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6258: Re: 6253: Re: Haiti parallel government!?? (fwd)
From: Maxetluc@aol.com
Actually, in most parliamentary governments (including Great Britain) the
opposition is expected to set up a "shadow government." In other words, the
opposition appoints its own leaders as "shadows" of their counterparts in the
cabinet. They wield no power, but are expected to develop expertise in the
specialized area, act as a watchdog and move into place should the elected
government fall (as happens so often in parliamentary governments. Italy,
for example, seems to have a new government every six months.)
The 1987 constitution sets up the Haitian government as a parliamentary
government. The prime minister is the head of government and the
president a mere ceremonial head of state. In practice, however, two hundred
years of government by strongman and the ego of the first president elected
under that constitution have converged to prevent the installation of such a
system.
Certainly, it appears that the opposition has goals and objectives far
beyond that of a typical "shadow government." In fact, their program appears
closer to that of the "alternative" government set up by Irish Republican
leaders in the years between World War One and independence. However, the
sin is in overreaching, not in conception. Shadow governments have a
legitimate, honorable place in parliamentary democracies. In the case of
poor Haiti, though, it seems any form of opposition is automatically deemed
illegitimate.
Maxetluc