Chomsky Talks Haiti Relief

MIT Professor Noam Chomsky and other panelists at last night’s Haiti Recovery Caucus identified external forces as contributing to the systemic poverty of the country, which they said has exacerbated the disaster caused by the January earthquake.

Chomsky identified the United States and France as the “two traditional torturers of Haiti” and criticized the invasions of Haiti by US and French forces in its early history, in addition to the neoliberal policies of privatization that the US has promoted—sometimes “by gunpoint”—and its support of coups in its modern history.

Alix Cantave, a lecturer at Tufts University, expanded upon Chomsky’s analysis, adding that the net effect of US and French policies during the aftermath has led to the “over-concentration” of citizens in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, and has rendered the city more susceptible to natural disasters.

Joia Mukherjee, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and chief medical director of the nongovernmental organization Partners In Health, pointed to American policy promoting the movement of people from rural to urban areas in Haiti as a cause of urban “over-concentration.”

Mukherjee added that Haiti’s poverty is a deliberate attempt of the US and other nations to “purposefully bankrupt” the country and promote neoliberal policies. The effect, she said, was a weak Haitian state incapable of providing health, education, or other social services to its citizens.

The second half of the panel focused on methods to solve the crisis.

Chomsky advocated for reparations to be paid to Haiti from the US for what he called its prolonged exploitation of the nation. He added that the aid given to Haiti should not go to wealthy and powerful citizens or to NGOs, but rather to “state and popular organizations” that can provide infrastructure.

Chomsky also said that aid sent by the US in the wake of the earthquake included “unneeded security” by troops instead of urgently needed food and medicine.

Cantave focused on a “new paradigm” to view Haitian solutions, and recommended utilizing a large cross-section of the Haitian population in recovery efforts.

To ensure the voices of Haitians are heard during the process of recovery, Mukherjee said she advocated empowering pro-democracy movements and working at the local level.

“I hope that the Haiti Recovery Caucus will continue and the ideas of the organization will connect to public policy,” Melissa J. Barber ‘13 said.