Haitians riot on rumour government will ignore Ireland

Nepalese UN Peace Keepers keep their distance as riots flare 

Riots continued for a fourth night in the Haitian capital, Port-Au-Prince in an unprecedented outpouring of support for the Irish people. Sources indicate the riots were sparked by a rumour that presidential candidates would, if elected, rescind Haiti’s pledge of financial aid to Ireland. Neither of the candidates for the January run-off, Mirlande Manigat nor Jude Célestin, were available for comment. Third place candidate, Michel “Sweet Micky” Martelly, blamed Célestin supporters for spreading the rumour. Martelly is disputing the November 28th first round vote, in which he finished 1 percentage point behind Célestin.

As police, backed by UN security forces, struggled to contain the violence, the incumbent president, René Préval sought to reassure the populace. In a speech from the ruins of the presidential palace, Mr Préval struggled to control the emotion in his voice. “The Irish have nothing now. Nothing. We can identify with their suffering and will not stand by in their time of need. This law is passed and cannot be rescinded”. He added that not only would Haiti direct all future development aid to Ireland but emergency shipments of food and clothing were being prepared to help the Irish cope with the extreme cold.

Feeling is strong among the majority of Haitians that they should not abandon Ireland. To head teacher, Marc Bazin, news from Ireland is especially difficult. It was an Irish missionary who, 60 years ago, built the school he attended and now runs. “If it wasn’t for [the Irish missionaries] we would not have turned from our own culture and traditions into the arms of the Almighty. It is He who has blessed us and kept us safe during the earthquake, cholera, hurricanes and unrelenting violence.” Mr Bazin then pointed at the only house still standing in the village. “After marrying one of the girls he impregnated, he settled in that house. We still call it Monseigneur Pat’s house.” The fact that it is the only house standing out of 1,000 is being taken as a sign that the Irish are favoured by God.

Mr Bazin, who has been living in a tent since January, has managed to maintain a certain level of objectivity. “I sometimes ask ‘why me?’, but then I think how worse it could be. I could have bought a 4 bed [room house] in Carlow for 350,000.  Then sucked every bit [of equity] out of it to spend  on regular trips to Old Trafford and a new 5-series [BMW].” Raising his voice to be heard above the flapping tent fabric and crying children, Bazin showed significant empathy. “Stuck owing close to half a million on a house that’s worth 200,000? 60 miles from a job with no overtime? With a rear wheel drive [car] I can’t sell or even drive on the ice? Non Mesi.”

Haiti was rocked by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake on 12^th of January 2010. The estimated loss of life was 230,000 with a recent spike in deaths due to an outbreak of cholera. Many Haitians, comparing their tragedy to Irelands, are especially worried that there will be a return of the emigration that blighted that country in the 1950s and 1980s. “In Voodoo [there] is the possibility of reincarnation, but if an Irish child overstays their 3-months in the USA they will never return” sobbed mother Nadege Atabei. Ms Atabei, nursing her surviving child through a severe cholera infection, lost her husband and 4 other children in the quake. When she heard of the recent water shortages in Dublin, Ms Atabei became even more distraught. She immediately removed the straw from her child’s mouth and insisted this reporter take the child’s water and Red Cross hydration sachets to Fingal County on return to Ireland.