A-Infos (en) Economy Impacts Ecology

[Tom Burghardt <tburghardt@igc.apc.org>]

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      A - I N F O S  N E W S  S E R V I C E
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                        * HAITI PROGRES *
              "Le journal qui offre une alternative"
 
                      * THIS WEEK IN HAITI *
                        May 20 - 26, 1998
                          Vol. 16, No. 9
 
                              * * *
 
     "This Week in Haiti" is the English section of HAITI PROGRES
     newsweekly. For information on other news in French and
     Creole, please contact the paper at (tel) 718-434-8100,
     (fax) 718-434-5551 or e-mail at <haiticom@blythe.org>
 
                              -----
_________________________________________________________________
 
                     ECONOMY IMPACTS ECOLOGY
_________________________________________________________________
 
                                *
 
     They have inhabited the oceans of the world for over 150
million years, can grow as large as 10 feet long, weigh up to
half a ton, and live up to 100 years. They used to number in the
millions, but today many species are facing extinction.
 
     The sea turtle -- known in Creole as "karet" -- has for
centuries favored the warm waters of the Caribbean. Every two or
three years, females venture ashore to lay their eggs, usually
between April and October.
 
     On May 13, at about 10 p.m., a large "karet" clambered onto
the beach in the area of Abochi near Jacmel. The turtle headed
toward a river to lay its eggs but was discovered before it got
too far. It was tied up with a rope and dragged into town where
hundreds of people gathered by torchlight and lantern to see the
giant reptile which has become very rare over the two past
decades. It is prized by Haitians for its meat, skin, and
colorful shell.
 
     At about 8 a.m. the next morning, dozens of people gathered
to de-shell the turtle for its meat when a detachment of police
arrived with several justices of the peace (juges de paix). The
authorities told the villagers to stop and bury the animal
because the meat was unsafe.
 
     But the crowd became enraged. "Do the police care so much
about us that they feel compelled to tell us not to eat a meat
which we are accustomed to eating?" asked one angry man. "If the
police and so-called justices cared about us so much, they
wouldn't have taken four hours to arrive when we had a dead man
here last week. This time it isn't about cocaine, and nobody is
going to come and beat us up over a sea animal we found."
 
     The angry crowd began to carve up the turtle and distribute
the meat. The police did not intervene and eventually left.
 
     The former mayor of Jacmel and one-time fisherman, Claude
Bernard Craan, was also on hand. He explained to the crowd that
sea turtles are endangered and only come ashore to lay hundreds
of eggs, which are essential to the survival of the species. In
the future, Craan said, the people should not kill sea turtles
but alert local authorities.
 
     "His words went in one ear of the crowd and out the other,"
reported the local Haiti Progres correspondent, "because it's
hard to listen to such considerations when you are hungry. If the
government took more responsibility to help feed and educate the
people, rather than leaving them hungry and ignorant, there are
many things they could understand. But when the big shots just
steal and sell off the country bit by bit, the people are left to
their own devices to survive."
 
                              * * *
_________________________________________________________________
 
             CATTLE RUSTLING PLAGUES NORTHEAST HAITI
_________________________________________________________________
 
                                *
 
     On the morning of April 19, two policemen from Ft. Liberte
drove to the town of Ferrier, near the border with the Dominican
Republic. Accompanied by two Dominicans, they searched various
farms in the area for stolen Dominican cattle. Several animals
were seized at two farms, and many peasants were questioned,
accused, or intimidated.
 
     The peasants resented their treatment by the policemen,
since they too have seen their livestock stolen of late. They say
that there is a cross-border network of cattle rustlers who are
equipped with guns, cars, and motorcycles. Some peasants have
even resorted to bringing their animals into their homes at
night. The cattle are stolen from Haiti and then sold in the
Dominican Republic, and vice versa, peasants say.
 
     They also claim that one man in the communal section of Bas
Maribeau is a well-known rustler, a certain Baby Louis. He was
working with Yves St. Fort, a member of the local Administrative
Council of the Communal Sections (CASEC). Although the police
arrested St. Fort and jailed him for 18 days, Baby Louis
circulates freely under the nose of the authorities.
 
     The peasants of Ferrier ask why the police harrass them,
while taking no measures to stop the traffic of stolen livestock
by patrolling the border or arresting well-known rustlers like
Baby Louis.
 
 
     All articles copyrighted Haiti Progres, Inc. REPRINTS
     ENCOURAGED. Please credit Haiti Progres.
 
                              * * *
 
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