[Peace-discuss] Haiti

[Ricky Baldwin]

I don't know that I can straighten anything out -

And I don't think I really want to get into defending
Batay Ouvriye's defense.  As far as I'm concerned, it
would be missing the point anyway.  So let me just say
this:

Seems to me the main issue is that the US took various
measures to destabilize Aristide's regime, including
withholding promised aid, possibly stirring up old
partners in thuggery, definitely dumping loads of cash
in support of any and everybody who was  pissed off at
Aristide (some with, some without good reason,
perhaps) - and the fact that the AFL-CIO continues its
now 50-year support of US foreign policy (even though
they changed the program's name).

Yes, it appears that this radical union federation
Batay Ouvriye was among the recipients.  Was it a
mistake to take the money?  Maybe.  But more
importantly, what exactly did they DO differently as a
result of the money?  I have seen nothing at all that
indicates that they veered one degree in any
direction.  After all, they had been angry critics of
Aristide's populist-reformist (or, they say,
collaborationist) government for years, as have many
members of his own party.  Is the whole argument
really just guilt by association?  Or of who is or
isn't a worthy victim?

Or is it more than that?  Where is the criticism of
the many other groups who took US money, some of whom
actually DID something to help overthrow Aristide? 
(What is the allegation that Batay Ouvriye actually
did, by the way?  I haven't heard anything.  Is it
only that they criticized his government for
repressing them, for not living up to its promises,
for not being what they'd hope for?  Can't they do
that?)  

We should recall that Aristide himself accepted US aid
not so long ago.  Was he wrong?  We KNOW that aid had
a price - in policy changes, abandonment of reforms,
free trade zones, etc. -  so was it worth it to
restore him to office?  Again, it seems to me the main
issue is our government's evil tampering, squeezing,
violence, etc., not whether some folks under heavy
fire have made the right decisions.  Worth talking
about?  Sure, it's part of the story, part of the
awful effect of imperialism, part of understanding
what happens in the real world (as opposed to the
media fantasy world).  But do we denounce them for it?
 Not I.

But let's be honest.  Sprague - and the one or two
other critics of Batay Ouvriye who are writing so much
about them lately - have had nothing to say about
Aristide's government cracking down on labor union
organizing, possibly including some killings, and
Lavalas-affiliated violence.  Rightwing attacks
against Lavalas and Aristide folks (as well as Batay
Ouvriye and others) have been much more severe, of
course.  But in turn the Aristide government's actions
seem to me much more severe than anything Batay
Ouvriye has actually done, unless there is something
their critics haven't mentioned yet. 

And finally just to reiterate: Batay Ouvriye has and
does denounce the current repression (though Sprague
claims they don't), has been attacked (though Pina
says they haven't), and did not join the Group of 184
that really began the coup (with US aid of course),
regardless of what we think of their ideas or
statements.  

I don't know if that helps anybody in thinking about
this.  And if anybody has seen anything that might
shed more light on this, I'd love to see it.  This is
I think a very important discussion, because it
fleshes out what imperialism and capitalism really
mean, and because the media ain't gonna tell us squat.

Ricky



--- "Morton K. Brussel" <brussel4 at insightbb.com>
wrote:

> Maybe Ricky can straighten this all out. A turgid,
> almost  
> impenetrable, defense of Batay Ouvriere is to be
> found at
> 
>
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=55&ItemID=9504
> 
> Reading it, I'm less than impressed. They defend
> taking money from  
> anyone, they attack Aristide, without really
> criticizing his  
> overthrow. They cast aspersions on his election,
> saying the lumpen  
> proletariat supported him. Hmmmm.
> 
> --mkb
> _______________________________________________
> Peace-discuss mailing list
> Peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net
>
http://lists.chambana.net/cgi-bin/listinfo/peace-discuss
> 


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