We cannot try to even begin to comprehend why Haiti, one of the poorest countries on the planet was hit by such a devastating earthquake. What is evident, however, is that past mistakes, which involved planning for growth, coupled with a culture of corruption and terror, provided the seeds for this disaster. Amazingly, at one time Haiti, or Saint Dominique as it was then called, was one of the richest colonies in the Western Hemisphere. A look at this country’s past can help us understand how the richest colony in this Hemisphere became its poorest country.
Saint Dominique was a French colony, as were Martinique and Guadalupe, which had been colonies since 1635. However, it was not until the Treaty of Ryswick with Spain that Saint Dominique became a de-facto French colony. From 1700 to 1704, more than 100 new sugar plantations were established.
African slaves were imported to work on these plantations. Given the lack of French women, it was therefore not surprising that by 1789, there were 30,000 people of mixed European-African ancestry and 40,000 Europeans. At the time, the slave population of Saint Dominique numbered 500,000 or more.
The labor-intensive plantation system comprised huge numbers of slaves. As a result of the harsh conditions to which they were exposed, the birth rate of the slaves was not enough to keep up with the demand for sugar. Therefore, slaves had to be imported at a rate of almost 30,000 per year.
Both the American Revolution, with its proclamation of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness;” and the French Revolution, with its proclaimed “liberté, égalité, fraternité” had a profound impact on the 500,000 slaves. Why could they not enjoy similar freedoms than those aspired to by their “white” countrymen?
In spite of these grandiose proclamations, in the first phase of the French Revolution, France would not even consider the possibility of letting go of its rich colony, which in any case was needed to finance the goals of the revolution, and some time later, of the Napoleonic wars. Interestingly, the capital, Port-au-Prince, was a relatively modest settlement while Cap François was the cultural capital. It was said that this city was the size of Boston, “with a beauty and grandeur that made it be known as the Jewel of the Antilles.”
By 1793, Toussaint Louverture (a good comparison might be George Washington) started to organize the slave population to create a free and independent nation run by former slaves. He defeated the great army of Napoleon. The British, sensing an opportunity to capture this rich colony, invaded Saint Dominique. They were able to capture a small section of the colony, but at a cost of 20,000 men. They were also defeated by Louverture. Finally, on January 1, 1804, Haiti declared its independence.
Unfortunately, the success of these former slaves scared their neighbors. The economies of the European colonies of the Caribbean and Latin America, as well as the Confederacy of the United States, depended on slave labor to keep their plantations profitable. As they had no intention of freeing the slaves, nor did they wish to have them rebel as they had done on Saint Dominique, the European masters and the United States effectively boycotted trade with Haiti, sending its economy into a perpetual slide.
The history of violence perpetuated among the slaves, the boycott, and the emigration of talent that all revolutions foster, resulted in the development of the weak social and structural infrastructure we see today. Even the 20 year occupation of the U.S. Marines, which began in 1915 could not restructure these institutions.
Will the efforts to stabilize Haiti succeed this time? They can, and hopefully they will. However, the structures that supported corruption, terror and mismanagement of talent have been around for more than 200 years. It will take time as well as patience to undo this damage.
For additional information on Haitian history consider reading “Toussaint Louverture” by Madison Smartt Bell, published in 2007 by Pantheon Books.