The Sandspur

Issue date: 11/19/04 Section: Opinions

Media Credit: AMERICAN-PICTURES.COM

Christopher Columbus discovered the island of Hispanola in 1492, and in 1697 the Spanish gave up the western part of the island to France after the Spanish settlers were constantly victim of French piracy. Thereafter, Africans were brought to the island as slaves to work its fertile land. In 1791, a slave revolt led by Toussaint L'Ouverture, Jean Jacques Dessalines, and Henri Christophe defeated the French army led by Napoleon Bonaparte, took control over the western part of the island, and named it Haiti. In January 1804, General Jean Jacques Dessalines and his subordinates declared Haiti: Independent. Haiti was the first free "Republique noire" in the world, but the struggles of the new founded Black Republic was just begun.

Colonial powers, including the United States, saw Haiti's independence as a threat to their own slave industry. Despite the fact that Haiti was the second oldest republic in the western hemisphere behind the United States and helped many other countries in their fights to abolish slavery, including the United States, it took the latter almost 60 years to recognize Haiti's sovereignty. Haiti was forced to pay a huge indemnity to French for recognition of its independence, despite the fact that France deprived the country from most of its natural resources. Since 1804, Haiti has seen disaster after disaster, economically and politically. Military regimes and civilian dictators have governed Haiti through the entire nineteenth century and the most part of the twentieth century.

Finally, after twenty nine years of Duvaliers' dictatorship and a number of provisional governments, dating from 1957 to 1990, the country was heading toward democracy with its first free and democratic election on December 16, 1990. Despite violence leading up to the election, the population got out and exercised their civic duty by electing President Jean Bertrand Aristide with 67.5 % of the popular vote. The United States applauded the Haitian people for their fight for democracy, but behind the scene President George Bush Sr. was looking for a way to depose the democratically elected president. Aristide took office on February 7, 1991, and seven months later General Raoul Cedras ousted him with the support of the Bush Sr. Administration. In 1993, the American people were generous enough to deny Bush a second term, which opened the door for the reestablishment of democracy in Haiti.

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