Re:
Haiti and Natural Resources (Haiti has Gold, Oil, NG, etc.)
In barely a week the U.S. government has dispatched to Haiti almost 12,000 troops, multiple C-140 airships, military assessment teams, an aircraft carrier, marine transport ship, and unmanned reconnaissance drones. Furthermore, the Pentagon has announced the re-routing of 3 Persian Gulf bound naval vessels with another 4,000 troops as well as stating that it is considering sending an entire Marine regiment to the Island nation also. Although the news of such a large military force occupying the nation has gone relatively unnoticed compared to aid efforts, people and nations are slowly starting to raise eyebrows with France, Bolivia and Venezuela publicly criticizing the US, claiming it is occupying the nation under the false humanitarian aid pretense. President of Bolivia Evo Morales told reporters at the presidential palace on January 20th that - "The United States cannot use a natural disaster to militarily occupy Haiti," President Chavez of Venezuela on his weekly television show stated that "I read that 3,000 soldiers are arriving, Marines armed as if they were going to war. There is not a shortage of guns there, my God. Doctors, medicine, fuel, field hospitals, thats what the United States should send." Chavez said "They are occupying Haiti undercover." "On top of that, you don't see them in the streets. Are they picking up bodies? ... Are they looking for the injured? You don't see them. I haven't seen them. Where are they?" Haitian student Wilson Guillaume, had this to say- "I haven't seen them distributing food in the center of the city, where the people need urgently water, food and medicine. This seems more like an occupation," When people think of Haiti, they picture a troubled nation plagued with extreme poverty rates, high illiteracy rates, multiple coups, government corruption and the highest AIDS rate in the western hemisphere. They picture a nation that relies almost completely on the aid of industrialized nations and private benefactors. What they dont picture though is a nation potentially sitting on an oil field dwarfing Venezuelas which is the largest exporter of oil in the western hemisphere, a country teeming with precious metals such as Gold, Copper, Uranium 225 and 238, which can be used to power nuclear reactors and the worlds largest supply of a rare mineral used in building spacecraft-iridium. They dont picture a nation that has been visited by multiple Canadian and American firms in regards to mining these precious metals and that according to scientists, a nation whose oil field in comparison to Venezuela is like comparing a swimming pool to a glass of water. Right about now you are probably re-reading
that last paragraph and asking yourself a few fundamental
questions- Where is the proof for these astounding claims
and If this is indeed true, why is Haiti so poor and why
havent they capitalized on their natural resource
wealth. Well, the answer to the first question is rather
easily proven but the answers to the second and third
questions are rather complicated and involve some digging,
no pun intended. But none-the-less I am fully willing to
break down the complications and attempt to offer some
clarification on my claims.
Now one might ask now...why didnt they drill then? Well, the answer is simple. At the time, oil was nowhere near as valuable as it is today and was at the time thought to be almost limitless in scope due to Middle Eastern oil field quantities. Oil was trading for little more than a dollar a barrel at the time and there was no need to start the drilling process from scratch when oil was already plentiful in other regions throughout the world. It simply wasnt economically feasible to drill in Haiti and make a profit yet. Instead of tapping these resources in Haiti, the company decided to use the wells in the future if needed and went about marking the wells, documenting their locations and then cementing them closed for future usage. Furthermore, naturally to protect their future investment they kept the discovery of oil in Haiti quiet so as not to spur any attention to the region.
