Canada–Haiti relations
Encyclopedia
Canada–Haiti relations are relations between Canada
and Haiti
. During the unsettled period from 1957 to 1990, Canada received many Haitian refugees, who now form a significant minority in Quebec
. Canada participated in various international interventions in Haiti between 1994 and 2004, and continues to provide substantial aid to Haiti,
. In 1797 Toussaint Louverture led a successful revolt against the French
and made Haiti the first independent Caribbean
nation, although government was unsettled until 1915, when the United States
occupied the island. The United States left the island in 1934, returning it to a form of democracy.
Canada is a member of the Francophonie, or community of French-speaking countries, as is Haiti. Canada plays an active role in peacekeeping (or peacemaking) around the world.
Canada and Haiti only officially established diplomatic relations in 1954 when Edward Ritchie Bellemare
was appointed Chargé d'Affaires of the Canadian Embassy in Haiti. From 1957 to 1986, the Duvalier family reigned as dictators. They created the private army and terrorist death squads known as Tonton Macoutes. Many Haitians fled to exile in the United States
and Canada, especially French-speaking Quebec. In the 1991 Canadian census, nearly 44,000 people described themselves as being of Haitian origin. By 2006, Canada had over 100,000 residents of Haitian origin.
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
won a fresh election in December 1990, but after a coup d'état in September 1991 he fled the country. Political chaos ensued. In June 1993, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
of Canada told President Bill Clinton
that Canada was ready to send troops to enforce a blockade around Haiti. Later that year, Canada assisted in the United Nations Mission in Haiti
, a peacekeeping operation carried out by the United Nations
between September 1993 and June 1996.
The Force Commander from March to June 1996, Brigadier-General J.R.P. Daigle was Canadian. Daigle continued as commander of the United Nations Support Mission in Haiti (1996–1997), and the Canadian Général Robin Gagnon led the subsequent United Nations Transition Mission in Haiti (1997). Canada also provided the Police Commissioners between October 1993 and February 1996, and contributed police officers to the United Nations Civilian Police Mission in Haiti (1997–2000).
In 2000, with Haiti more stable, Jean-Bertrand Aristide was again elected, although his second term of office was marked by accusations of corruption.
The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
was established later in 2004 as a successor to the MIF. Since then, Canadian contributions have been limited to a 100 police officers and a small number of liaison officers. In June 2005, the Canadian government warned Canadians to avoid visiting Haiti due to the increasingly deteriorating security situation.
In 2006 Canada assisted in international efforts to help Haiti complete its first full electoral cycle since its constitution entered into force in 1987. The Government of Canada through the Canadian International Development Agency
contributed nearly $40 million for the electoral process, providing observers and technical assistance. The Governor General of Canada, Michaëlle Jean
(herself of Haitian origin) attended the inauguration of President René Préval
on May 14, 2006, as the Canadian representative.
In July 2007, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
visited Haiti, including a visit to a Canadian-funded hospital in the crime-ridden Cité Soleil
slum.
As of 2009, Haiti is the second largest recipient of Canadian aid after Afghanistan. As of 2008, Canada had committed $555 million to Haiti over five years. In February 2009, the Canadian government announced it will focus foreign aid on 20 countries or regions where it hopes to have a bigger impact, including Haiti. In addition to official aid, Haitian immigrants in Canada sent about $248 million of remittances to their families in Haiti in 2006.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. During the unsettled period from 1957 to 1990, Canada received many Haitian refugees, who now form a significant minority in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. Canada participated in various international interventions in Haiti between 1994 and 2004, and continues to provide substantial aid to Haiti,
Historical background
Haiti is in the west of the island of HispaniolaHispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
. In 1797 Toussaint Louverture led a successful revolt against the French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
and made Haiti the first independent Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
nation, although government was unsettled until 1915, when the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
occupied the island. The United States left the island in 1934, returning it to a form of democracy.
Canada is a member of the Francophonie, or community of French-speaking countries, as is Haiti. Canada plays an active role in peacekeeping (or peacemaking) around the world.
Canada and Haiti only officially established diplomatic relations in 1954 when Edward Ritchie Bellemare
Edward Ritchie Bellemare
Edward Ritchie Bellemare is a former Canadian diplomat. He was Chargé d'Affaires a.i. to Haiti, then Mexico then to Argentina.- External links :*...
was appointed Chargé d'Affaires of the Canadian Embassy in Haiti. From 1957 to 1986, the Duvalier family reigned as dictators. They created the private army and terrorist death squads known as Tonton Macoutes. Many Haitians fled to exile in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada, especially French-speaking Quebec. In the 1991 Canadian census, nearly 44,000 people described themselves as being of Haitian origin. By 2006, Canada had over 100,000 residents of Haitian origin.
