- In early November, thousands of Haitians rallied for
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's return and presidential hopeful Jean-Henry
Ceant in the November 28 elections, one rigged by banning 14 political
parties, including Fanmi Lavalas, by far the most popular.
-
- Ceant founded Aimer Haiti (Love Haiti), "a movement
uniting and integrating human-centered (principles) and committed to the
pursuit of the ideals of unity, solidarity and fraternity to build a new
Haiti on the basis of shared responsibility, social justice, peace and
economic progress for all."
-
- He's also a notaire (notary), businessman, community
leader and philanthropist, the only candidate most Haitians support, whether
or not he'll deliver on promises if elected. Aristide did, Preval for a
while, then sold out the public that backed him. Given Washington's iron
fist and no shyness using it, populist governments everywhere are at risk,
especially in deeply impoverished countries like Haiti.
-
- For now, a raging cholera epidemic takes top concern,
officially causing over 1,000 deaths and around 15,000 hospitalizations.
However, these figures way understate the true crisis, one or more estimates
believing the true count is several-fold. On November 14, Operational Biosurveillance
said it confirmed statistics of up to 400% undercounting.
-
- "There is no question of under-reporting."
At one-fourth the true crisis, "we now have nearly 60k cases shedding
pathogen into the environment. We believe the true statistic to be closer
to more than 100k based on the degree of under-reporting. It is extremely
difficult to estimate the true scale of this epidemic now. (It's) grossly
uncontrolled, uncontained, (and) has exceeded public health capacity to
investigate and assess every site reported and every sample received."
-
- Disturbingly, the entire country is affected, including
the densely crowded capital, Port-au-Prince, with up to 1.5 million in
makeshift accommodations on city streets and wherever they found space,
living in the open under dismal sanitation conditions.
-
- On November 14, New York Times writer Randal Archibold
headlined, "Cholera Deaths Up in Haiti, With Worst to Come,"
saying:
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- "Several epidemiologists have said the disease has
not peaked and will likely worsen and" spread, UN health officials
"estimating about 270,000 may be sickened in the coming years."
-
- The true potential minimally exceeds a million, eventually
causing many thousands of deaths, preventable because cholera is easily
treated if done properly on time. However, little Western aid was provided,
virtually nothing from Washington despite over $1.1 billion pledged. Also,
Haiti's medical infrastructure is woefully inadequate, besides poor sanitation
and most Haitians having no access to clean drinking water.
-
- Overall since the January earthquake, Washington obstructed
what little aid arrived. Then cholera and Hurricane Tomas flooding, making
conditions on the ground worse than ever, indifferent rich nations doing
little to help.
-
- Haitians finally reacted, riots erupting in Cap-Haitien
on Haiti's north coast. On November 16, Al Jazeera headlined, "Haiti
cholera protests turns violent," saying:
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- Clashes with MINUSTAH forces killed at least two Haitians.
"Protesters, who hold Nepalese UN peacekeepers responsible for the
cholera outbreak (from an identified Asian strain foreign to Haiti), threw
stones and threatened to set fire to a (Cap Haitien) base," according
to Haitian radio and eyewitness reports.
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- Al Jazeera's Cath Turner said the situation was "brewing
for a while, (evident by) tense relations" between MINUSTAH and local
people. "Back in August, a 16-year old boy was found dead - he was
hanging from a tree." Haitians believe UN troops killed him. Its paramilitaries
have terrorized Haiti since arriving in 2004 to support a coup d'etat regime
after US marines kidnapped Aristide in February 2004, then forcibly flew
him to the Central African Republic. He's now in South Africa in exile,
wanting to return. On orders from Washington, the Preval government prevents
it. In a recent interview he said:
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- "I love my people and my country, and I cannot hide
it, and because of that love, I am ready to leave right now. I cannot hide
it. What is preventing me from leaving, as I said earlier, if I look from
South Africa, I don't know." He wants to return as a private citizen,
not a head of state. "In my view," he said, "they don't
want me back because they still want to occupy Haiti," and freely
exploit its people and resources, of course.
-
- Haitians demonstrate often for his return, his presence
alone badly wanted, his spirit a way to infuse hope for better governance
and conditions, what's so far sorely lacking. The Cap Haitien protests
are unsurprising, among others expressing outrage for lack of government
and UN aid. For also failing to contain the cholera outbreak. The more
it spreads, the greater the anger.
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- On November 15, Haitian Truth.org reported that:
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- "Cap Haitian is closed. Schools closed. People (are)
on streets throwing rocks. MINUSTAH troops (were) disarmed by Haitians.
(The) airport (was) under attack. Preval is finished....Business is closed.
The city is shut down. (At the airport), attempt(s were made) to burn (a)
terminal underway....Much gunfire (was reported)."
-
- Incoming aircraft were diverted. UN vehicles were being
burned. Haitians demanded removal of UN troops. They fired tear gas at
demonstrators. MINUSTAH's airport headquarters was burned. People say stop
the election. Help children.
-
- On November 16, Reuters also reported clashes in Cap
Haitien, a local businessman saying: "The whole city is blocked, businesses
and schools have closed, cars have been burned. It's chaos here."
Demonstrators set fire to the Pont Neuf police station.
-
- Al Jazeera's Cath Turner said protests so far are:
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- "just the beginning" of what Haitians are calling
a "very strong civilian uprising against the UN in Haiti. We have
been speaking to our sources on the ground in Cap Haitien, (and they're
telling) us that people are on megaphones encouraging people to get out
on the street and to continue telling the United Nations, 'Get out now.'
"
-
- Turner also said likely protests will happen across much
of northern Haiti. "There's been suggestions of a coordinated effort
to continue these protests until the UN gets out of the country."
-
- Since arriving in 2004, they've been hated. They're not
peacekeepers. They're belligerent occupiers, reigning terror on ordinary
Haitians.
-
- From Port-au-Prince, independent journalist Ansel Herz
said two Cap Haitien police stations were on fire. "Protests were
(also) reported in....Hinche and Gonaives...." Scattered outbreaks
have also occurred in other parts of the country, including in Port-au-Prince
near the presidential palace. Potentially they may break out anywhere,
given the level of frustration and anger over desperate conditions and
inadequate aid, especially by the UN and rich nations able to provide it.
-
- On November 11, Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans
Frontieres) highlighed the crisis saying "All of the hospitals in
Port-au-Prince are overflowing with patients, and we're seeing seven times
the total amount of cases we had three days ago." In deeply impoverished
Cite Soleil, in northern Port-au-Prince, the number rose from 30 five days
previously to 216. "People are coming from everywhere throughout the
city, slums and wealthier areas."
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- The soaring need far outstrips the ability to serve it.
In light of a fast-spreading crisis and inadequate outside aid, expect
growing anger as the death and illness toll mounts. It's Haiti's latest
cross to bear, a country beset by centuries of oppression, occupation,
exploitation, neglect, deep poverty, and now cholera - an imperial epidemic
likely to claim many thousands of lives, perhaps willfully targeted for
removal, President Aristide, among others, saying "evidence strongly
suggests" that the Asian cholera strain was imported.
-
- Why not, given America's longstanding depopulation agenda,
a model Henry Kissinger presented in his 1974 National Security Study Memorandum
200 (NSSM 200). Shaped by Rockefeller interests, it was a plan to cull
unwanted, unneeded, "useless eaters" by various means, including
coercive methods, withholding disaster relief, and spreading deadly diseases
that kill. Haiti's now feeling the sting.
-
- Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at
lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com
and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the
Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays
at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs
are archived for easy listening.
-
- http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/.
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