On November 8th, 1973, Martha Carbine of the American Embassy in Haiti, sent a letter to the U.S. Office of Fuels and Energy that stated that Haiti has before it proposals from eight different groups to establish a trans-shipment port for petroleum in one or more of Haitis deep water ports and some of the projects include construction of an oil refinery as well. In response, George Bennsky, director of the Office of Fuels and energy stated U.S. Policy heavily favors deep water ports in our own waters rather than non U.S. locations. There is however some doubt whether environmental and other considerations will permit the construction of domestic refinery capacity on the scale that would be required. Basically he is stating that at the present time we would rather use our own deep water ports but would be interested in building refineries in Haiti as there would be no environmental laws preventing them from performing. Now go forward another 20 years to 2008 with Scientist Daniel Mathurin stating that We have identified 20 oil sites within Haiti. He goes onto say that the oil fields of Haiti are more important than Venezuela and that comparing the two is like comparing a swimming pool to a glass of water, with Haiti being the swimming pool. When asked why those oil fields werent being excavated, Dr. Mathurin stated that these deposits are declared strategic reserves of The United States of America. Then in November of 2009, the former president of the Dominican Petroleum Refinery, a Leopolda Espaillat Nanita, claimed that Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic gold deposits, oil, and iridium and that these resources could be used to pay off its foreign debt with ease. It has now become apparent that Haiti certainly has in its possession large amounts of untapped oil and as I will now explain large deposits of precious metals as well. In April of 2009, Marketwire made the following announcement- Majescor Resources Inc. ("Majescor" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: MJX) is pleased to report that it has signed an agreement (the "Agreement") with SIMACT Alliance Copper Gold Inc. ("SIMACT") and its principal shareholders (the "Principals") whereby the Company will acquire a 10% interest in SIMACT The CEO of Majescor goes on to state that "Majescor has an established, ten-year long tradition of exploring emerging mineral districts. The deal with SIMACT and its Principals offers a new and unique opportunity for the Company to participate in the evaluation and development of a key property located in the prospective Massif-du-Nord volcanic complex of north-east Haiti. We believe that the time is right to invest in Haiti and in projects with gold and copper potential. Gold has remained a steady commodity in this economic downturn while copper has just hit a 6-month high. Not only does the SOMINE Property contain three historical copper and gold occurrences, the mineral rights of which are secured under a mining convention with the State, but it is surrounded by ground recently acquired by Eurasian Minerals Inc. and partner Newmont Ventures Ltd. Majescor intends to fast-track the development of the SOMINE Property through further quantification of the three known prospects and the drill testing of new geological targets and ground showings." So now it becomes apparent that Gold and Copper deposits are apparently within Haiti but in what quantities? Well, the terms of agreement between Majescor and SIMACT should hint at the substantial amount expected to be discovered as the TOA states that- Furthermore, in the event that within a period of two years following the exercise of the Option, a NI 43-101 technical report (the "Report") prepared by an independent and accredited reputable engineering or geological consulting firm determines indicated mineral resources on the SOMINE Property to be between 1,000,000 and 2,000,000 ounces of gold, or its equivalent in copper, Majescor shall, within 30 days of the report, issue an additional 3,000,000 common treasury shares to current SIMACT shareholders. In the event that the indicated mineral resources on the SOMINE Property are determined by the Report to be equal to or greater than 2,000,000 ounces of gold or its equivalent in copper, Majescor shall, within 30 days of the Report and in addition to the 3,000,000 common shares mentioned hereinabove, issue another 3,000,000 common treasury shares to current SIMACT shareholders. These additional issuances of common shares will also be subject to all required corporate and regulatory approvals. Yes, thats 1 or 2 million ounces of gold or copper and currently gold is trading for $1,100 an ounce and copper trading for $3 per pound, a six month high. So now we have scientific proof of large oil, gold, copper and uranium deposits within this impoverished nation .so why hasnt Haiti capitalized on its own resources and why do they remain so poor?
So if Haiti is sitting on a gold mine, copper mine and oil field why havent they utilized these resources in order to dig themselves out of debt as well as provide for their own country? Well, they have attempted to multiple times but a coalition of entities, mainly the American government and the IMF or International Monetary Fund has blatantly hindered any progress Haiti has attempted to bring into fruition. These entities manipulated and strong armed Haiti by exposing their weaknesses and playing them in their favor. Haiti less than 30 years ago was much more self sufficient but via free trade agreements as well as subsidized foodstuffs, the western imperialists have been able to take Haiti from a self sufficient entity to a nation that relies almost 100% on imports, in a matter of decades. According to Law Professor Bill Quigley
of Loyola University- Thirty years ago, Haiti raised nearly all the rice it needed. What happened? In 1986, after the expulsion of Haitian dictator Jean Claude Baby Doc Duvalier the International Monetary Fund (IMF) loaned Haiti $24.6 million in desperately needed funds (Baby Doc had raided the treasury on the way out). But, in order to get the IMF loan, Haiti was required to reduce tariff protections for their Haitian rice and other agricultural products and some industries to open up the countrys markets to competition from outside countries. The U.S. has by far the largest voice in decisions of the IMF. Doctor Paul Farmer was in Haiti then and saw what happened. Within less than two years, it became impossible for Haitian farmers to compete with what they called Miami rice. The whole local rice market in Haiti fell apart as cheap, U.S. subsidized rice, some of it in the form of food aid, flooded the market. There was violence, rice wars, and lives were lost. American rice invaded the country, recalled Charles Suffrard, a leading rice grower in Haiti in an interview with the Washington Post in 2000. By 1987 and 1988, there was so much rice coming into the country that many stopped working the land. Fr. Gerard Jean-Juste, a Haitian priest who has been the pastor at St. Claire and an outspoken human rights advocate, agrees. In the 1980s, imported rice poured into Haiti, below the cost of what our farmers could produce it. Farmers lost their businesses. People from the countryside started losing their jobs and moving to the cities. After a few years of cheap imported rice, local production went way down. And it is not only the Haitian rice farmers who have been hurt. Paul Farmer saw it happen to the sugar growers as well. Haiti, once the world's largest exporter of sugar and other tropical produce to Europe, began importing even sugar-- from U.S. controlled sugar production in the Dominican Republic and Florida. It was terrible to see Haitian farmers put out of work. All this sped up the downward spiral that led to this month's food riots.
