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James Dobbins discusses social, political, and economic development in Haiti with Anchor, Bill Moyers.
Watch the video
or read the transcript.
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As Haiti attempts to organize for presidential elections, some hardened
veterans of its endless cycle of uprisings and downfalls are trading guns
for voter registration cards. Can Haiti fashion a true representative
government out of a volatile failed state?
Read this week's briefing (below) to learn about the historical, economic,
and political roots of Haiti's authoritarian tradition.
Haiti's Authoritarian Tradition
Robert Fatton, Jr.
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To understand Haiti's history -- only ten of its 48 presidents have served out their terms and there have been only two peaceful electoral transitions since the beginning of the republic over 200 years ago -- it is critical to look at the material and historical circumstances of the colonial period. The country's authoritarian tradition is rooted in the legacies of French colonialism and the plantation economy. Based on slavery, this economy created a real dilemma for Haiti's early leaders, a dilemma that was never resolved satisfactorily.
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| 1492 |
Christopher Columbus lands on Hispaniola, establishing the first European settlement in the Americas on what is now Haiti's northern coast.
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| 1692 |
Spain cedes western Santo Domingo to France; the new colony becomes known as Haiti.
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| 1801 |
After leading an uprising, former slave Toussaint L'overture takes power as governor; under his leadership the colony abolishes slavery
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| 1804 |
After a successful defense against Napoleon's troops, Haiti becomes an independent nation, the second in the Americas to declare independence from Europe and the first black republic.
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| 1806 |
Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who had ruled as Emperor after Toussaint's death in a French prison, is assassinated, beginning a pattern which would mar Haitian politics to the present day.
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See more facts 
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There has always been a very clear link between Haiti's economic structure and its political system. Immediately after gaining independence in 1804, the country's leaders desperately needed to restart a devastated economy -- not only to feed their people but also to provide for a strong military to ensure the young country's independence against the very real threat of invasion. The great powers of the time -- defenders of white supremacy and the architects of the colonial system -- abhorred the first successful black revolution against slavery and feared its consequences for their empires.
But Haiti's economy was dependent on agricultural exports, primarily sugar, which required plantation production and thus coercive forms of labor. Haiti's founding fathers -- Toussaint, Dessalines, Christophe, and Pétion -- faced a cruel choice: how could they reconcile the promise of emancipation and the former slaves' aspirations to become an independent peasantry with the drastic labor discipline that the plantation economy required? If they supported the former slaves, they would condemn the country to material underdevelopment. If they promoted an immediate economic recovery, they would have to impose military discipline -- thus emasculating emancipation itself.
They chose the latter, and though their attempt to restore the plantation system was not completely self-serving, the top officers participated in -- and benefited from -- a grossly unequal redistribution of land, which established them as a new class of planters. So at the very beginning of independence, a real class society crystallized, opening a wide gulf between the people and a militarized state serving the few.
Read More
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| HAITI ELECTION WATCH |
Eligible voters: 4.2 million
Voters registered: 3.5 million
Registration ended: September 25, 2006 (mid-October in some areas)
Presidential candidates: 33
Presidential election: February 7, 2006
Votes cast: 2.2 million
President elect: Rene Preval
Legislative run-off election: April 21, 2006
President took office: May 14, 2006
Updated 9/18/06
Sources: Agence France Presse, CNN, States News Service, CIA World Handbook, MIAMI HERALD, LA TIMES
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A Haitian citizen, registering to vote for the first time.
Photo: Two Tone Productions
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Explore the complex issues underlying the rebuilding of a nation wrought with political turmoil, violence, and economic instability. Discuss the issue!
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