Please excuse my long post. I am writing from a point of observation and ignorance concerning Haiti and am looking to be better informed about both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. So, please pardon my ignorance.
Reading the various posts concerning Haiti on this forum and others, some of the more popular solutions seem to be:
1. Build a Wall or Fence
2. Get rid of the illegal Haitians
3. Keep pouring more money into Haiti
4. Combine the Haitian and DR governments
I have only recently started looking into the Haitian issue, and what I have seen so far are the following:
1. The only Haitians that have been helped so far are the Politicians (especially those that have been sent away, Aristide, Cedras, Baby Doc, etc.)
2. The Haitian Elite (whoever they are). I really don't know how they became rich and whether or not they are re-investing in their country.
3. Though they are neighbors, the DR government and its people cannot bear this burden. The DR has way too many issues of their own. The DR can and has been helping but, what is enough and when is it enough?
4. I think many of the organizations currently stationed in Haiti such as NGOs, Churches, other people , Sean Penn, etc are somewhat self-serving and in reality are trying to bail water from the Titanic. To me it seems as if it's sort of like a Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy ( form of child abuse in which a parent induces real or apparent symptoms of a disease in a child. Symptoms: The child's symptoms do not fit a classical picture of illness or do not fit together).
5. Until the people who live in Haiti are re-educated, there is no way in H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks that this country can change for the better. It will take generations to change Haiti but hasn't generations passed and we still have the same mess over there?
6. There are many educated Haitians living abroad, maybe it's time that they come back and try to help their fellow brothers and sisters out of this mess.
7. How much more money needs to be thrown at Haiti? Until you understand the culture and the mentality of the Haitian population, throwing money at the situation will not help much. Until the Haitian population can help themselves, there is no hope for Haiti. From my limited and uneducated view of the situation in Haiti, the only long-term plan I see so far is throwing more money at Haiti (which also will not help). Haiti has to help its self first, then others can help.
Growing up, when I heard about the endless suffering in Haiti, I use to say, "it seems as if when the devil wants to take a crap, he uses Haiti as one of his out-houses"
It's good that we can all discuss this issue on DR1 because we care. No matter how crazy some of the solutions might sound to others, we still care. Keep up the discussions folks, hopefully one of these days Haiti will be saved but I don't expect it to be done in my lifetime or my children's lifetime.