Haiti is a powerful and appalling example. Rice has been grown in Haiti for centuries, and until twenty years ago Haitian farmers produced about 170,000 tonnes of rice a year, enough to cover 95% of domestic consumption. Rice farmers received no government subsidies, but, as in every other rice-producing country at the time, their access to local markets was protected by import tariffs. In 1995, as a condition of providing a desperately needed loan, the International Monetary Fund required Haiti to cut its tariff on imported rice from 35% to 3%, the lowest in the Caribbean. The result was a massive influx of U.S. rice that sold for half the price of Haitian-grown rice. Thousands of rice farmers lost their lands and livelihoods, and today three-quarters of the rice eaten in Haiti comes from the U.S.[6] U.S. rice didn't take over the Haitian market because it tastes better, or because U.S. rice growers are more efficient. It won out because rice exports are heavily subsidized by the U.S. government. In 2003, U.S. rice growers received $1.7 billion in government subsidies, an average of $232 per hectare of rice grown.[7] That money, most of which went to a handful of very large landowners and agribusiness corporations, allowed U.S. exporters to sell rice at 30% to 50% below their real production costs. In addition, for several decades the World Bank and International Monetary Fund have refused to advance loans to poor countries unless they agree to "Structural Adjustment Programs" (SAP) that require the loan recipients to devalue their currencies, cut taxes, privatize utilities, and reduce or eliminate support programs for farmers. All this was done with the
promise that the market would produce economic growth and
prosperity instead, poverty increased and support
for agriculture was eliminated. In essence, the US along with the IMF forced local Haitian farmers out of business by literally flooding the Haitian market with extremely cheap, heavily subsidized crops, whose low price Haitian farmers simply could not match without going broke. The Haitian farmers simply could not compete with the US government and therefore the majority quit farming all together and took up residence in the urban cities where they found employment in American owned sweatshops something that again benefited western interests. This coordinated effort on the part of America and the IMF not only allowed America to find an extremely profitable buyer of their crops but also a producer of their non foodstuff items as well. Evidence of the latter can be found in the various sweatshops that have sprung up in Haiti that are run by American companies who pay the Haitian laborers an abysmal 12 cents an hour to create American garments ranging from Lee and Wrangler jeans to Disney character pajamas to Hanes underwear. According to The National Labor Committee, it calculates that more than half of the approximately 50 assembly firms now operating in Haiti are violating the minimum wage law. In an extensive investigation of 15 assembly firms now operating in Haiti, the NLC Committee found that 10 were paying less than the legally mandated minimum wage of 36 gourdes (US$2.40) per day, which represents 30 cents an hour. Haitian contractors producing "Mickey Mouse" and "Pocahontas" pajamas for U.S. companies under license with the Walt Disney Corporation are in some cases paying workers as little as 15 gourdes (US$1) per day--12 cents per hour--in clear violation of Haitian law. The pajamas are sold at Wal-Mart, Sears, and J.C. Penney. At Seamfast Manufacturing, workers producing dresses under the "Kelly Reed" and "Kelly Reed Woman" labels for Kmart earn as little as 87 cents per day, or 11 cents per hour. At Classic Apparel, workers told the National Labor Committee that they have been sewing "Made in USA" labels on sports team jerseys produced in Port-au-Prince. Identical garments are sold under the "League Leader" label at Wal-Mart. The jerseys are produced for the H.H. Cutler Co., a subsidiary of VF Corporation, maker of "Wrangler" and "Lee" jeans. When President Aristide increased the minimum wage effective May 4, 1995, many companies simply increased the production quota in order to avoid having to pay the increased labor costs. As is the rule in Haiti, if workers cannot make the quota they are paid only a fraction of the minimum wage. At Excel Apparel Exports, jointly owned and operated with Kellwood Co., quotas have been increased by 133% since the passage of the new minimum wage law. Excel Apparel produces women's panties for the Hanes division of Sara Lee Corp., under the "Hanes Her Way" label. The panties are sold at Wal-Mart and smaller retailers. Even with the new minimum wage of 36 gourdes (US$2.40) decreed by President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haitian workers have less buying power now than they did in 1990, before Aristide's election. A minimum wage salary provides less than 60% of the bare minimum needs for a family of five. A wage of 15 gourdes (US$1), common in factories producing for U.S. corporations, provides less than 25% of the minimum needs of a family of five. A Columbia University anthropologist who conducted intensive interviews in a poor neighborhood of Port-au-Prince has found that 17% of the female factory workers in her survey have been forced to have sex with their bosses, on penalty of termination if they refused. Ezili Danto, a Haitian citizen and lawyer to exiled President Aristide once spoke on this very issue and offered this as an example of how Haiti is being systematically kept impoverished by American greed.