Last week, the United States drafted a United Nations Security Council resolution that would send armed forces to Haiti, a country already ravaged by American intervention. The excuse used by the Biden administration is the recent uptick in gang power that has put many citizens in danger. The violence enacted by these gangs is brutal and often specifically targets women and girls. As a result, hospitals have shut down and the price of basic necessities have skyrocketed. But Biden's plan to invade Haiti with UN troops will only further destabilize it and tighten America's imperial grip.
After Haiti led the world's first successful slave rebellion, the West implemented policy after policy to punish its people. Most notably, America occupied the country from 1915 to 1934 via a puppet government that turned a blind eye to America's enslavement, torture, and mass killings of civilians. Ironically, the reason cited by then-president Woodrow Wilson was to defend against tyranny. America still has the unrestricted and frequently-utilized ability to interfere with Haiti's government and economy, a strategy that prevents against, as US ambassador Janet Sanderson says, "resurgent populist and anti-market economy political forces." More recently, occupying UN peacekeepers were found to have raped hundreds of Haitians between 2011 and 2017, including girls as young as 11.
The underlying assumption of both the new and old invasions is that the Haitian people are unfit to govern themselves. That the West must still act as a purveyor of democracy and capitalism, despite the evidence of human rights abuses. Many Western media sites repeat the claim that Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry has asked for foreign invasion, ignoring the fact that Henry appointed himself after the previous PM was assassinated by US-trained mercenaries and thousands of Haitians have taken to the streets to demand his resignation.
If Biden continues to militarily support Henry's illegitimate government, the people of Haiti may be thrown further into turmoil. And if the past is any indication of what is to come, the gangs might be held back but civilians will continue to suffer. Perhaps the most ethical path forward is to support legitimately democratic elections and allow for the Haitian government to raise the minimum wage. Ultimately, America must reconsider its tendency to jump to intervention before promoting national autonomy.
Sources:
https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/14/americas/haiti-gangs-sexual-violence-intl-latam
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