| The present high level of poverty of the common | | | | economic empowerment, which would have |
| people in Haiti today has its roots in the turbulent | | | | translated to their economic growth. The period |
| history of the first Black Republic in the world. | | | | of the first American occupation of Haiti, though |
| After destroying the Napoleonic Army on the | | | | frequently touted as one of relative peace and |
| bloody battlefields of Vertières, liberating | | | | progress in infrastructural development, was more |
| themselves from French colonialism and slavery, | | | | of a peace of the graveyard. Several rebellions |
| and thus proclaimed the independence of Haiti in | | | | against the American occupation by Haitian |
| 1804, Haiti's new ruling elites were confronted with | | | | nationalists were brutally put down. In one such |
| a daunting choice: restoring the economy by | | | | incident, over two thousand Haitians, popularly |
| re-instating the sugar plantation system or | | | | known as 'cacos', were killed by the American |
| preserving emancipation by allowing small and | | | | marines as they were protesting American racism |
| inefficient land holdings. The Haitian people resisted | | | | and economic deprivation. |
| to a return of the system of forced labor that is | | | | In another instance, unarmed peasants during a |
| required to maintain the sugar plantations; which | | | | march protesting for better economic conditions |
| they regarded as the other side of the coin of | | | | were, on December 1929 in Les Cayes, mauled |
| slavery. They instead demanded economic | | | | by United States marines where more than ten |
| independence and an equitable land distribution for | | | | defenseless Haitian peasants died. All said and |
| all. The decision to do away with the erstwhile | | | | done, American occupation of Haiti from 1915 to |
| profitable plantation system into small peasant | | | | 1934, rather than reduce poverty among the |
| farm holder began a process of reducing the | | | | ordinary Haitians, only exacerbated their plight, |
| earning power of the newly liberated citizens of | | | | while American Multinational companies were |
| Haiti, and hence the economic clout of the 'Jewel | | | | making record profit level by exploiting Haitian |
| of the Antilles'. | | | | cheap labor. Instead of reinvesting these profits in |
| A few years after the decision was taken to | | | | poverty alleviating programs in Haiti, these |
| liberalize land ownership, which translated into | | | | companies repatriated their profits home to |
| drastic reduction in foreign exchange earnings of | | | | further boost American wealth, while further |
| the new republic, in order for the populace to feel | | | | impoverishing hapless Haitians. Thus we can say |
| truly liberated, a grave danger to the very | | | | that the first American invasion and subsequent |
| existence of the new republic surfaced. This was | | | | occupation of Haiti, is one of the root causes of |
| a threat from the shameless defeated colonial | | | | Haitian poverty. |
| power France to invade Haiti anew. A French | | | | Poverty in Modern Day HaitiThe recent political |
| naval force was already strategically positioned in | | | | and economic history of Haiti is an extension of |
| the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Cap | | | | its past history. Before the Americans left Haiti in |
| Haïtien. France has emphatically hrefused to | | | | 1934, as they always tend to do, they installed a |
| recognize Haiti's independence until it agreed to | | | | puppet government in Port-au-Prince, which main |
| pay an indemnity of 150 million francs to | | | | preoccupation was to look after American |
| compensate for the losses of French planters in | | | | commercial and business interests and thereby |
| the slave revolution. Payment of this indemnity | | | | feathering their own financial nests in the process. |
| brought the government deeply in debt and | | | | Development or expanding Haiti beyond |
| crippled the country's economy. | | | | Port-au-Prince was of no importance to them, and |
| As if to add salt to an already festering sore, the | | | | hence empowerment of the masses in Haiti was |
| great slave owning powers of that time in human | | | | put in abeyance. The arrival of the Duvaliers, 'Papa |
| history, France, Spain, Britain and even the | | | | Doc' Duvalier and his son 'Baby Doc' Jean Claude |
| fledgling United States of America, which Haitians | | | | Duvalier, was initially heralded as a ray of sunshine |
| had helped in its time of needs to survive the | | | | of hope in a dark cloud of misery and poverty. |
| onslaught of a British invasion, have mounted a | | | | The poor masses soon had their hopes shattered. |
| total economic boycott against Haiti. This | | | | Although 'Papa Doc' started well in 1957 with a |
| concerted but unwarranted economic embargo on | | | | modicum of rural development programs, he soon |
| Haiti, along with payment of the imposed | | | | turned into a tyrant protecting his power. To his |
| indemnity of 150 million francs to France, when | | | | benefit, it is worthy to mention that he too was |
| taken together could be said to be the second | | | | faced with an embargo from the Black Eagle. |
| root cause of Haitian poverty. The effects of | | | | When Papa Doc died in 1971, he was succeeded |
| these punitive measures are still felt by the | | | | by his son Jean Claude Duvalier. His father was a |
| common people of Haiti up till today. | | | | bit more interested in the well being of the |
| However, one historically important contributive | | | | masses in the countryside. Jean-Claude neglected |
| cause to Haitian poverty is the inherent instability | | | | the countryside and further exacerbated rural |
| of Haiti's political terrain. The period between the | | | | poverty. All of the revenues generated through |
| expulsion of President Boyer in 1843, after he | | | | foreign grants and World Bank loans were wasted |
| capitulated to France's demand for indemnity, and | | | | on his consumptive lifestyle and those of his |
| the first American invasion in 1915; is generally | | | | cronies and the new elites in Haitian society. Baby |
| regarded as the chaotic era in Haitian history. A | | | | Doc only added another chapter to the sorry |
| notable historian of the period, Leyburn, | | | | story of Haitian poverty. |
| summarizes this chaotic era in Haitian history as | | | | Today, Haiti remains the least-developed country |
| follow: "Of the twenty-two heads of state | | | | in the Western Hemisphere and one of the |
| between 1843 and 1915, only one served out his | | | | poorest in the world. Compared to other |
| prescribed term of office, three died while | | | | low-income developing countries in the Western |
| serving, one was blown up with his palace, one | | | | Hemisphere, Haiti has not made much social and |
| presumably poisoned, one hacked to pieces by a | | | | economic headway since the 1980s. Haiti now |
| mob, one resigned. The other fourteen were | | | | ranks close to the bottom of all the countries in |
| deposed by revolution after incumbencies ranging | | | | the United Nation's Human Development Index. |
| in length from three months to twelve years." | | | | Almost eighty percent of all Haitian population lives |
| This extremely high level of political instability | | | | in abject poverty, ranking the country |
| contributed in no small measure to deprive | | | | second-to-last in the world in a comparison |
| Haitians the peaceful environment needed for | | | | measure of global poverty. |