- Many workers earn less than 20 gourdes (US $1.33) per day and the company raises the quotas at will. Before President Aristide raised the minimum wage, the quota for a typical operation sewing waistbands on panties was 360 pieces per day. Now the quota is 840 pieces a 133% increase. Needless to say, the workers did not have the right to object to the speed-up; they don't even have the right to speak to one another at work. Alpha Sewing produces industrial gloves for Ansell Edmont of Coshocton, Ohio, which is owned by Ansell International of Lilburn, Georgia, which in turn is owned by Pacific Dunlop Ltd. of Melbourne, Australia. Ansell Edmont boasts in its promotional literature that it is the world's largest manufacturer of safety gloves and protective clothing, but the workers at Alpha Sewing do not have even the most basic safety protection. They produce Ansell Edmont's "Vinyl-Impregnated Super-Flexible STD" gloves with bare hands; Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), the chemical that toughens the glove, also takes off layers of skin. And the dust from the production of the "Vinyl-Coated Super Comfort Seams-Rite" gloves gives many workers respiratory problems. Hours at the plant are from 6 am to 5:30 pm, Monday through Saturday, and often from 6 am to 3:30 pm on Sunday as well a 78-hour work week. Approximately 75% of the workers make less than the minimum wage. In April, 1995, a worker who refused to work on Sunday so that he could go to church was fired. When he returned to pick up his severance pay, the manager called the UN police and reported a burglar on the premises. The UN police arrived and promptly handcuffed the worker. After protests from the other employees, the UN police finally let the worker go. The next day, management began firing, three at a time, four at a time, all those workers who had protested the arrest.At a subsidiary of the L.V. Myles Corp. in the SONAPI Industrial Park, workers produce shirts and nightwear, including Disney pajamas decorated with scenes from the movie "Pocahontas." The production manager of the plant told us that a line of 20 workers can produce 1,000 pairs of purple Pocahontas pajamas in one 8-hour shift. The pajamas sell for US $11.97 at Wal-Mart. So for L.V. Myles and Disney, one day's production is worth $11,970 ($11.97 x 1,000). The workers at this plant are paid an average of 50 gourdes (US $3.33) or less per day. All the workers on one line together earn $66.60 per day (20 x $3.33). In other words, the workers are paid just .56% ((66.60/11,970)x100), or roughly one half of one percent of the eventual purchase price of the pajamas. That is the equivalent of 7 cents for every $11.97 shirt. What happens to the other $11.90? It is important to note here also that the L.V. Myles plant is one of the relative few in Haiti that are actually paying the minimum wage. At Quality Garments and National Sewing Contractors, both of which sub-contract from L.V. Myles, for instance, workers are producing the same clothes the same Disney pajamas and are earning even less money. The CEO of the Walt Disney Company, Michael Eisner, earned $203 million from salary and stock options in 1993. That amounts to roughly $780,800 per day, or $97,600 per hour approximately 325,000 times the salary of the workers in Haiti who are producing pajamas for his company. If a Haitian minimum wage worker worked full-time, six days a week, sewing clothes for Disney, it would take her approximately 1,040 years to earn what Michael Eisner earned in one day in 1993. Factory-owners in Haiti often claim that they cannot afford to pay more than they are paying, and complain that higher wages will make them lose business to firms in other countries in the Caribbean. Several industrialists we spoke to, however, felt that this wasn't true. For instance, Jeff Blatt, an American joint-partner in the L.V. Myles plant (described above), compared labor costs in Haiti to those in the Dominican Republic, where he also manages a factory: "Costs are absolutely more competitive here," he said. Murray Reed, the owner of Ohmicron Electronics, an assembly plant in the Shodecosa Industrial Park in Port-au-Prince, was asked if the minimum wage was a reason that some companies were reluctant to do business in Haiti. His response was blunter: "The minimum wage is not in and of itself an important factor, because of the favorable exchange rate...People who say the wage is keeping them out are full of B.S." Mr. Reed is absolutely
correct: wages in Haiti Its no wonder that the inhabitants of Haiti are poor. They Are David and Western greed is Goliath, the only thing is that David doesnt have any stones for his slingshot. Haitian laborers are first forced into urban cities by way of failing agricultural markets caused by US subsidized crops. Once in the urban cities, they are corralled into sweatshops run by familiar companies such as Lee, Wrangler, Hanes, and Disney-who sell their products to retailers such as Wal Mart, Sears and Meijers. This is systematic oppression at its finest-Haiti is poor because the western world wants it that way. In all reality, there is a pretty good chance that you or your children are wearing garments literally produced off of the sweat of imperialist slave labor.
