American Party of Labor Condemns US occupation of Haiti

The American Party of Labor considers the deployment of over 10,000 soldiers of the United States armed forces, including the seizure of Haiti’s central airport in the capital Port-au-Prince by US paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division last Friday an indefensible act of military aggression and provocation aimed only at exacerbating the current crisis gripping Haiti in the wake of the deadly earthquake which rocked the island-nation last week.

Unfortunately, this unprovoked militaristic response towards the people of Haiti is not without historical precedent. From 1915 to 1934, the United States occupied the Republic of Haiti, seizing control over the organs of civilian government as well as the country’s economic assets. More recently, under the former administrations of US Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, the United States government played a leading role in the attempts to overthrow then Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide; only finally succeeding in this objective in a US-sponsored coup d’état in 2004.

In light of these developments, the American Party of Labor therefore calls for the immediate and complete withdrawal of all US military personnel from Haiti. Because of its history, Haiti has little infrastructure with which to combat this catastrophe. The Haitian people need medical help and emergency clean-up assistance, not thousands of foreign soldiers. Further, we call for the cancellation of Haitian foreign debt and the adoption of a “Hands Off Haiti” policy after the current crisis in Haiti has passed.