|
05 December 2010 By Stephen
Lendman Two previous articles explained
the sham, outrageous enough to make a despot blush,
accessed through the following links:
http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2010/11/haitis-sham-elections-solidifying.html
http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2010/11/massive-fraud-in-haitis-sham-elections_30.html No matter for The New York Times,
a notorious voice for wealth and power. On
November 30,
its editorial titled "Haiti
After the Vote" endorsed the sham, saying: Despite elections "sullied by low
turnout, polling-place confusion and accusations of
voter intimidation, ballot stuffing and other
fraud....international observers from the
Organization of American
States and the Caribbean
Community agree with Haiti's national election council
(the Provisional Electoral Council - CEP), which has
declared that the election was fundamentally sound." So did MINUSTAH's head of mission
(UN Blue Helmets),
Edmond Mulet, calling the
election "fairly good....in many ways," his way of
endorsing brazen coup d'etat rule. Preval's hand-picked CEP, in
fact, rigged the election by banning 15 parties,
including by far the most popular, Aristide's
Fanmi Lavalas.
Doing so violated Haiti's 1987
Constitution. Besides the above abuses, voter
names were left off rolls. Those of dead ones were
included. Required ID cards weren't issued to most
Haitians
losing them in January's earthquake. Voting stations
opened late, closed early, and in some cases had
faulty or no ballots. Premarked INITE party ballot
stuffing was widespread. Individuals using several ID
cards voted multiple times for INITE candidates,
hand-picked Preval ones. Largely financed and orchestrated
by
Washington, the entire process
was farcical and outrageous, evident to those on the
ground observing it, and, of course, for Haitians -
again denied democracy to institutionalize coup d'etat
rule, serving local elites, Washington, and America's
corporate exploitation of Haiti's resources and
workers. They're paid a below subsistence
25 cents an hour (about $2 a day, 70 gourdes),
ensuring extreme poverty and for many too little to
survive. It's less than one-fifth the 1980 minimum
wage under dictator Baby Doc Duvalier in violation of
Haiti's Labor Code, Article 137, requiring annual
inflation adjustments. However, corporate interests
blocked changes to assure the Hemisphere's lowest
wage, (virtual slave labor), a benchmark to keep other
regional ones from rising. The Institute for Justice &
Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) called yesterday's elections
"no surprise." They were "consistent with the (CEP's)
history throughout the electoral process. Haiti has
been on the course of undemocratic elections since the
CEP was handpicked by President Preval in October
2009, in violation of Constitutional requirements for
an independent Council." IJDH's conclusion: "New, credible
elections should be organized immediately, by a new,
credible CEP." No, for The New York Times,
saying: "Re-running elections this large
- not just for president, but for 11 members of the
30-member Senate and the entire 99-member lower house
of
Parliament - would lead to months
more of confusion and government inaction. Unless
compelling evidence of fraud is found, it is not
necessary and clearly not in Haiti's interests." No time ever did The Times
express more arrogance, more contempt for democracy,
more disdain for a people denied any measure of equity
and justice for over 500 years, except for two brief
interregnums: -- after its successful 1791 -
1803 revolution, turning slaves into citizens by
establishing the world's first Black republic, and -- during Aristide's tenure as
president, abruptly ended on February 29, 2004 when US
marines forcibly deposed him at gunpoint. At issue only for Times
management is "press(ing) ahead with an open and
honest vote count" - what's impossible after a sham
process. Yet its editorial concluded, saying: "Haitians, whose patience has
already been grievously tested, need to believe that
their next leaders were legitimately elected. That
appears to be the case. Haitians also need for those
leaders to get on with the business of governing and
rebuilding." Ignored is brazen injustice,
institutionalized illegitimacy, coup d'etat rule, and
Haitians again denied what people everywhere deserve -
officials serving everyone equitably and fairly.
Instead they got government of, by and for wealth and
power alone, what no one should ever tolerate,
especially in countries like Haiti - impoverished,
ravaged, and exploited as ruthlessly as any people
anywhere. It's long overdue time that changed. Stephen Lendman lives in
Chicago and can be reached at
lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
Also visit his blog site at
sjlendman.blogspot.com
and listen to cutting-edge discussions with
distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News
Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at
10AM US
Central time and Saturdays and
Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy
listening.
http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/. |
Add Comments