In April of 2009, Ezili Danto had the following to say in an interview- to engage in some sort of private/public partnership. Where both the Haitian people's interest would be taken care of and of course the private interest would take their profits. But I think it was around that time we had St. Genevieve saying they did not like the Haitian government. Obviously, they didn't like this plan. They don't like the Haitian people to know where their resources are. But in this book, it was the first time in Haitian history, it was written in Kreyòl and in French. And there was a national discussion all over the radio in Haiti with respect to all these various resources of Haiti, where they were located, and how the Haitian government was intending on trying to build sustainable development through those resources. So that's what you had before the 2004 Bush regime change/Coup D'etat in Haiti. With the Coup D'etat now, though the people know where these resources are because this book exists, they don't know who these foreign companies are. What they're profit margins are. What the environmental protection rules and regulations to protect them are. Many folks, for instance, in the North talk about losing their property, having people come in with guns and taking over their property. So that's where we are.. Well, technically with regards to mining there is this thing called the Bureau of Mines [and Energy] and its under the Ministry of Public Works in Haiti. But what folks have to understand is the history of what's been going on with respect to Haiti. Between 1991 and 1994 there was a Coup d'etat. It was - 91 was the first Coup d'etat against President Jean Betrand Aristide and in those times, foreign companies, whenever, during Coup D'etats they get lots of concessions and so forth. In terms of Haitian mineral rights and gold and bauxite, all the various minerals of Haiti. I mean people don't think of those things about Haiti. And this is one of those things my organization want folks to understand. That the UN is not in Haiti, the US is not in Haiti, Canadians are not in Haiti for humanitarian goals or because they care about Haitian rights. There is an economic track. And so I'd like to be able to explain to your audience that in terms of the economic track. Haiti has various sites, especially in the North, where in terms of Canadian companies, were talking about St. Genevieve, were talking about Eurasian Minerals, were talking about right now the new one that just came which is called Majescor. Those are the three we are aware of. That doesn't mean there are not others. But around the 1970s and 1980s there was a survey -[1975 - Kennecott Exploration/1978 - Penarroya Exploration], a geological survey done by the UNDP [1983 - The United Nations Development Program], and they actually also put together a document [for the Haitian government] with respect to what is available in these areas. In these areas now that are being mined by Eurasian Minerals; that are being mined by St. Genevieve up in the Trou du Nord up in the North and Northeast of Haiti. These companies, specifically St. Genevieve, came into Haiti in 1997 and that was under the Lavalas government of President Preval. And they got a [minimum] 25 year contract. Now, when they got that contract with regards to Haiti this was during a time when the grassroots had their voice. They knew what the resources were in Haiti and they felt entitled to share in the profits. We have information where St. Genevieve was talking about how, you know, the Aristide government was not amenable to what it was doing in Haiti. But now, these companies are having a great time. Once the Coup d'etat had happened in 2004. There is no longer a worry about the people. Because the people, their voices are not being heard. Although we have an elected government that was... excuse me, an elected President. The rest of the folks are Coup d'etat folks that have been left over or they are the folks that the parliamentary elections where the people really concentrated just on trying to get themselves out of, between 2004 and 2006, intense, intense repression. Trying to get a government, or a president that they thought would represent them. But the Preval government is effectively at the moment a puppet government that's under occupation. So, that's why you see the most exploration licenses being given out. In January, Eurasian Minerals, a Canadian company got 27 licenses. We know that in 2005, during the Latortue imposed government, after the coup d'etat, that St. Genevieve they reaffirmed their license. Now, in terms of regulations, what should people think about, when - if a company says they are having problems with the democratically elected government in 1997, but in 2006, excuse me, in 2005 after that government has been ousted, their contract, their 25 year contract is being reaffirmed and now they are having a great relationship with the occupiers of Haiti. What folks should understand is this, now I don't have the specifics with regards to the St. Genevieve contract, this Canadian company. But I do know that they have, they're up there in the North and Northeast. Folks should understand, that when a Coup d'etat happens like the one that happened in 2004. And these folks that came in from the Dominican Republic who are supported by the United States and all these Neocons who wanted to get President Aristide out, the first thing that happens is that all the archives are destroyed; set fire to all the original archives, so that the elites, and the foreign companies who may owe money to the Haitian people, the Haitian government, they sometimes get away scot-free when the new imposed government comes on without paying anything. So who knows what data from the first contract under Preval was taken out with regards to this 25 year contract that's St. Genevieve's. Nobody knows. All we know is that the St. Genevieve company reaffirmed its contract under the