Crime: Haiti: Case Study of What Not to Do in Yugoslavia?

Western planners contemplating the reconstruction of Kosovo might want to look at Haiti. In 1994 Haitians were dancing in the streets after U.S. troops restored democracy. Not anymore. Political squabbling has led to government paralysis, and Haiti’s PRESIDENT RENE PREVAL suspended Parliament in January and rules by decree. Although donor countries pledged more than $1 billion in aid, the latest U.N. report notes that $570 million still hasn’t been handed over because Haiti lacks the ministerial staff to draft programs for using the money. The report points out that 4% of Haiti’s population still owns 66% of the country’s resources, and annual income averages $250 per person, compared with $3,320 for the rest of the Caribbean and Latin America. Drug traffickers have also targeted Haiti. DEA officials believe as much as 15% of the cocaine in the U.S. may be coming through Port-au-Prince. There is growing speculation that former President JEAN-BERTRAND ARISTIDE could profit from the chaos: a total collapse may encourage his supporters to bring him back to power.

–By William Dowell