Haiti’s presidential elections in the shadow of the gangs
Port-au-Prince. There are long, hard looks. Looks strengthened by the heavy silver medallions, dark sunglasses, well-ironed shirts and tattoos of gang members. These looks rule over Bel Air, a slum in the heart of Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital. There are glances from behind half-opened doors or windows. These glances always sink to floor, when they meet the hard looks. That is the untold rule in the stronghold of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the ousted president. Aristide, a former priest, had started his political career preaching in the churches of Bel Air. The slum is still controlled by the chimères, the gangs closed to him. Posters for René Préval, the front-runner ahead of today’s presidential election, are omnipresent in Bel-Air. The man is considered to be a close ally of Titid (Aristide’s nickname). In this slum, the link between the two is strong. On February 29 2004, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who had to flee the white presidential palace less than a mile away from Bel Air. But he is still the spiritual leader in this poor neighborhood around the cathedral of Port-au-Prince. On Sunday afternoon, Raram, a carnival band known in Port-au-Prince for its devotion to Aristide and its close links to the gangs, paraded in the streets of Bel Air. Their message was clear: vote for Préval. On a small square next to the church of The perpetual Savior, Guerdy Bonnet, a resident of the slum, wore a white t-shirt with Préval’s face on it: “In Haiti, poor people are not treated as human beings, said the 32-year old woman. “Young people from the slums are sent to prison”. A man standing next to her listened very carefully and in a very obvious way as Guerdy told the story of her dead sister and brother: “They were executed by the police, she shouted. “They did not do anything”. The man standing next to her, nodded. He had heard what he wanted to and finally left. Bel Air is a volatile mix of the misery and violence, that have plagued Haiti for months and that continue to slowly destroy the small Caribbean country. The slums reflect the problems the future government will be facing. It will have to deal with the gangs that rule over the slums of the Haitian Capital and with the distrust of the poor toward the Haitian police. According to a report by the British NGO OXFAM, rogue police is guilty of exactions. This study reveals that on October 26 2004, police troops killed 13 young people during an operation to arrest a gang leader that was absent that day. On August 20 2005, the police interrupted a soccer match the US had financed to promote peace in the slums. They unleashed chaos and at least ten civilians were killed in the crossfire between the gangs and the police. “We have a problem in Haiti”, said Harry Jean, a student. “The mulâtres (the white people in Haiti) and the black colons from uptown (The elites of Port-au-Prince live in Pétion-Ville, a neighborhood overlooking the capital) do not give us a chance to succeed. There is a lot of talent here but we are not able to express it. Mr Préval is the only one, who can give their dignity back to the poor”. Charles-Henri Baker is René Préval’s main opponent. Baker is a white businessman from Uptown. The man linked with the elites, played a major role in the ouster of Jean-Bertrand Aristide. But he is running far behind René Préval in the polls with around 10% of intended votes against Préval 40%. On Saturday, Baker threw a last meeting. With the carnival season looming, the candidates hired several bands to entertain the crowd. An old woman stood out among the people dancing: “After these elections, I hope to have a seat in the bus. Rosette Normil, 58, said referring to the bus Baker uses as a symbol for his campaign. We used to have schools, roads and above all security. But there is nothing left here. And I am tired of walking”. The multiple failures of the international communityHaiti’s recent history reflects the multiple failures of the international community. On February 29 2004, the president Jean-Bertrand Aristide left the country under pressure from France and the US. At the time, George Bush deemed this exile as “a new chapter in the country’s history”. Two years later, as Haitians are getting ready to go to the polls, the new chapter has yet to be written. 9000 UN troops have been unable to restore security in the small Caribbean country. Early January, a strike paralyzed Haiti. People were protesting against the failure of UN troops to beat the gangs. The UN mission costs $584 million per year. On January 7 2006, the Brazilian general in command of the UN troops committed suicide in his hotel room in Port-au-Prince. The international community pledged funds that have yet to get to Haiti. As a UN official puts it on condition of anonymity, “foreign governments are waiting to see how the elections will take place before they give the money”. The US plays an ambiguous role in Haiti. George Bush, whose stated goal is to promote democracy throughout the world, promised help on February 29 2004. The US and Canadian governments are by far the largest donors in Haiti. But on the other hand, the State Department recently refused to send to Haiti five helicopters the UN had requested for presidential elections. An investigation published by the New York Times on January 29 2006 concluded that the two-step approach by Washington had driven Haiti deeper into chaos. Dean Curran, the US ambassador to Haiti until August 2003, accuses a company financed by the Bush administration to have undermined his efforts to try to bridge the gap between Aristide and the opposition between 2000 and 2003. The diplomat accuses the International Republican Institute (IRI), a private group based in Washington DC and close to the Bush administration to have used US taxpayers funds provided by the Bush administration to help the opposition. According to Curran, IRI asked Stanley Lucas, an outspoken Aristide foe, to head its Haitian program. The former ambassador also claims that while he was trying to find a compromise between the conflicting parties, Lucas was urging the opposition to turn down his offer. IRI is denying any such action. And Stanley Lucas has now been assigned to promote democracy in Afghanistan. J-C De. Haiti in numbers60% The official unemployment rate in Haiti is 60%. 55% 55% of Haiti’s 8,5 million people live with less than a dollar per day according to an estimate by the UN. 10% According to the State Department, 10% of the cocaine reaching the US market came through Haiti. 0 Haiti has no army. 1990 Aristide was Haiti’s first elected president in 1990. He had to give up post in 1991 and was restored to power by the US in 1994. 1995 René Préval is elected president. In 2000, Aristide is reelected. But on February 29 2004, a coup forces him to go into exile. 1600 According to the Small Arms Survey, a study ordered by the Swiss government, 1600 people have died from a violent death between Aristide’s departure and the fall of 2005. A French and shorter version of this story was published on February 9 2006 by 24heures and Tribune de Genève . UPDATE: On February 16 2006, René Préval was declared the winner of the elections with 51.15 percent of the vote. 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