occupation and added five more additional permits. So, in terms of regulation, what happens, nobody knows. The Bureau des Mines...I'll give you an example, the head of the Bureau [of Mines] is Mr. Anglade. And around that same time he talked about, not mining companies, but there was an issue where there was an underwater exploration in Ile-à-Vache, which is an island in Haiti, somehow there was a dispute between the company and the Bureau des Mines and what happened was, out of the blue, someone, somewhere decided to move the contract away from the Bureau des Mines and put it into the Minister of Culture. So these are some of the weaknesses of the Haitian regulatory system. Number one you have these Coup D'etats, where what was done when there was a government of the people, we don't know what was reaffirmed in 2005 under the occupation. Also we don't know who is regulating whether the properties [property owners] are being paid for that these people are excavating. Whether the laws that require Haitian ownerships are being followed. Because a lot of times these foreign companies have enough leverage to just buy a name, a Haitian elite, a person, give them some money. And, in effect, who is going to...there is no serious enforcement of those subsidiaries they have to do that have Haitian participation. Also, the Bureau of Mines with the various chaos going on; who is going to look at these contracts and enforce, for instance, whatever the guarantees were that the underground water, or the surrounding farming areas, or the air pollution, what happens, cause everybody knows the environmental devastation that happens with mining, the chemicals that are used in the air. Obviously, everybody also knows the wind levels when Haiti has hurricanes. Like the devastating hurricane we just had recently that leveled the whole of Gonaives. What happens when oxidation and all these various chemicals get, you know, travel up in the air. Who will be responsible? Will these foreign companies have any responsibly for the health hazards that may happen? We know because we are under occupation that there is frankly no regulatory framework that will enforce laws or even contracts. These contracts, the so-called conventions with the Bureau of Mines, that St. Genevieve, Eurasian or Majescor have, the people of Haiti don't know about them. That's basically what's happening. If there is, for instance, the guarantee that once they have dug up these mines and so forth that they are not going to leave the area devastated. That there are some sort of reparations fixing the area, and if there are some damages, that there is some sort of money put aside for those damages. Nobody knows any of this stuff. Its no secret that Haiti has frequently been the victim of western imperialism both politically and economically for over 500 years, beginning with the discovery of Haiti by Columbus in 1492 and extending to the present time. The Spanish imperialists controlled Haiti from 1500 until 1697, when with the Treaty of Ryswick; the island was split in two with Spain getting the Eastern portion and France getting the Western portion. France ruled Haiti from 1697 until 1804, when Haiti finally won its independence. From 1804, Haiti experienced over 30 Coup DeEtats and remained unstable up until the modern times. Throughout its history as well, Haiti has experienced multiple invasions from the U.S. with the first one occurring with U.S. Marines overthrowing the Haitian government in 1888, and then again occupying Haiti from 1915 until 1934. In 1987, the U.S. government arranged for the presiding dictator of Haiti Jean Claude baby doc Duvelier to be exiled to France and set up a new government under the leading Army general. In 1994, the U.S. government negotiated the peaceful entry into Haiti of U.S. troops to position the exiled president Aristide back into office. Then in 2004, the U.S. forcefully removed Aristide during a pre-dawn raid and flew him into exile in Africa. Since 2004, the UN has occupied Haiti for security reasons. Now fast forward to 2009. On January 12th 2009 a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked Haiti, utterly destroying its capital, killing an estimated 200,000 people and rising, injuring hundreds of thousands of more people and leaving a reported 2 million people homeless. Almost instantaneously aid from countries, organizations and charities around the world began pouring in with numerous countries personally sending doctors, nurses and experts to assist in the relief effort. U.S. President Obama promised $100 million in aid as well as full support in the form of food, supplies, doctors, and troops, with the latter being something exclusively done in such numbers by the US alone. Although military support in a small capacity is definitely needed within the tumultuous country given its past political issues and current dilemma, the almost daily rising number of dispatched US troops as well as comments, actions and past business dealings from various sources is an alarming issue as Haiti is far more valuable than most will let on. Later on within the same interview in regards to the UN occupation, Mrs. Danto had this to say- "We have reports all of the time, we have this project in Haiti called the Ezili Dantò Witness Project, we get reports from the various locals. The latest one, a couple of months ago, was in Port-au-Prince, where we were told, that the UN soldiers came in they cordon off the area, put big containers in. And folks tell us that they can't see what is being dug [up], they can't see what's going on. They might stay in that area for a month, they might stay for a few days. Whatever they are doing, the folks that are the authorities cannot explain to their constituents what's going on. And so that's one of the things that's been happening all over Haiti. All over Haiti. I have an example of somewhere in the North, a mayor there that I spoke to a while ago, basically