Canadian operations in Haiti
A list of Canadian operations in Haiti follows:- Operation HORATIO World Food Programme, September 2008
- Haiti 2004-4 December 2004
- Haiti 2004-3 October 2004
- Haiti 2004-2 October 2004
- Haiti 2004-1 September 2004
- Operation HAMLET United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), August 2004–present
- Operation HALO MINUSTAH, March–August 2004
- Operation HALO Multinational Interim Force, February–July 2004
- Haiti 1999 December 1999
- Operation STANDARD June 1996–July 1997
- Operation DIALOGUE January–December 1994
- Operation CAULDRON September 1993–June 1996
- Operation FORWARD ACTION October 1993–September 1994
- Haiti 1989 January–October 1989
- Operation BANDIT January–February 1988
- Haiti 1963 May 1963
1993 international intervention
Following the overthrow of the Duvalier regime, Haiti went through a period of political and economic turmoil. UN sponsored forces repeatedly intervened in an attempt to stabilize the situation. The Canadian government refused to recognize the 1988 Haitian national elections, which were marred by violence that left at least 34 people dead, and stated they were thinking of cutting $15 million in development aid.Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide is a Haitian former Catholic priest and politician who served as Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies...
won a fresh election in December 1990, but after a coup d'état in September 1991 he fled the country. Political chaos ensued. In June 1993, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney, was the 18th Prime Minister of Canada from September 17, 1984, to June 25, 1993 and was leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1983 to 1993. His tenure as Prime Minister was marked by the introduction of major economic reforms, such as the Canada-U.S...
of Canada told President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
that Canada was ready to send troops to enforce a blockade around Haiti. Later that year, Canada assisted in the United Nations Mission in Haiti
United Nations Mission in Haiti
For the current UN mission to Haiti, see the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti.The United Nations Mission in Haiti — a peacekeeping operation carried out by the United Nations between September 1993 and June 1996. The Mission was reestablished in April 2004, after a rebellion took...
, a peacekeeping operation carried out by the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
between September 1993 and June 1996.
The Force Commander from March to June 1996, Brigadier-General J.R.P. Daigle was Canadian. Daigle continued as commander of the United Nations Support Mission in Haiti (1996–1997), and the Canadian Général Robin Gagnon led the subsequent United Nations Transition Mission in Haiti (1997). Canada also provided the Police Commissioners between October 1993 and February 1996, and contributed police officers to the United Nations Civilian Police Mission in Haiti (1997–2000).
In 2000, with Haiti more stable, Jean-Bertrand Aristide was again elected, although his second term of office was marked by accusations of corruption.
2004 international intervention
In February 2004 President Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigned (or was forced from power). The Multinational Interim Force (MIF) was authorized by the UN Security Council to deploy in Haiti immediately to keep the peace. Of the 2,700 troops initially deployed, Canada contributed 125. By April, the Canadian contingent led by Lt.-Col. Jim Davis had risen to 500. There has been controversy about Canada's involvement in the international intervention in 2004, with several commentators stating that Canada was complicit in the overthrow of a democratically elected government.The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
The United Nations Stabilisation Mission In Haiti , also known as MINUSTAH, an acronym of the French translation, is a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Haiti that has been in operation since 2004. The mission's military component is led by the Brazilian Army and the force commander is...
was established later in 2004 as a successor to the MIF. Since then, Canadian contributions have been limited to a 100 police officers and a small number of liaison officers. In June 2005, the Canadian government warned Canadians to avoid visiting Haiti due to the increasingly deteriorating security situation.
In 2006 Canada assisted in international efforts to help Haiti complete its first full electoral cycle since its constitution entered into force in 1987. The Government of Canada through the Canadian International Development Agency
Canadian International Development Agency
The Canadian International Development Agency was formed in 1968 by the Canadian government. CIDA administers foreign aid programs in developing countries, and operates in partnership with other Canadian organizations in the public and private sectors as well as other international organizations...
contributed nearly $40 million for the electoral process, providing observers and technical assistance. The Governor General of Canada, Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
(herself of Haitian origin) attended the inauguration of President René Préval
René Préval
René Garcia Préval is a Haitian politician and agronomist who was the President of the Republic of Haiti from 14 May 2006 to 14 May 2011. He previously served as President from February 7, 1996, to February 7, 2001, and as Prime Minister from February 1991 to October 11, 1991.-Early life and...
on May 14, 2006, as the Canadian representative.
In July 2007, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
visited Haiti, including a visit to a Canadian-funded hospital in the crime-ridden Cité Soleil
Cité Soleil
Cité Soleil is an extremely impoverished and densely populated commune located in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area in Haiti. Cité Soleil originally developed as a shanty town and grew to an estimated 200,000 to 400,000 residents, the majority of whom live in extreme poverty...
slum.
Current Situation
A large number of Canadian development workers are present in Haiti, including hundreds of missionaries working primarily in the health and education sectors.As of 2009, Haiti is the second largest recipient of Canadian aid after Afghanistan. As of 2008, Canada had committed $555 million to Haiti over five years. In February 2009, the Canadian government announced it will focus foreign aid on 20 countries or regions where it hopes to have a bigger impact, including Haiti. In addition to official aid, Haitian immigrants in Canada sent about $248 million of remittances to their families in Haiti in 2006.
See also
- Foreign relations of HaitiForeign relations of HaitiHaiti was one of the original members of the League of Nations and was one of the original members of the United Nations and several of its specialized and related agencies. It is also a founding member of the Organization of American States. It maintains diplomatic relations with 37 countries,...
- Foreign relations of CanadaForeign relations of CanadaThe foreign relations of Canada are Canada's relations with other governments and peoples. Canada's most important relationship, being the largest trading relationship in the world, is with the United States...
- Haitian immigration to the United States and CanadaHaitian immigration to the United States and CanadaMillions of Haitians live abroad, chiefly in North America: the Dominican Republic, United States, Cuba, Mexico , Canada and Bahamas...
- Haitian CanadiansHaïtian CanadiansCitizens from the Francophone Caribbean island nation of Haiti began immigrating to Canada in the 1960s, settling predominantly in Montreal and other parts of Quebec. Though their reasons for leaving Haiti were manifold, their choice to settle in Quebec is mainly due to their fluency in French. The...