Current Event Discussion: The Root of Haiti’s Struggle
The history of Haiti, as a nation, is well established in modern historical circles. A slave revolution in 1791 against French slave-owners in Saint-Domingue led to the creation of an independent nation in 1804. What was once the most profitable and wealthy colony in the world (Saint-Domingue)—due to sugar plantations and coffee exports—quickly became one of the poorest nations (Haiti) in an expanding world system.
But just how did Haiti go from a wealthy land to a poor land and why is it still so impoverished today?
It might be easiest to point to hundreds of years of corrupt government—and this is not really a misplaced explanation—or to the deforestation of lush natural forests. But, the foundation from which Haiti built its independent nation began with the forced repayment of losses toward former slave masters. In this sense, Haiti became the first and only country in the world, where the descendants of enslaved people paid reparations to the descendants of their slave masters.
To be clear, this forced repayment of losses was no small feat. In 1825, France demanded 150 million francs (nearly $4.5 billion in 2023) from the Haitian government, which the newly formed government could not afford. Enter into the picture French banks. In what has now been called Haiti’s “double debt,” the newly formed nation not only owed France 150 million francs to repay losses incurred during the revolution, but had to take out loans from young French banks to make the annual payments. This filled the coffers of the kingdom of France, while lining the pockets of shareholders in French national banks—all at the expense of Haiti and its young economy.
Had Haiti been able to keep the money it was forced to pay back to France and invested more traditional loans into the national economy, growing at the same rate as Haiti historical 200 year history, it would have added a staggering $21 billion to the nation over time. Had the same investment grown at a rate similar to Haiti’s Latin American neighbors (e.g. Dominican Republic, Cuba, etc.), it would have added $115 billion over time—or over five times the size of its economy in 2022. These totals are nation-changing amounts. Even in a corrupt government, a sizable amount of this income would have been placed back into the public sphere (i.e., public transit, schools, healthcare, etc.), which would make Haiti a much richer nation that it stands currently.
In a few sentences, please share your thoughts on the misery in Haiti. For example, have you ever learned about the forced repayment of losses to France following the revolution? Does this payment scheme make any real geopolitical sense? Should France be forced to re-invest the money it was paid into the Haitian economy or repay the entirety of the loan to Haiti with interest? Why or why not?
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