain recognized French control over the western third of the country.

The French

• The French named its new colony Saint-Domingue and brought in Africans as slaves to develop coffee and spice plantations.

• By 1788, there were eight times as many slaves as colonists.

The Haitian Revolution

• 1771-slaves rebelled against French masters and destroyed plantations and towns.

• Toussaint Louverture, a former slave, took control of the government and restored some order

• He wrote constitution to separate Saint-Domingue from France

The Haitian Revolution con’t• 1799 - Napoleon came to power ;

sent army to capture Toussaint and imprisoned him in France (where he later died)

• During this time many French soldiers caught yellow fever and died.

• After a long campaign African rebels defeated French and General Jean-Jacques Dessalines (leader of the rebels) proclaimed the colony an independent

country named Haiti on January 1, 1804

The Fight for Control

• Dessalines -nation’s first chief of state killed in 1806; country was divided in two by other generals (Alexandre Petin and Henri Christophe)

• 1818 Jean-Pierre Boyer reunited the country and ruled until the colony revolted in 1844.

• During the next 70 years 32 different men ruled Haiti.

• Unrest spread throughout the country.

The US Steps In

• 1915 - President Woodrow Wilson sent marines to restore order. He feared other nations may try to take Haiti if unrest continued.

• U.S.A. made Haiti make payments on its large debts to other countries

• U.S.A. strengthened the government, built highways, schools and hospitals.

• U.S.A. withdrew in 1934 and Haiti regained control of its affairs.

• Some foreign investment followed but the upper class mulattoes benefited most.

• Between 1946 and 1957 the army stepped in to control the country twice.

Francois (Papa Doc) Duvalier

• 1957 - Francois (Papa Doc) Duvalier, a country doctor, elected as President

• 1964 - he declared himself President for Life

• 1971 - Constitution was amended to allow the president to choose his successor – his son Jean-Claude.

• Francois died in April 1971 and Jean Claude (only 19 yoa) succeeded him, declared himself President for Life and ruled as a dictator.

• The Duvaliers controlled Haiti’s armed forces and had a secret police force.

General Henri Namphy• Early 1970’s - many people began to leave Haiti

because of poor economic conditions and severe treatment by secret police

• 1986 - Haitians staged a revolt against Jean-Claude and he fled.

• Lieutenant General Henri Namphy became the head of the government and failed at disbanding the secret police.

• 1987 - constitution adopted that allowed for elections by the people, however in 1988 Namphy overthrew the government and seized power;declared himself president of a military government.

And it continues…• September 1988 - officers from

the Presidential guard seized power from Namphy

• Lieutenant General Prosper Avril declared himself and ruled as a dictator. He resigned in March 1990

• December 1990 - Haitian people elected Jean-Bertrand Aristide as President.

• September 1991 - Aristide overthrown by the military and fled

A Trade Boycott Follows• The Organization of American

States (OAS) led a trade boycott against Haiti to force Aristide’s return to power.

• The UN later imposed a boycott• Following the coup many

Haitians attempted to flee to the United States in small boats. At first the US sent the refugees back to Haiti. Later, they sent fleeing refugees to the US military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Aristide returns to office?• July 3, 1993 - Haitian military agreed to

allow Aristide to return to office and restore a democratic government by October 30th. However, this was not followed through.

• September 1994 - the US began sending troops to Haiti to force the military to restore democratic government

• October 1994 - Aristide returned to office

Under Aristide• Haiti suffered economic hardship

and political instability• Opponents claimed that

elections held in 2000 were fraudulent resulting in foreign donors refusing to release aid to Haiti

• Coup attempts and demonstrations both for and against Aristide erupted

• Political opposition groups refused to take part in or deal with a government that included Aristide

2004• Violent rebellion spread across Northern Haiti where rebels (former members of Haiti military) demanded Aristide’s resignation

•February 29th, 2004 - Aristide fled to Africa; soon after a US peacekeeping force arrived in Haiti

•Chief Justice of Haiti’s Supreme Court, Boniface Alexandre, became President of a transitional government

•May, 2004 - flash floods caused wide spread destruction; 1,400 people killed and 1,800 were missing (between Haiti and Dominican Republic)

• September - Tropical Storm Jeanne; mudslides killed 3000 in Haiti

2006

• February - Haitians voted for a president and parliament to replace the interim government that had held power since 2004

• Rene Preval declared winner after accusations of election fraud and protests in his favour

• He belongs to the L’Espwa (The Hope) Party and have wide spread support amongst the poor.

