19058: Belfort: Boston Globe Op-Ed piece (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Sarah and Ronald Belfort <belfort@earthlink.net>

This was written by my representative. My opinion is a little more radical,
but I would urge all Americans to write to their government rep's to share
their views. In particular, I wrote to urge a reversal of the current U.S.
policy on Haitian refugees. There seems to be very little that can be done
at the moment, but that is one thing.

Boston Globe:

Haitian democracy needs US help now

By Bill Delahunt, 2/22/2004

ONCE AGAIN, turmoil in Haiti is making headlines. The specter of massive
bloodshed and waves of refugees is again unnerving its neighbors and raising
fears of instability in the Caribbean. And all eyes are back on the United
States, the only country in the region able to intervene effectively .
Today's crisis is about much more than the unfolding tragedy in Haiti. How
the United States reacts will demonstrate the depth of our commitment to
democracy around the world.
Ten years ago, the news from Haiti was eerily similar. The country's first
democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, had been
overthrown by a coup d'etat. The ensuing military regime slaughtered
thousands of Haitians and sent tens of thousands more fleeing across the
Florida Strait.
After years of fruitless diplomacy and sanctions, the Clinton administration
concluded that the only way to stop Haiti's hemorrhage was to intervene
militarily. So the United States, working with the United Nations and the
Organization of American States, sent 20,000 troops to Haiti to reinstate
Aristide.
The restoration of the democratic government gave hope that Haiti's brutal
history of rapacious dictatorships -- a political tradition that made its
people the poorest in our hemisphere -- had finally changed. Once the
immediate crisis was over, however, Haiti dropped off the world's radar
screen. And slid back into the habits of its bloody past.
A selfish Haitian political class concentrated on internecine squabbling
rather than working to improve the country. Rampant corruption and crumbling
infrastructure discouraged foreign investment. The police, outgunned and
outnumbered, grew demoralized and ineffective. After his reelection to the
presidency in 2000, Aristide -- whose popularity would have allowed him,
like Nelson Mandela, to lead his country in a courageous new direction --
instead became increasingly autocratic. And the opposition, backed by the
Bush administration, managed to have international aid blocked while
rejecting all efforts toward peaceful reconciliation; according to one
leader, they will only negotiate "through which door he [Aristide] leaves
the palace."
In the past few months, Haiti's deterioration has accelerated. Violent gangs
have launched an all-out rebellion against Aristide. Ominously, they have
been joined by some of the most notorious butchers of the former military
regime.
So, once again, Haiti is on the verge of violent upheaval. But this time,
the context is different, and the United States has the opportunity to stop
the horror. Unfortunately, its reaction has been to send mixed messages on
Aristide's legitimacy while discouraging talk of real action.
The Bush administration says the war on terror is really a war for
democracy -- a claim met with disbelief, given our alliance with dictators
from Tunisia to Uzbekistan. Now a close neighbor's democratically elected
government is threatened with violent overthrow. If the Bush administration
is going to credibly demonstrate the leadership it claims for the cause of
democracy, this is the time to do it.
Likewise, Aristide and the Haitian political class have proven themselves
incapable of rising above their own interests to save their country from the
abyss. Yet Haiti is not imploding in a vacuum; its neighbors will suffer as
well. So the United States, as the region's leader, must head a high-level,
multilateral effort to help get Haiti back on track. The rebellion must be
put down; Aristide should serve out his term; and new elections must be
organized, so the Haitian people can choose leaders who will actually lead.
Finally, although Bush once dismissed nation-building, that's precisely what
we're doing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our past efforts in Haiti never got off
the ground, largely because the GOP-controlled Congress forced the
withdrawal of peacekeepers and cut off aid. Now we see the results of this
short-sightedness. The administration must lead a sustained, international
nation-building effort in Haiti -- or we will face a similar predicament in
the future.
Haiti's crisis will not go away; it will only become more urgent. In the
face of the intensifying chaos, inaction is in itself a decision that could
condemn thousands to death and misery. We must act now. For too many
Haitians -- and for the Bush administration -- time is running out.

Representative Bill Delahunt, a Massachusetts Democrat, is a member of the
House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee and served as an international
observer in Haiti's legislative elections in 2000.

© Copyright 2004 Globe Newspaper Company.