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8242: Re: 8230 Reparations and crooked leaders... (Saint-Vil answers Henrius) (fwd)
From: Jean Saint-Vil <jafrikayiti@hotmail.com>
Onè C. Henrius,
Regarding the question of whether foreign «aid» get stolen by crooked
politicians, you ask me:
>So are you saying that it is not true?
No, I am not saying that. In fact I believe it IS true. But I also believe
this so-called AID usually goes exactly to those for whom it was truly
intented in the first place: i.e crooked politicians in the empovrished
«receiving» country and crooked politicians in the enriched «donor» country.
You wrote:
>I am not trying to be original. I am presenting the a challenge to come up
>with ideas of how reparations could be carried out effectively.
Fair enough. But, I am not even going to adress this challenge because, I
see no evidence that those who have the means and reasons to pay reparations
understand the need to do so. People have been sent to the moon and back. I
think it is obvious that implementing proper administrative practices is a
much simpler task than rocket science.
However, I will be glad to explain my perception to you and to the list.
Again, I repeat that it is not your motivation or yourself that I put in
doubt here. I do have the upmost respect for the calibre of input you mave
consistently provided on Corbetland and I have no reason to perceive you as
being anti-Haitian. On the contrary! But, I do say that THE QUESTION you
raised comes from the eurocentric tradition. Thus, I see IT as being not
merely anti-Haitian, but anti-Afrikan.
The question of corruption in government is an international plague. Be it
the mafia's influence on Italian government and on the Vatican, the drug
lords' corrupting influence on Colombia's government, the multinational
corporations, the drug lord's and even the KKK's corrupting influence on
many levels of U.S. government (not only where David Duke lives but in the
LAPD, in Washignton etc...), the Granmanjè's corrupting influence on Haiti's
current government etc...Corruption of government officials is a major
problem that peoples around the world are facing. Yet, i see no one
questionning whether Italy is apt to managed money from the World Bank. The
main difference is in the strength of each country's infrastructure
(poverty, strength of institutions are all important factors of influence )
and in the «color» with which scandals from each country are covered in the
international press.
My general perception is that, unlike his/her European conterpart, an
Afrikan leader is presumed corrupt or corruption-proned and treated as such
by the eurocentric media which spills over on the so-called mainstream
society and is applied to an entire race of people. Even with the scandal
involving the International Olympic Committee one could see how the «race»
factor heavily influenced how the issue of IOC corruption was suddenly
«discovered». I can already hear one ask what does all this talk albout
international corruption have to do with the issue of reparations to Haiti
over AIDS we were discussing?. I answer: my point exactly!
In other words, we have been conditionned so that every time any issue of
reparations of any kind to Afrikan people is raised, alledged corruption of
black leaders suddenly pops up as a side issue that clouds the environment
and helps many to make a quick and easy get away.
For instance, when millions of Afrikans stood up in Zimbabwe to demand
restitution of the land stolen from them by European squatters. Everywhere
in the eurocentric press, stories started to surface about president
Mugabe's dictatorial and despotic tendancies who is manipulating black
«squatters». Marronage! The world turned up side down to deflect attention
away from the real issue. I.e.: the necessity to return land to those from
whom it was stolen and who are in dire need of land to sustain their
empovrished families.
Yes, Mugabe is no angel. And, yes there are thieves in Afrikan countries,
including Ayiti. That is precisely why peoples of these countries have been
struggling for years, against all odds ! to deal with their thieves the way
that other civilized people have had the privilege to deal with thieves in
their midst. I.e. arrest them, judge them, put them in jail.
What have we observed in fact. The Lumumba, Machel, Mandela, MBeki, Bishop,
and Aristide of our countries are always the ones who are attacked,
demonised and eventually destroyed by the neo-colonial powers (Mandela
survived with bruises, Mbeki is trying to stay alive and Aristide is bearly
surviving and still under heavy pressure to sell out). While, the
Jean-Claude Duvalier, Jean Bedel Bokassa, Mobutu Sese Seko, Raoul Cédras and
Prosper Avrils are groomed, protected and financed by our self-claimed
friends od haiti, friends of Africa, friends of this and that. Is it
because, the Avril gang is more apt to combat the corruption that seems to
make it so difficult to channel AID to our people? Or is it because with
croonies such as Avril, the so-called AID is garanteed to return north with
compounded interests? History seems to suggest the latter. Also, the Mugabe
and Kabila of our world seem to become evil rather suddenly when they become
recalcitrant about crooked diamond deals, for instance.
And, let me end by pointing out that paying reparations due to a people is
not comparable to sending tainted AID to that people. Reparations means you
acknowledge having benefited from the wrong done to the people. Therefore,
the one paying reparations is ill-placed to take a paternalistic stance
where he is dictating to the recepient how it is best to receive or use this
reparation. And, of course, reparations will never take place in an era of
continued world-wide racism (i.e. organised collective racial domination - I
am not talking about benign racial prejudice or intolerance exhibited by
individuals - that also is a scapegoat).
I think we can all agree that the calibre of humanity exhibited today in the
eurocentric world (formerly known as christendom) is nowhere near what would
be sufficient to see real reparations made by these countries to the benefit
of the empovrished peoples of this world. So I am not kidding himself but
there is no need to add more insult to injury & insult already afflicted
because, already, aren't we quietly watching the hyppocritical game whereby
those who do owe reparations are «graciously» offering to cancel (some of
the) so-called debts owed to them by the very people they continue to rob
blind.
«Might makes right said Jesse». Oh! Jesse, Ah! That's another "corrupt one"
who has been effectively silenced for a good while.
'nough said. M ale...Respè!
Jafrikayiti
«And the son asked his father: Dad, how come all the poorest countries of
the CommonWealth also have a majority of "black" people? And the father
answered: I don't know son, it could be the weather. Myself, I am Haitian
and my country is a member of the Francophonie. Oui ! La Francophonie: la
grande fraternité internationale !»
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