April 21 MAWO Forum Report

On Wednesday April 21st, Mobilization Against War & Occupation (MAWO) organized a forum entitled “Haiti, Three Months After the Earthquake: Where it is and Where is it Going?” This was a great opportunity to discuss what has happened in Haiti since the January 15th earthquake that devastated the country and killed over 230,000 people and effected millions of Haitians.

The evening was opened with multimedia film clips that gave an overview of the heroic history and struggle of the Haitian people from the victory of the revolution and independence from colonial rule to the present-day occupation of their country from Canada, US and France. Throughout the films the reality of Haitian life under occupation, three months after an earthquake and why Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere became apparent. The situation for Haitians has long been dropped from the western media and this forum was a great opportunity to ask ourselves what is happening in Haiti today?

Afterwards, Andrew Barry, Co-chair of MAWO passionately spoke of two opposing approaches to the situation in Haiti after the earthquake. One approach by the Western Imperialist countries is to use the earthquake to further their occupation and plundering of Haiti. This was seen with the increase of foreign troops from Canada and the US in Haiti. The other approach was from Cuba and other Latin American countries that sent aid, doctors and in the situation of Venezuela cancelled the debt that Haiti owed to Venezuela. Cuba’s example of sending doctors not troops to Haiti is an example of an international approach that is truly bettering the people of this world.

Lively discussion followed where people were strongly in favour of the actions of Cuba towards Haiti in respecting the rights of Haitians to determine their future and truly bettering the lives of all Haitians. This in contrast with Western Imperialist countries who continue to plunder and cause destruction and misery for the people of the world in this new era of war and occupation. People were strong and firm in the necessity to demand “Send Doctors Not Troops to Haiti Now!”