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#3328: The Return of the Dark Days : Paryski comments
From:PPARYSKI@aol.com
Perhaps it would be useful to note that an estimated 20-30 people are being
murdered in Haiti each week. Most of these people are poor and black and as
such their deaths, horrible as they are, are hardly ever mentioned in the
media. Most people now accept such deaths as normal; a form of short-term
survival strategy and hardly blink an eye when they see a corpse in the
street. Jean Dominique's death was notable because he was such a legendary,
engagé and public person of remarkable intelligence.
The reasons for the continuing murder include some or even all of the
following; the mixture probably varies from case to case:
1. Political
2. Drug related
3. Theft
4. Personal revenge
There seems to be a tinge of class conflict in some of the murders which is
normal in a country of such poverty, frustration and a semi caste social
structure in which very few have almost all of the country's wealth. The
extremely high rate of crime and simple seizure of property is perhaps
related.
It seems to me that the death of Jean Dominique should inspire people to
search for the root causes of Haiti's present tragic situation, causes that
can be found in its history and family, political and social patterns. More
importantly, his death should motivate people to search for real and
practical solutions, ways to help Haiti become once again La Perle des
Antilles. One way to do this might be to try to imagine what one would like
Haiti to be: its institutions, its social fabric, its economy, its judicial
system, its environment, its cities and its people. Then suggest how to best
achieve this. Necessarily this will require commitment and sacrifices.
Henry Christophe's coat of arms was a phoenix; his motto: je renais de mes
cendres. I am sure Jean would have agreed.
Paul Paryski