Haiti is in turmoil | Ben today

What led to political instability during Moyes’ presidency?

First of all, when Jovenel Moïse took office, he was little known and inexperienced. Chosen by his predecessor Martelli, he came to power through a controversial election, and was in fact inaugurated a year later. This was not a good start. During his tenure, Moyes did not perform well and isolated himself over time. It has weakened institutions such that today Haiti has no standing parliament, a devastated judiciary, and a police force undermined by internal divisions and deficient operational capabilities.

Moreover, many saw that his constitutional term had expired and that his government was thus bereft of legitimacy.

Finally, in addition to his authoritarian tendencies, he was suspected of having links with criminal gangs now ruling many neighborhoods and posing a major security threat to citizens and the state alike.

It is not surprising under these circumstances that the situation in Haiti has deteriorated from bad to worse and the living conditions of the people have continued to deteriorate.

Why did Haiti struggle to get out of the cycles of coups and dictatorships?

In my view, it boils down to three basic, interrelated problems that mostly revolve around Haiti’s political culture, inherited in part from colonialism and the history of the divisions that have characterized the republic since its inception.

First, Haiti’s political ecosystem is highly fragmented. Forging lasting alliances and developing a national consensus has long proven difficult. This is reflected in the fact that there are no meaningful political parties in Haiti. Instead, we see a special alliance of people working together one day and splintering and working against each other the next.

The second element to note is that institutions have historically been weak, a common plight in many developing countries. Governance tends to rely more on people at the top than on institutions.

Thirdly, the political class tends to cater to its own interests as well as special interest groups and thus there is a lot of corruption.

All of this seriously undermines governance, stability and development in Haiti.

Why did the humanitarian aid that flowed after the 2010 earthquake not help Haiti to rebuild?

Many people are very critical of the assistance that was given to Haiti after the earthquake and see the money as wasted and had no effect. I beg to differ.

The emergency humanitarian assistance provided to Haiti in the aftermath of the earthquake saved lives and alleviated the suffering of hundreds of thousands of people. Clean water, food, health services and temporary housing were provided. All this had an immediate effect. This was a meaningful achievement, even if imperfect.

The matter is further complicated by the post-crisis reconstruction efforts. Despite its shortcomings, this assistance had an impact; For example, schools and clinics have been rebuilt, small businesses renovated and refinanced, etc. We have seen a certain degree of reconstruction and restart of the economy.

Was all of this as effective as it could have been? I won’t pretend like that. It could, and should, have done more.

While the international community needs to examine what it did right and what it didn’t do right, we also have to look again at governance in Haiti. Many hoped that the shock of the earthquake would “reset” Haiti’s politics, for the better, and that the Haitian political class would begin to act differently, for the benefit of the country. This did not happen at the expense of Haiti’s development.

The international community can provide assistance to a country, but at the end of the day, it is the people of that country that will determine the course. This is true whether it is Haiti, Iraq, Afghanistan or any other country.

What is the role of the international community since the assassination and what should it be?

I will start with “what should be” the role of the international community.

In a perfect world: nothing.

What I mean by that is that, ideally, Haitians will take charge, find political solutions themselves, restore security, and hold elections.

But the truth is that it is difficult for Haitians to reach a consensus on the way forward.

Therefore, in these current circumstances, the role of the international community should be to do the minimum necessary to accompany Haitians to restore stability and security, to move forward with democratic elections and to avoid the worst. Neither Haitians nor the international community want Haiti to fall into a cycle of violence.

However, just by saying that, the international community can easily be drawn into the intricacies of everyday politics. This is not a healthy situation, but it is one in which the international community has often found itself. I’ve tested it myself. This is dangerous again today.

If Haiti’s political and civil society can reach a consensus on the way forward, all the better. But such previous attempts were often unsuccessful.

The international community should accompany and support Haitians in a process but not make decisions in favor of Haitians.

Looking more specifically at the path that Haiti could take at this time, it is clear that Haitians must decide through democratic elections who will be their next president. Everyone agrees. The question is how and when. There are two possible paths.

One is to stop, rethink some of the basics of governance in Haiti, implement reforms, and only then move forward with presidential and parliamentary elections. To allow time to do so, it is necessary to form a transitional government. This will likely allow the country to restart on a more solid governance basis. But it comes with risks. The process may be endless and unsuccessful.

The other course of action is to organize elections as soon as possible for a new president’s department and move forward. This is logical in principle. But in the current political and security context, it will be very difficult, in the short term, to organize credible elections that would empower a legitimate president.

The international community appears to be choosing the second path, in the absence of consensus among Haitians. We’ll see where that leads us.

What is the most important thing people should understand about what is happening in Haiti right now?

We are all focused on the political crisis. The security situation is also a serious concern. But let’s not forget about people’s living conditions, which are very difficult. There is food insecurity, and there is hardly any source of income. Hurricane season is coming and we are not out of the pandemic.

However, this is a country with a lot of potential. She has the resources, she has a hardworking people, and she can count on an enormous amount of goodwill around the world.

If only Haiti could standardize its governance procedures, it would be able to realize its potential. Haitians have been searching for that moment for a long time. He, unfortunately, has not yet come.

Finally, Haiti also has a strong hold on its rich culture. This is the dimension of Haiti that is being overlooked. Yet it is the core of everyday life, and Haiti navigates through literature, visual arts, spirituality, music, and other forms of expression.

As Canadian-Haitian writer Danny Laverrier said after the earthquake: “When everything falls apart, we still have a culture.”

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos