A partnership of 20 civil society organizations from Haiti is traveling to Geneva. N. The Permanent Forum on People of African Descent ( PFPAD ) argued on Thursday that France should make at least$ 150 billion in reparations to Haiti for slavery and its aftermath.
By adding 200 years of accrued interest to Creole parties, the French obtained this sum by paying reparations that France had received after Haiti gained its independence in 1804 and when it first revolted and gained its independence.
“It’s$ 21 billion plus 200 years of interest that France has enjoyed, so we’re talking more like$ 150 billion,$ 200 billion or more, ” University of British Columbia professor Jemima Pierre explained to Reuters on Thursday.
The Haitian Revolution started in 1791 and continued until 1804, with a string of conflict between the native population, which included a sizable number of imported African slaves, and European colonial forces, as well as clashes between different groups within Haiti’s divided world. Hispanic colonial forces on the island of Hispaniola, who would later create the Dominican Republic, and British forces from Jamaica, added to the potent relationship.
The prisoner revolt against the Haitian Revolution on August 21, 1791. ( Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images )
The French began offering membership to steadfast supporters and properly abolishing slavery in 1794 as a result of their desire to beat all other events and keep control of Haiti. However, Creole militias continued to fight the French until they gave up the fight for power, in part because France’s Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was in need of his troops elsewhere. On January 1, 1804, Haiti’s declaration of independence was made official.
France did not formally recognize Haiti’s freedom until 1825, and it exacted a rough cost for recognition: a settlement of about 150 million francs, known as the “indemnity. The transaction was intended to cover the losses suffered by European colonists after the slaves rebelled and won Creole independence.
France’s prince at the time, Charles X, was considering conquering and re-conquering Haiti. Although no one, including Charles X, believed Haiti had come up with the requested amount, Boyer decided he had little option but to sign it. He sent an amazing war ships to collect Jean-Pierre Boyer’s signature on the indemnity contract. One hundred and fifty million dollars was ten times the annual state resources of Haiti at the time and ten times what the US had paid for the Louisiana Purchase.
Haiti eventually decided to take out 30 million French francs to pay the initial compensation payments, but the country after defaulted on those loans. The French forced Haiti to take out more sizable loans in order to pay the reparations after cutting the balance due to 60 million francs ( the agreement that granted this discount was known as the “Treaty of Friendship, ” which was really rubbing it in ). In the end, France collected about 90 million French Franc, which was five days its federal budget.
The greatest heist in history was described as” the greatest heist in history” in 2022 by University of Virginia Professor of African Diaspora Studies Marlene Daut, who when Boyer agreed to pay looked down the barrels of about five hundred cannons.
The newly established Haitian authorities had scarcely had afforded those things because it had been looted of the resources it needed to pay for public works, training, and other crucial needs. According to Daut, Haiti did not finish paying off all the money it took to fund the compensation until 1947.
Advocates for Haiti claim they can make a much stronger case for France earning at Haiti’s expense than most reparations activists can. The latest generation of Haitians are affected by the negative effects of this. Compensation protesters, however, never quit with such supportable states and immediately start claiming the entire world owes Haiti incalculable billions, including the United States.
On the other hand, as with all reparations claims, the questionable morality of penalizing French citizens today for the deeds of their ancestors will come up, and the decision to determine exactly how much money France would owe is highly contentious, and France does not have$ 150 billion lying around in any case.
The current French annual budget is about$ 318 billion, the budget deficit is growing rapidly, and sharp cuts are on the horizon. Every time the French government tries to trim some corner of its spending, riots, strikes, and violent protests break out.
If French President Emmanuel Macron announces significant tax increases or domestic program cuts to finance massive reparations payments to Haiti, he would suffer a significant political blow, to put it mildly. Some analysts have calculated that France’s debt could be reduced to about$ 21 billion, but Macron is unlikely to agree, especially since France has already given Haiti millions in humanitarian aid.
French President Emmanuel Macron ( ABDULMONAM EASSA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images )
Given that Haiti currently lacks a functioning government, gangs are active in the streets, and corruption is rampant, it is upsetting to ask who would be collecting those reparations. Although the country’s most powerful person is a rifle-toting gang lord who calls himself” Barbecue,” relief advocates claim huge cash infusions would help resolve the country’s long history of violent unrest. However, even urgently needed humanitarian aid donations are difficult to raise when this is true. ”
Gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue ” Cherizier with G-9 federation gang members in the Delmas 3 area on February 22, 2024, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. ( Giles Clarke/Getty Images )
The newly appointed “transition council ” should provide Haiti with enough security to begin public works projects, according to the Haitian civil society organizations convened in Geneva. However, even the council members worry that unelected Prime Minister Ariel Henry may have weakened their plans or have their lives destroyed by gangsters.
Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry (VALERIE BAERISWYL/AFP via Getty Images )
Decade after decade, Haiti consistently ranks first among the most corrupt and lawless nations in the world. It’s more urgent than trying to find out why there’s no one else to blame for the situation, not the United States. N. Haitians would probably not be interested in receiving that kind of assistance if it were offered because the United States, France, or other Caribbean countries are eager to invest the level of force that would be required to restore order.
People walk past burning tires during a protest against Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on February 5, 2024. ( AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph )
