[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 27 (Thursday, March 4, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2218-S2219]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 HAITI

  Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, over the past week, we have all watched 
the images of killings, chaos, and looting in Haiti. I am sad for the 
Haitian people. Once again, their leaders and the international 
community have failed them, and the poorest and the most vulnerable are 
enduring the greatest suffering.
  I am also deeply disappointed with the Bush administration. Over the 
past several years, this administration ignored the simmering problems 
in Haiti and hoped they would somehow resolve themselves. That approach 
obviously backfired. Things have spiraled out of control. We now have a 
full-blown crisis on our hands, accusations that the administration 
helped to engineer a

[[Page S2219]]

coup of President Aristide, and the deployment of thousands of U.S. 
Marines into a difficult situation. Bringing change to Haiti will now 
be a far more dangerous and costly undertaking. Moreover, the U.N. or 
some other impartial organization will have to conduct an investigation 
to answer nagging questions about Aristide's departure.
   I recognize that many administration officials did not support 
President Aristide. I can understand that view, as I also lost 
confidence in him. There is no question that serious allegations of 
corruption and abuse surround President Aristide and his associates and 
that these issues should have been dealt with. President Aristide and 
other Haitian leaders should be held accountable for their actions. 
Having said that, we should not forget the courage that President 
Aristide displayed when he first spoke out against the excesses of the 
brutal and corrupt dictatorship of Jean-Claude Duvalier.
  But this administration did not want to make the effort to help clean 
up the Haitian Government, build a reform-minded opposition, and 
restructure the economy.
  Instead, the Bush administration simply disengaged. During his first 
year in office, President Bush reduced aid to Haiti by about 25 
percent. Concerned with the growing problems in Haiti, Senator Dodd and 
I sent a letter to USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios in February 2002, 
urging an overhaul of our foreign aid program to Haiti. The response to 
our letter was essentially: ``Thanks for writing. We have a limited 
budget, but we will remain `flexible' in our approach.'' The results of 
this flexible approach speak for themselves.
  To be fair, USAID was under heady pressure to absorb activities that 
the State Department should have funded. USAID does not deserve the 
blame for an administration-wide policy failure.
  During the last month, United States policy toward Haiti crystallized 
around the goal of getting rid of President Aristide. For all the 
administration's tough talk aimed at President Aristide, this White 
House has embraced corrupt leaders with far less democratic credentials 
than President Aristide when it has suited its purpose. This episode is 
yet another reminder of how the contradictory policies and rhetoric of 
this administration are damaging U.S. credibility around the world.
  In some respects, President Aristide's departure begins a new chapter 
for Haiti. In other ways, it is not clear just how new it is. For the 
third time in 20 years, a Haitian leader has been forced into exile, 
and at least for the third time in 90 years, the U.S. military has 
intervened in Haiti.
  What is to show for years of interventions and hundreds of millions 
of dollars in U.S. assistance? Haiti remains one of the poorest and 
most corrupt countries on Earth, facing a myriad of complex problems. 
Removing President Aristide will not solve these entrenched problems, 
but it may provide a way forward.
  The United States has compelling reasons to help. Haiti is just a few 
hundred miles away from our shores, and the social turmoil there could 
easily spread to the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, and elsewhere in 
our neighborhood. The United States has a long relationship with Haiti 
and many Haitian Americans live in the United States. Perhaps most 
importantly, we have a moral responsibility to help a nation where so 
many have been suffering for so long.
  The United States, France, and others must work with the United 
Nations, the Organization of American States to help fill the power 
vacuum in Port-au-Prince. The international community must also come up 
with a substantial aid package to help the Haitian people get back on 
their feet.
  This will be a long, slow process. If we are to succeed in meeting 
the challenge of recovery and rebuilding in Haiti, the United States 
and the international community must stay engaged. Most of all, the 
Haitians themselves must take responsibility, especially the religious 
and political leaders. But we must take care not to overlook a key 
group that must be involved in this process--middle-class Haitians who 
have left the country over the past few decades.
  As Garry Pierre-Pierre, editor in chief of the Haitian Times, points 
out in Monday's Wall Street Journal, involving Haiti's middle class is 
essential. He writes:

       The international community has to bring the country's 
     middle class not merely to the table, but back to Haiti. This 
     middle class has been fleeing Haiti for the U.S., where it 
     has consolidated itself, for the last 30 years. We should 
     look to that group, the Haitian diaspora, educated at the 
     best schools in the U.S. and Canada, to help lead the country 
     out of its perpetual cycle of violence and misery.

  I agree with Mr. Pierre-Pierre, and believe that the administration 
should heed his advice.
  We have missed one opportunity after another in Haiti. It is time for 
us to make the most of this unfortunate situation.
  I ask unanimous consent to print the above-referenced letters in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                  U.S. Senate,

                                Washington, DC, February 15, 2002.
     Hon. Andrew Natsios,
     Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development, 
         Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Natsios: We are deeply concerned with the 
     deteriorating humanitarian situation in Haiti. The political 
     impasse between the Haitian Government and the political 
     opposition has only made a serious situation more dire. As a 
     matter of U.S. policy Haiti is being denied access to monies 
     from the multilateral development banks until the government 
     and opposition resolve their differences. For that reason, 
     the humanitarian needs of Haiti must be met solely from 
     bilateral donations through non-governmental organizations 
     such as CARE, Catholic Relief Services and World Vision.
       Violence, poverty, and disease are rampant throughout 
     Haiti. Since the United States is opposing access for Haiti 
     to multilateral monies to address these problems, we believe 
     the U.S. has a moral obligation to ensure, to the maximum 
     extent feasible, that U.S. bilateral humanitarian assistance 
     allocations be maintained at adequate levels. However, that 
     does not appear to be the case. As you know annual USAID/
     Haiti allocations have been cut in half since FY1999 to $50 
     million for the current fiscal year. Moreover, the 
     Administration's FY 2003 request is only $45 million. At 
     these levels we are very skeptical that USAID will be able to 
     continue many critical programs, including school feeding 
     programs, public health programs for Haitian children ages 0 
     to 5, and AIDS treatment and prevention programs.
       We strongly urge you to review the overall FY 2003 USAID 
     budget to determine whether additional funds can be found for 
     USAID FY 2003 programs in Haiti. Moreover, we do not support 
     efforts to obligate FY 2002 Haiti monies for purposes other 
     than humanitarian assistance programs.
       Thank you for your attention to our concerns. We look 
     forward to working with you in addressing the humanitarian 
     needs of Haiti's seven million people.
           Sincerely yours,
     Patrick J. Leahy,
     Christopher J. Dodd,
       U.S. Senators.
                                  ____

                                                   U.S. Agency for


                                    International Development,

                                    Washington, DC, April 2, 2002.
     Hon. Patrick J. Leahy,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Leahy: Mr. Natsios has asked me to respond to 
     your letter of February 15, 2002, concerning the current 
     situation in Haiti and declining U.S. assistance levels. We 
     regret the delay in responding.
       We share your concern about deteriorating conditions in 
     Haiti, and are doing our best to help ease the situation 
     within the constraints of current budget realities. Since 
     September 11, 2001, worldwide pressures on overall resources 
     limit our ability to maintain prior year levels for Haiti. We 
     have made up most of the difference using Development 
     Assistance and the Child Survival and Health Programs fund; 
     however, these accounts are heavily subscribed.
       Our programs will continue to have a meaningful impact in 
     Haiti through the provision of primarily humanitarian 
     assistance. Approximately 80 percent of the FY 2002 budget 
     and FY 2003 request will go toward health, food aid, and 
     education activities. These programs will still provide 
     health and family planning services to approximately 2.7 
     million Haitians--mostly women and children--including HIV/
     AIDS prevention. They will also target food resources in 
     Haiti to children under five and pregnant/lactating women, 
     and will continue to make marked improvements in math and 
     reading achievement test scores for 150,000 Haitian children.
       In closing, we are watching the situation very closely and 
     remain flexible on funding options for FY 2002. We welcome a 
     continuing dialogue with Congress on appropriate assistance 
     levels for Haiti as events unfold.
       Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. Please 
     let us know when this office can be of further assistance.
           Sincerely,

                                                J. Edward Fox,

                                          Assistant Administrator,
                        Bureau for Legislative and Public Affairs.




                          ____________________