The Sandspur

Issue date: 10/14/05 Section: News

Ambassador Haynes

On Monday, October 10, a discussion was held concerning the politics of Haiti in the Bib Lab of the Olin Library. This discussion was led by Ambassador Ulric Haynes, former ambassador to Algeria and now Holt student professor, and Refugee Coordinator for Amnesty international and senior, Maritza Rodriguez, a student of the Hamilton Holt school.

The discussion began with a brief overview of the conditions in Haiti by Maritza, specifically on human rights abuses in Haiti, with special reference to the refugee situation and how the United States is handling it. In summation, she explained the basic criteria a person must fit to be considered for refugee status and asylum in another country.

A refugee is a person seeking asylum in another country when their own is torn by conflict, which would include such disasters as war or genocide and the person has been in some cases either harmed (an example of this could be rape or torture) or fear for their safety in their own countries because of group affiliation (race, sex, political, etc.). By international law, a country where such people seek asylum is required to help them, either by taking them in or by informing them that they may seek asylum elsewhere, but by no means to send them back to a situation of unstable government and possible torture. Both Maritza and Ambassador Haynes proceeded to point out that thus far, the United States has succeeded in stopping Haitians at sea with coast guards who are given an eight hour training session on determining whether a person qualifies for refugee status. Maritza explained that it is very important to keep in mind that people who have been kidnapped, raped, or tortured are not going to simply open up and tell their whole painful experience to a complete stranger, especially when they fear being turned away and that any confessions may cause them more harm upon their return to their own country.

International Law and human rights is a complicated subject to explain, especially to a Haitian who does not speak English by a coast guard who does not speak Creole. Therefore, Haitians are forced to return to their own country where an unstable, or rather non-existent government has caused a ratio of 71 deaths to every thousand Haitians, and a per capita income of 460 dollars a year. This is a dire situation, without the addition of human rights abuses such as massacre and kidnapping that are common occurrences in Haiti today. According to some, as has been seen in many past situations of conflict and current ones, including that of Darfur, the U.S. seems to only be interested in coming to the rescue when there are benefits economically.

Ambassador Haynes went on to add that U.S. debt to the United Nations (now in excess of 25 billion) has caused the cutting of such valuable programs as the United Nations Technical Assistance Bureau (U.N.T.A.B) of which he was affiliated with during his political career. This program was created to collect experts who could alongside someone local, build stability in governments for countries, such as Haiti who are in need of stable government. But due to this outstanding debt, the United Nations is unable to do its job, in this and many other areas of importance.

Some other very important points touched on in this discussion included the conditions for refugees seeking asylum in the U.S., if they in fact succeed in doing so. Haitian refugees are kept in detention centers, which are not unlike prisons.

More information on the situation in Haiti and other pressing issues can be found at www.amnesty.org

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