17604: Lemieux: AP: Haiti marks bittersweet bicentennial (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: JD Lemieux <lxhaiti@yahoo.com>

Haiti marks bittersweet bicentennial as the poor weigh cost
of independence
PAISLEY DODDS, Associated Press Writer
Wednesday, December 31, 2003
©2004 Associated Press

(12-31) 10:50 PST PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) --

Long before President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's re-election
three years ago, seamstresses made sequined T-shirts
reading "2004" and Haitians planned a lavish bash for their
country's bicentennial.

But on the eve of Haiti's 200th anniversary of independence
from France, the celebratory mood is darkened by mounting
divisions over Aristide's ability to guide the country out
of poverty and disorder.

World leaders have backed out and entertainers are
boycotting state events. And many of the impoverished
nation's 8 million people are asking how much more
suffering they must endure before their ancestors' triumph
on Jan. 1, 1804, can be realized.

"We come from a country with a very rich history, but we
are poor in so many other ways," says Pierre Jean-Joseph, a
32-year-old artist. "Happiness is relative."

To mark the event Thursday, fireworks are set to illuminate
the Champs de Mars plaza. Foreign delegates will dine at
state galas, drummers will bang out a dizzying rhythm for
days and a monument to Haiti's forefathers will be
dedicated.

Haiti was born after the world's only successful slave
rebellion. Toussaint Louverture's army of former slaves
crushed Napoleon's troops, making Haiti the first black
republic and the first country in the Western Hemisphere to
abolish slavery, which still flourished in parts of the
United States.

However, a string of leaders then drove the country into
disarray.

In 1904, a disillusioned President Rosalvo Bobo looked to
2004's bicentennial, saying the next century might hold
more promise. But the years that followed were no less
brutal -- one president was blown up, another was poisoned
and a third was dismembered. Nine fled and six were
overthrown.

"Haitians have always been a little bit skeptical of their
independence," says J. Christopher Kovats-Bernat, a
cultural anthropologist at Muhlenberg College, in
Allentown, Pa., and observer in the 1995 elections.

"You never quite know what to expect."

There was a flicker of hope in 1990 after 29 years of the
Duvalier family dictatorship. Aristide, then a slum priest
making fiery promises to the poor, was elected by a
landslide but then overthrown the next year.

He was restored in 1994 during a U.S. occupation but forced
to step down in 1996 because of term limits. But Aristide,
now 50, has been dogged by political troubles since his
2000 re-election, largely because of legislative elections
that observers said were flawed.

The disputed vote led to a strangling impasse with the
opposition, which refuses to participate in new elections
unless Aristide steps down -- a demand he has refused.

Meanwhile, violent anti-government protests have killed at
least 41 people since September.

Many blame Aristide for using police and thugs to stymie
dissent. Some accuse him of using his ancestors'
accomplishments to mask his failures.

"Aristide is no longer the man of the people," said
Theodore Beaubrun Jr., lead singer of the popular roots
band Boukman Eksperyans, which is boycotting some
state-sponsored events.

Haiti is the Western Hemisphere's poorest country, rife
with malnutrition and suffering.

With Haiti's independence, France demanded repayment on a
debt of 150 gold francs (about $800 million today),
draining the country's coffers.

Recently, international lenders and donors suspended more
than $500 million in loans and grants after the contested
legislative elections.

Aristide has tried to draw parallels between Haiti and its
African cousins, which faced similar struggles. But Haiti
has taken a vastly different path from countries like South
Africa -- Africa's youngest republic -- which is sending a
delegation headed by President Thabo Mbeki.

While Mbeki has sought to fulfill Nelson Mandela's legacy
of healing racial divisions and attracting investors,
Aristide has been unable to close the political divide or
ease crushing poverty.

Some argue Aristide has polarized Haitians by categorizing
opponents as part of the light-skinned elite.

Other leaders, like President Emile Lahoud of Benin, have
shied away from the celebration, sending lower-level
delegates. The Caribbean Community, which Haiti recently
joined, also is sending a skeleton team.

"Years ago, there was a lot of hope," says Evelyn Scott,
who started making sequined bicentennial T-shirts years
ago. "But somehow I think the hope and the appreciation for
the event itself has been lost."

©2004 Associated Press


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