Former Ambassador to Japan from Haiti (1991-2003) Marcel Duret provides political and social commentary from Haiti expressing his unique perspective on Caribbean culture and politics.
A Haitian Perspective
Congratulations President Chavez
THE destiny of Venezuela’s many underprivileged people was on the line during the October 2012 presidential election, and they were able to influence the outcome by voting for incumbent Hugo Chavez. In Haiti, the ever increasing percentage of people living under the poverty level were unaware that things could have got worse for them if Chavez had lost. Haitian people may take to the street to celebrate when the Brazilian national soccer team wins, but there was not even as much as a sigh of relief from the general population when the news came that Chavez had won the election. Is it because they do not know of the invaluable contribution Chavez has been making to Haiti’s state budget? Or is it because so far the money has not reached them or spurred major changes to better their livelihoods? Thanks to the clairvoyance of Rene Preval, Haiti’s former two-term president, Haiti dared to forge a relationship with Chavez. You can only hope that the government of President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe will use PetroCaribe, a program for buying Venezuelan oil under preferential payment conditions, to alleviate the suffering of so many of our fellow Haitians. Congratulations President Chavez! On the behalf of millions of Haitians please accept our best wishes for your health as well as our heartfelt thanks and gratitude. tj
This story appeared in Issue 270 of the Tokyo Journal.
To order Issue 270, click here.