The catastrophic earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010 has brought international attention and aid to the western third of Hispaniola. What has also been brought back to the global spotlight is the plethora of problems that have and continue to plague the Carribean nation and, as nations continue to pour money, food, medicine, and supplies into the tiny country, these efforts are being thwarted by some of the Haitians themselves. Military forces are landing in Haiti to secure deliveries and ensure that the donated assistance gets to where it’s supposed to go.
It begs the question: is it worth it?
I don’t mean that to sound insensitive or cruel; clearly the people of Haiti need help in recovering from this disaster, but one must ask what exactly “recovery” means for Haiti. Countries from around the world have amassed over $800 million in aid for Haiti in one week’s time, but by the numbers alone, Haiti is, and has been, a violent, disease-ridden money-pit. By my estimation, that means that restoring Haiti to its pre-earthquake state is money well-wasted at a cost of nearly $1 billion to the rest of the world.
According to the CIA World Factbook, Haiti loses about $195 million a year and has already amassed a debt of over $600 million while the value of the country’s exports decline each year. Listed as the “poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere,” Haiti struggles with deforestation and weak agricultural efforts. Moreover, it lacks sufficient potable water and is among the higher nations globally in regard to disease, ranking 28th in the world for prevalence of HIV/AIDS. Those are some pretty bad numbers for a country that has scarcely over nine million people in total population.
Make no mistake about it: I completely agree that the humanitarian thing to do is help Haiti recover from the earthquake, but I firmly believe that help can’t be stopped at providing food, shelter, and medicine. Haiti needs to be reconstructed into something that can be self-sustaining and healthy.
As much as few people want to hear this said, Haiti is a country begging for increased industrialization. Deforestation in the name of failed agricultural efforts is no different than Michael Jackson’s plastic surgeries: the end result doesn’t justify the damage being done. If that part of Hispaniola is being deprived of its natural resources, it should at least result in something that will help the country develop and maintain positive cashflow. The country already has a foundation for importing and exporting textiles, so why not build upon that industry? There is certainly a global market for clothing.
Beyond that, greater efforts need to be put into reigning-in the persistent issues with disease and infection. More plants to to convert and purify water are needed, and the population needs to be given sound education and resources to help control the spread of disease amongst themselves. In much of this, the people are their own worst enemies, and something needs to be done to make them understand this better.
Next, the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti needs to be bolstered well beyond 8000 peacekeepers to bring greater control to the region and thwart the rampant use of the country by Colombian drug traffickers as a hub for drugs and bulk money shipments. With over 1.5 million citizens eligible and able for military service, this effort could be aided by the Haitians themselves. The violence and corruption in Haiti have to be brought under control or every other effort to fix things is pointless.
In short, Haiti really needs more pressure from the international community to remedy its ills, or it needs to be placed under the control of another government until the blaringly obvious issues are addressed and corrected. Every nation that contributes money to the nation should be doing so with conditions for improvement of life in Haiti, or the government itself should submit to foreign rule for a time, since it’s clear that the elected government is ineffective at managing the self-determination of the country.
Perhaps these words come across as “unkind” or “cruel,” but Haiti can’t afford to return to what it has been and was when the earthquake hit. If the world wants to help Haiti, then it really needs to help Haiti, and not just put band-aids on the most recent wounds. To make all the help given to Haiti worthwhile, they need to be given long-term help.