said to me; UN troops came into his town, started digging, cordoning off areas, and when he went to them with a delegation of the townspeople, and said, I don't know what you are doing here, I am the mayor I'm the authority here. They said, well listen, we have authority from Port-au-Prince. And they didn't produce any sort of paperwork. So do these foreign companies actually have the consent of the people at the moment ? I would say they don't, for doing what they are doing. On January 19th, 2010, the United Nations announced that they were sending an additional 3,500 troops to Haiti, bringing the total to over 10,000 UN troops and 16,000 American troops, not including private security firms dispatched to the country and small naval armada stationed on Haitis coast eerily similar to what has taken place in Iraq and Afghanistan. Then on January 20th, 2009, the head of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) stated that Haiti was in need of something similar to a Marshall Plan like the one created to rebuild Europe after WWII. Now the term Marshall Plan has both positive and negative connotations as although it was responsible for rebuilding war torn Europe after WWII, it has also been criticized as an attempt at American imperialism and an attempt to gain control over Europe. So now we begin to see the bigger picture in relation to Haiti, its abundant natural resources, economic imperialism, and Haitis continued poverty. When you look at the multiple puzzle pieces in this whole debacle, separately they seem innocuous and unrelated. You have the discovery of oil in Haiti over a hundred years ago but the excuse given was that the political scene was too tumultuous to foster any actual development. You have the further discovery and initial drilling of oil in the 1950s but during that time the economic landscape prevented a need for new oil reserves. Then in the 1970s you have more American and other foreign interest in building oil refineries, deep water ports, etc within the country. Again, the troubled political scene prevented these entities from capitalizing on the resources of Haiti. Then finally in the first decade of the 2000s, a President is finally positioned in Haiti who is seemingly happy to accomplish any wish of America or any other interested country. Now add to these previous actions the most recent one-the military occupation of Haiti by the US and the UN. These actions, along with the IMFs wish for a Marshall Plan type apparatus are some of the final pieces to the puzzle, the largest pieces, and the pieces needed to recognize the bigger picture. Not so coincidentally, once a western puppet is elected foreign countries are granted almost free reign of Haiti and allowed to do as they please, America sends tens of thousands of troops to Haiti, and the IMF wants to enact a financial plan that will give its interests precedence and its voice influence over future economic business dealings in Haiti. The $100 million in aid to Haiti is but a small investment based on the profits America is bound to see if it maintains controlling interests in deep water oil drilling, oil refineries, and gold, copper, and uranium mining, not to mention its interest in cheap sweatshop labor. Furthermore, the money the IMF loans to Haiti would be used as leverage and a bargaining chip in regards to future mineral and oil rights within the country. Haiti already has a history of sending exorbitant amounts of money to Western nations as repayment, with 80% of its funds in the early 1900s going to paying back France and the U.S. for loans. ..so whats stopping it from happening again? Even the military leaders of the U.S. feel as if it is almost impossible for the U.S. to conduct a quick aid relief program without taking up residence in Haiti once again. Gen. David Petraeus, who served with U.S. forces in Haiti during Operation Uphold Democracy in 1995, told an audience at Georgetown University Law School the following- "We're in a very tricky situation right now where on the one hand you obviously want to save lives" and move quickly to distribute medical assistance and other aid to survivors, he said. "But, frankly, you have to be careful not to take something over that then becomes more difficult to give back because you took it over." In 2008, the current president of Haiti
reportedly told his close constituents that he was
the last president Haiti would ever see. What
does he know that we dont? Has there already been a
plan in affect for western nations to take over the
controlling interest in future financial developments in
Haiti and did the recent earthquake just serve as a
literal natural catalyst of these actions? Why is France
so concerned with Americas occupation of Haiti if
there is nothing there that would benefit them? When you
put all of the pieces of the puzzle together, an alarming
picture begins to be painted. The western world, with the
US heading it, is prepping itself for the financial,
physical, and political imperialism of Haiti, its people,
and its vast natural resources. In 2004, Bush used the
disposing of a threat as an excuse to invade
Iraq and capitalize on its natural resources and in 2010,
Obama or an entity more influential than him, is possibly
using humanitarian aid as an excuse to plant
thousands of troops and supplies within Haiti for future
development of its natural resources and continued
slavery of its people. Trust me, I would much rather be
wrong about this wealth of information and recent
developments but I fear I am indeed correct. If
this is all true, Pat Robertson might have been on to
something. Although he falsely claimed that the Haitian
people were cursed due to a pact with the devil, it seems
as if in actuality the Haitian government has been
continually signing a pact with the devil for decades -
only this devil doesnt sport horns or carry a
pitchfork, he wears a $2000 Armani suit and carries
todays edition of the Wall Street Journal.