2008• August and September - tropical storms and hurricanes kill hundreds

of Haitians.• Haiti’s agriculture suffered huge loses• April - rioting broke out in Les Cayes and Port-au-Prince over steeply

rising food prices • More political instability followed with replacement of the Prime

Minister twice.

2010• The region’s worst earthquake in 200 years

struck.

HAS THE COUNTRY EVEN HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME

STABLE?

A Recent History of Haiti

• 2004: As the country celebrates 200 years of

independence, a violent uprising begins against President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Rebels seize cities and dozens are killed. The president is forced into exile and an interim government takes over. Peacekeepers arrive in June while gang violence plagues Port-au-Prince.

• 2006: In the first elections since the uprising,

Rene Preval wins.

• • April 2008: High food prices cause riots. •

• • April 2008: High food prices cause riots. •

• • August/Sept 2008: Nearly 800 people are

killed after a series of hurricanes batter the island.

•

• • November 2008: A school collapses in Port-

au-Prince with 500 inside. Officials blame poor construction.

•

• • November 2008: A school collapses in Port-

au-Prince with 500 inside. Officials blame poor construction.

•

• • July 2009: The World Bank cancels $1.2

billion of Haiti’s debt, 80 per cent of the total.

•

• • January 2010: A 7.0 magnitude earthquake

hits just 15 kilometers outside the capital. Tens of thousands are feared dead. The destruction causes widespread looting and violence.

•

QUALITY OF LIFE INDICATORS

HAITI HAS THE HIGHEST INFANT & MATERNAL MORTALITY RATE IN THE

WESTERN WORLD

LIFE EXPECTANCY

52 YEARS OLD FOR WOMEN

49 YEARS OLD FOR MEN

50% OF ADULTS ARE LITERATE

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE = 70%

POOREST COUNTRY IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE

• AMONG POOREST IN THE WORLD• HOPELESSLY CAUGHT IN “POVERTY TRAP”1.POOR GOVERNANCE2.POOR ECONOMY3.GROWING POPULATION4.LIMITED NATURAL RESOURCES5.HIGH ILLITERACY, INFANT MORTALITY

EARTHQUAKE IMPACT ON PEOPLE

COLLAPSED BUILDINGSTOPPLED HYDRO POLES, TREES

BROKEN PIPES/CONDUITS,BROKEN LIMBS, FRACTURED

FAMILIES, UNEMPLOYABILITY, SEVERE INJURIES, DEATH

devestation

survival

death

anguish

sanitation hazard

hope

infrastructure collapse

accessibility

basic need

despair

faith

assistance

aid

miracles

lack of stability

HUMANITARIAN ASSIATANCE

• Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for in response to humanitarian crises.

• The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives,

• alleviate suffering• maintain human dignityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humanitarian_aid

HUMANITARIAN AID VS. DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

• The primary objective of humanitarian aid is:

• save lives, • alleviate suffering• maintain human dignity• Donations, NGO’s• The United Nations Office for the

Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) coordinates international humanitarian response to a crisis or emergency pursuant to Resolution 46/182 of the United Nations General Asembly.

• Seeks to address the underlying socioeconomic factors which may have led to a crisis or emergency

• political instability, poverty, social unrest, HIV/AIDS,civil war, dictatorship,

• Paid, loaned by governments Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)

• Empowers women• Education• Health care• Governance• Economy• Environmental protection• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humanitarian_aid

PROMINENT ISSUES• UPHOLDING HUMAN

RIGHTS/CHILD RIGHTS• LOOTING VS. SURVIVAL• HOMELESSNESS• FRACTURED FAMILIES• LOSS OF EMPLOYMENT• LOSS OF LOCAL BUSINESSES• LOSS OF AGRICULTURAL LAND• ORPHANS (OLD AND NEW)• POLLUTION (SANITATION,

DEAD BODIES, WATER)• JUSTICE

• HUMAN TRAFFICKING• CORRUPTION• ACCESS TO RELIEF AID

(MEDICINES, FOOD, WATER)• AID DISTRIBUTION• ENERGY/FUEL SOURCES• ACCESS TO PUBLIC SERVICES• LACKOF INFRASTRUCTURE• GOVERNMENT • STRUCTURE TO IMPLEMENT

DONATIONS• IMMEDIATE ECONOMIC

DEVELOPMENT (TOURISM)

RELIEF AID MUST BE SUSTAINABLE …

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