Is Democracy Dead in Haiti? The Case for a Paradigm Shift

With the unbroken violence and a weak, paralyzed central government, many have questioned whether democracy is dead in Haiti.?Many say they have never seen the country in the state it is in, or that “it is worse now than ever before.”?But people fail to take Haiti’s true past into consideration when they make such statements.

I think many Haitians abroad fail to realize how bad things were under the Duvaliers’ regime. And it was precisely thirty years ago that President Aristide, the first democratically elected president of Haiti, was overthrown from power by General Raul Cedras. I remember vividly how my mother told me stories about how they could not get my birth certificate during that period due to the unrest; many government offices were closed for an extended amount of time. Eventually President Aristide did return to finish his term, which culminated with Operation Upholding Democracy in 1994.

Recently the Island has seen its fair share of gang violence, and militia men battling for territory control. The problems are real, but I disagree that things are worse now than they have ever been. There is a tendency among the Haitian community abroad to reminisce about when they were on the Island. They like to recall that things were peaceful, that they could walk to Cite Soleil – or for that matter, even downtown Port-Au-Prince – unmolested. I believe that thinking only exists because they have left the island, allowing nostalgia to usurp memory.

Taxation Without Representation:

One powerful resource the Haitian government, civil society, and private citizens have not reached out to adequately enough is the Haitian Diaspora – particularly expatriates living in the United States. The Haitian diaspora has been increasing steadily, but that population has rocketed since the early 2010s. It’s estimated that over one million Haitians currently reside outside the country, with a majority living in the Eastern States of the US and Southwest Florida.

Diaspora communities send over three billion dollars to Haiti annually in the form of remittances, which equate to roughly 23% of the country’s GDP for the fiscal year 2022. For every ten-dollar remittance sent to the island, at least eight dollars come from the diaspora living in the United States. If the U.S. diaspora contributes that much to the Haitian economy, then it is logical that they should take part in the legislative processes of the country – otherwise, it is essentially taxation without representation. It is my opinion that the greater diaspora community should push to revoke the 1987 provision in the constitutions that prevents dual citizenship. We and our families – within Haiti and beyond – are deeply affected by Haiti’s governance, and we have much to contribute beyond our money. Although I left the country when I was twelve and am now a US citizen, I am Haitian as well – but I have no standing to bring my concerns to the Haitian parliament. At best the only thing I qualify for is a tourist visa to visit my own damn country.?

I am convinced that the diaspora abroad is key to Haiti’s success and national development. We have much to contribute. However, the political power brokers on the island take willful actions to keep us from participating in the process.?

Politically elite Haitians tend to seek diasporic Haitians in the US who were in high positions when they left the country. They court them, seek their advice, and talk about the good old days.?However, most of the Haitians who have migrated to the US and other global north countries have come from the politically disenfranchised population. For many disenfranchised people, circumstances dramatically improve when they arrive in America, but the Haitian political elite still have not realized that the citizens they spurned have become successful and influential people in the United States.

Perfect illustrations include people like Markenzy Lapointe or Former Congresswoman Mia Love (parents). Mr. Lapointe, who is currently serving as the Southern District Attorney of South Florida, left the Island when he was just a teenager. He moved to Miami with his single mother, and shortly after he finished high school he enlisted in the US Army. He later graduated from Florida State University College of Law.

Unfortunately, when they come to the U.S., Haitian political brokers still seek only the well-connected families they knew in Haiti. They do not realize that the educational and socioeconomic environments for many disenfranchised Haitians has changed – changed in ways that can bring wisdom, economic recovery, and effective policy into Haitian governance. The young boy from the streets of Port-Au-Prince is a now a highly educated individual who has incorporated a deep knowledge of the American system.

Sadly, those Haitian political brokers can only see through the lens of what they remember in Port-Au-Prince. They have no concept of what a young man with no family connections, and with a last name no one ever heard of, can become in a more conducive environment.

The old-guard Haitian power brokers are not expecting some kokorat (street kid) to climb to top echelons of the American Justice system, but those kids whose last names no one ever heard of have entered the American middle class. Many are now influential figures in business and politics in the United States. Too many Haitian politicians are still suffering from some kind of amnesia – or they never fully understood in the first place – that in America, to some degree, rising from poverty and obscurity is still possible. They fail to realize the socioeconomic status of many expatriate Haitians has changed. They falsely characterize diasporic Haitians as mawozo (idiots) – countryside peasants and uneducated folks who fled the country on banana boats.??

???????????The diasporic Haitians who left in their youth have great potential to influence many things for the better in their original country. We need to better coordinate between those who live in the country and those that have emigrated. For instance, coaching a young Haitian street vendor over a social media platform on best business practices would take neither inordinate time nor funding. Haiti’s problems will not be fixed as long as we keep saying, “If we have more funding thing would be different.” Neither should solutions be contingent upon more humanitarian trips by some good-hearted citizens from developed countries. These resources are finite and they will not help Haiti become self-sufficient.

So, if the answer is not perpetually elusive funding or humanitarian trips then what is it? I firmly believe the future should be founded on working with what the island already has. The paradigm shift should begin with making sure we teach best business practices to the street vendor who is selling water, or coaching a young entrepreneur running a small enterprise. Whatever the economic and political solutions are, I know for a fact that they will not be coming from elite institutions abroad. Diasporic Haitians are the right people to help locals learn and form their own processes for holding those in power accountable.

Again, we need to work with what Haitians already have. There is no need to go down to the island with the hope of opening some tech boot camp, thinking it will have a meaningful impact on the greater society. Yes, many would benefit from such a program but at what cultural cost? Neither should there be unrealistic and exploitive fantasies of changing Port-Au- Prince into the call center capital of the Caribbean.

Let Haiti evolve in Haitian forms. For too long, too many international developers have sought to change the people. As the late Paul Farmer has written, it is our responsibility to accompany the Haitian people on their journey, not to exploit the route or the destination.?