By Peter Schlosser BlackListedNews It has been a little over a week since the devastating earthquake hit just outside Port au Prince, Haiti. Since that day, I have watched in horror as the Haitian people and their society have quickly submerged into a quagmire of social unrest and political grandstanding. Once I observed the mass-murder posse of Team Obama, Bush and Clinton begin circling the wagons and the rapid US militarization of Port au Prince, including the occupation of the Presidential Palace, to the tune of now almost 10,000 US boots on the ground, I began to get suspicious. Call me crazy. I know of the sad history of Haiti imposed upon the tiny former slave nation by one imperial power after the next. But when I see 10,000 American soldiers descend upon a nation in less than a week, my radar flies into the red zone. Just when I was beginning to brush up on the story behind the story regarding Yemen, now Im thrashed about one more time and forced to begin scrambling for the next story behind the story for this weeks latest NWO hot topic. After a few hours on the Internet, I discovered an article posted in January of 2008 http://www.abibitumikasa.com/forums/oppression-afrikans-economically/41112-oil-mining-haiti-worlds-elite-robbing-people-blind.html indicating that large amounts of, you guessed it, OIL had indeed been discovered in Haiti a short while back. According to the article, s cientists Ginette and Daniel Mathurin indicated that under Haitian soil it is rich in oil and fuel. We have identified 20 oil sites. said Daniel Mathurin stating that 5 of them are considered of great importance by specialists and politicians. The Central Plateau, including the region of Thomonde, the plain of the Cul-de-Sac and the bay of Port-au-Prince are full of hydrocarbons,he said adding that the oil reserves of Haiti are more important than those of Venezuela. An Olympic pool compared to a glass of water; that is the comparison to illustrate the importance of Haitian oil compared with those of Venezuela, he explains. Are We in Haiti because of Oil? 070110banner Venezuela is one of the worlds largest producers of oil. We know that large amounts of oil had been discovered in Cuba a little over a year ago as appeared in a London Guardian article from Saturday, October 18 th 2008. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/18/cuban-oil . Mother nature, it emerged this week, appears to have blessed the island with enough oil reserves to vault it into the ranks of energy powers. The government announced there may be more than 20bn barrels of recoverable oil in offshore fields in Cubas share of the Gulf of Mexico, more than twice the previous estimate. If confirmed, it puts Cubas reserves on par with those of the US and into the worlds top 20. Drilling is expected to start next year by Cubas state oil company Cubapetroleo, or Cupet. It would change their whole equation. The government would have more money and no longer be dependent on foreign oil, said Kirby Jones, founder of the Washington-based US-Cuba Trade Association. It could join the club of oil exporting nations. Wrote Rory Carroll, Latin America Correspondent for the Guardian. If one looks at a map and notices that Haiti and Cuba are only about 60 miles apart separated by the Winward Passage, one might then assume that perhaps the two Caribbean nations might be sitting on the same stretch of oil field. And the plot thickens. According to the article regarding Haitian oil: Daniel and Ginette Malthurin indicate that the American government had in 2005 authorized the use of strategic reserves of the United States. The door should be used by politicians to launch Haitian negotiations with American companies in the context of the exploitation of these deposits. The specialists contend that the government of Jean Claude Duvalier had verified the existence of a major oil field in the Bay of Port-au-Prince shortly before his downfall. Hmmm, intriguing. It would seem that the Pentagons interest in Haiti during this crisis just might stretch a bit beyond their normal warm and fuzzy humanitarian intentions. It feels like weve been here before. Keep your eyes on the bouncing ball and watch for Big Oil to move into the region shortly. Perhaps this may also serve as a wee bit of gunboat diplomacy targeted at Cuba and, more ominously, a back-up plan to secure reserves in the Empires backyard as Obama and the War Machine get ready to take on Venezuela. More will be revealed. January 22, 2010
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