#1351: Questions about Leadership: Antoine responds to Mark Gill's comments (fwd)

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From: Guy Antoine <GuyAntoine@windowsonhaiti.com>

Mark Gill said:
<< until Haiti is no longer seen as a fiefdom of the small elite class, i 
am afraid that such questions are not relevant...  
i think your questions will go unanswered... >>

Well, Mark, I am happy to contradict you, I have received several
answers on-list and off-list to my questions, and I am expecting to
receive a lot more. The fact that Haiti is ruled by a small elite class
does not mean that we should surrender our ability to think.  In fact,
HOW do you envision a change coming about, without a positive
discourse on the leadership that we so desperately need?

Based on the responses that I have received, I just want to clarify
question # 4, as some interpreted is as "conditions for success"
rather than the examination of "success" as they perceive it, on
an individual basis.  Of course, we know that whatever level of
success one achieves, and perhaps in direct correlation to it,
there will ALWAYS be a fair amount of unfounded accusations,
"sour grapes", and criticism for criticism's sake.  I am not
addressing this issue.  What I want to get at is a sketch of our 
composite expectations of what would constitute good government 
in the Haitian context, with the limitations that all governments face
in terms of time, good will, and resources.  Of course, there are 
many who indeed expect miracles, preferably overnight.  One of 
life's harsh realities is that no well-intentioned leader can deliver 
on people's miraculous expectations.  True miracles do happen 
but they require abundant faith, and take time, sometimes a whole 
lot of time, to manifest themselves according to the original 
expectations.  But we all should have reasonable expectations 
of the path to follow, of the handicaps that need be overcome, of 
the milestones to be reached, in fields as diverse as justice,
economic outlook, jobs, public health, literacy, etc.  Instead of
waiting for a Messiah to save us, we need to have a clear vision
of a hopeful future, learn how to quantify it, and choose our leaders
carefully, based on the concrete ideas that they have advanced,
and our evaluation of their true commitment to them.  We should 
learn to distinguish progress towards an objective from the failure 
to reach that objective.  We need to establish our own criteria of 
success, by Haitians and for Haitians, based on the Haitian reality.   
In a sense, we all have them, though we often fail to project them 
due to the ambient noise (demagoguery) generated by electoral 
politics.  

That is the heart of the matter I am trying to get to, and I do not
accept that my questions are not relevant.  I think them very
relevant indeed, and hope to receive many more answers from 
those who feel concerned.

Guy S. Antoine
Look thru & Imagine!
http://windowsonhaiti.com