|
A (Very) Brief History of Haiti
- c. 450 - Amerinds settle
- 1492 - Columbus lands
- 1540's - Native people nearly wiped out
- 1697 - France gains control
- 1700's - 790,000 African slaves imported
- 1791 - Slave uprising
- 1804 - Haitian independance (the world's first black republic)
- 1915-1935 - US occupation
- 1957 - Papa Doc Duvalier elected
- 1971 - Papa Doc dies; son Baby Doc takes over
- 1983 - Pope John Paul II visits; declares "things must change"
- 1986 - Baby Doc flees Haiti
- 1987-1990 - Military dictatorship
- 1990 - Aristide elected president
- 1991 - Military coup overthrows Aristide
- 1991-1994 - Military regime
- 1994 - US/UN return Aristide to Haiti
- 1995 - Preval elected president
- 2000 - Aristide elected president
- 2004 Violent uprising; Aristide exiled
- 2006 - Preval elected president
|
|
Haiti's Economy
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti has a population of 8,500,000 (UN 2005). The main exports are light manufactures, coffee, oils and mangoes. Haiti's most serious underlying social problem is the huge wealth gap between the impoverished Creole-speaking black majority and the French-speaking mulattos, who make up only 1% of the population and own nearly half the country's wealth.
Haiti has an average per capita income of $380 and an unemployment rate of 70%. This official unemployment rate doesn't tell the true story. Only 1 in 400 Haitian adults has a job in the formal sector; that is a job with regular wages and hours, a workplace, and the minimum benefits such as sick pay and holidays. The rest work in agriculture and the informal sector, especially the buying and selling of minute quantities of everyday goods (used clothing, fruit, soap, etc), and the provision of basic services (clothing repair, meal cooking, shoe shine, etc.) The people of Haiti may be poor, but they cannot afford to be idle. They must work ceaselessly to gather food and water, handle livestock and tend the fields.
Since the 1950's, the growing number of people farming a finite area of land has caused a deepening crisis. By the 1990's, Haiti's 620,000 farms had an average size of less than 2 acres. Extensive deforestation (less than 1% of Haiti's forests remain) and the consequent erosion of fertile topsoil further impoverished the land. In the 1970's, agriculture accounted for half the nation's gross domestic product; today it measures only one quarter.
|
|
Health Issues in Haiti
Haiti has the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the Western Hemisphere. 13% of the population dies before reaching the age of 5 years. 25% of the population dies before reaching the age of 40 years. The life expectancy in Haiti is 50 years. Haiti has the highest rate of HIV/AIDS in the Western Hemisphere (nearly 7%). Haitian health suffers from dire shortages of safe drinking water, inadequate nutrition and extremely poor sanitation.
Heath care in Haiti is appalling. There is only 1 doctor for every 10,000 persons. There are about 30 hospitals with around 400 doctors serving a population of 8 million.
People in Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish have very limited access to health care. For outpatient care, one clinic operates in Cabaret and a mobile clinic travels to Bellanger about once a week.
|
|
Education in Haiti
Haiti has an overall literacy rate of 50%. Only 50% of Haitian children attend primary school and only 30% finish primary school. This rate drops as low as 3% in rural areas. Only 20% of Haitian children attend high school. 90% of all Haitian schools are private, with Catholic schools having the best reputations. The average yearly cost to send a child to school is $40, more than 10% of the average per capita income. Many children are unable to go to school because their families can't afford to send them. There is also a shortage of teachers. Schools are often unable to provide even the most basic supplies such as paper, pencils and books.
|
|
Religion in Haiti
The Catholic Church remains one of Haiti's most important institutions. Catholicism is the dominant religion, although most Haitians also believe in Voodoo. This is a culturally and historically complex subject. For a brief overview, see Haiti, by C. Arthur, New York 2005. The Catholic Church plays a leading role in healthcare, human rights and community development. The church also provides the best education in the country. In recent years, large numbers of converts have been made by (mainly US) fundamentalist Protestant evangelicals, who have been pouring money and support into Haiti.
|
|
