Haitian Presidential Palace before the earthquake...
...and after.
Haiti had so much promise. Its slaves gained their freedom, and the country's independence, after defeating France. But it all went downhill from there. How did Haiti end up being the poorest and most miserable country in the hemisphere?
In 1825, France demanded 150 million francs (the equivalent of billions of 2010 U.S. dollars) as compensation for the slaves it lost. The French navy blockaded Haiti to make sure the onerous ransom was paid. The country was never given a chance to stand up on its own two feet.
Americans, Germans, the Brits, even Syrians, had their hand in destabilizing the country. But the main culprits are Haiti's own-- Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier (1957 to 1971) and his son Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier (1971 to 1986). They ruled the country with an iron grip with the help of thugs known as the Tonton Macoutes. After Baby Doc was deposed, the power vacuum resulted in coup after coup after coup.
As his country starved and lived in constant fear, Papa Doc rode in what else, but a Mercedes Pullman. Rumor has it that it was a gift from Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia.
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