February 7, 2001: State of the Nation Guy S. Antoine
February 7, 2001
Congratulations, Mr. President!
Please allow a concerned national to talk about some urgent priorities.
In most Haitians' mind, including my own, Jean-Bertrand Aristide is today, February 7, 2001 the uncontested and the only legitimate Leader of Haiti. I pray that he serves the Nation well. It does appear that there will be no honeymoon period, however, and at least in one context there ought not be any. I am talking of my main concern, Haiti's tradition of impunity, and investigations that never ever come to a close, traditionally referred to as "L'enquête se poursuit".
Of recent memory, we have the murders of Amos Jeannot and Jean Dominique, and it would be a monumental task to count all those victims that remain nameless because they did not work for an organization like Fonkoze or they did not achieve the notoriety of the people's reporter of choice at Radio Haiti Inter. It's a tradition that makes me ashamed, anguished, and angry. I will acknowledge the successes of the Raboteau and Carrefour-Feuilles trials. But a whole lot more needs to be done in order to restore (?) people's confidence in the political and judicial systems. And I will expect President Aristide to work at fulfilling our high hopes and raising our low expectations with diligence FROM DAY ONE.
And of course, there is this famous campaign slogan: "Peace of mind, Peace in the belly". One cannot minimize the importance of the second part of the phrase, but I note that the first one will never be achieved if our excessively long tradition of impunity is not brought to a halt. The political will to serve the ends of Justice should insure that investigations lead to wherever they may, and when the weight of the evidence is enough to indict somebody, that this be done regardless of the social status of the suspect in question, regardless of party affiliation, regardless of political consideration. Acts of violence are not to be tolerated from anyone. I wait for the day when Justice will be so swift and forceful in Haiti that violence prone individuals or groups will think twice before victimizing another school boy or school girl, another ti machann, another card carrying political party member, another blue collar worker, another reporter, another political candidate, another government employee, another clergyman, another worker, another driver, another passerby... ... ... a spouse... a mother... a father... a daughter... a son... a sister... a brother... a cousin... a mentor... a friend.
Let's see an unequivocal end to this sorry state of affairs in Haiti.
Let us not forget either the perpetually victimized braceros of Haitian origins working in the bateys, and the migrant workers in the construction industry and other markets of the Dominican Republic. Let us not forget our compatriots that are commonly killed in Santo Domingo or nearer our borders with barely a ripple in the national consciousness of Dominicans and Haitians, leading to a state of shocking international impunity, be it government sanctioned or government induced through sheer neglect. Let us resolve once and for all the very complex issues of migration of the Haitian work force towards the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, or the United States, in a way that is commensurate to their human rights and natural desire to pursue a better life while giving due consideration to our neighbors' just economic concerns. Let No Man and No Nation continue in the belief that they can continue to abuse, incarcerate, or kill Haitians with complete impunity, because we are a weak nation. We may be poor, and indeed we are materially very poor, but on the scale of human dignity and right to justice, we stand EQUAL to all others.
Peace of mind, Peace in the belly, and Down with impunity!