Se pa yon kesyon kouri di VIV oubyen ABA. Youn nan pwoblèm pèp ayisyen sèke li trè emosyonèl, li aji sou emosyon pou ti krik ti krak. Depi bon bout tan m ap suiv sikoloji kèk Ayisyen (konsèvatif) sou entènèt la nan kijan yo ta abòde kesyon «lame». Sa k pi grav la, moun mwen remake ki ta swadizan rive lwen lekòl pa pran tan pafwa pou fè yon seri analiz lojik. Yo kite emosyon, fanatis pote yo ale. «Voye monte» toujou jwenn ti plas li.

Si kèk nan nou ta dakò ak retou lame, mwen rete kwè fò nou ta trè presi an tèm de ki lame o jis nou ta renmen wè:

1. Èske majorite Ayisyen ta renmen wè yon lame kraze zo retounen nan figi l ankò?
    
2. Èske pèp ayisyen ta renmen wè yon lame tisousou k ap nèke tann lòd nan men blan pou l kraze pwòp pèp li?
    
3. Èske pèp ayisyen an ta renmen wè yon lame k ap fè koudeta adwat agoch pou mete moun li vle sou pouvwa?
    
4. Èske pèp ayisyen ta renmen wè yon lame ki jis an favè yon ti gwoup moun, ki la pou defann enterè ti gwoup sa a senpman ak etranje?
    

Donk mwen pa kwè nan voye monte lè nou vle diskite toutbon kesyon enpòtan ki konsène Ayiti.

Li klè kou jou ke de twa ti grenn polis an(n) Ayiti, san bonjan zam nan men, zam zamfannfwa, p ap ka rive fè yon travay efikas nan kad bay tout popilasyon an sekirite, nan kad dezame atoufè, kidnapè, k ap sikile toujou e k ap fè lapli e lebotan. Men èske pou otan sa mande retou ansyen lame a ki te bay pèp ayisyen repiyans jiska dat disparisyon l? Nou di «disparisyon» paske li pa vrèman an fonksyon depi bon bout tan epi palman an nonplis, poko vote sou eliminasyon fizik li.

Wi, Ayiti bezwen yon «fòs ame» ki pa bezwen pote non «lame». Mwen menm, pèsonèlman, mwen wè yon JANDAMRI NASYONAL oubyen GAD NASYONAL ki ta simaye nan tout rakwen peyi a epi pou bay an menm tan, POLIS NASYONAL LA, ranfò. Kijan pou rekrite moun sa yo? Yon lòt kesyon pou n egazanminen. Èske yo ta dwe foure ladan ansyen militè ki te gen move dosye deja, sa yo ke men yo tranpe nan tout krim? Yon lòt kesyon pou n reflechi sou li. Kilès ki pral antrene yo?Pou sèvis kilès? Epi mwen pa kwè se ta montre yo tire sèlman ki pi enpòtan kòm metye.

Nan diskisyon sa a, mwen wè tout yon pwogram ki panche sou SIVIS («le civisme»), sètadi li enpòtan pou yo ta jwenn yon fòmasyon ki defini bi travay yo anvè lapatri, yon fòmasyon kote pou yo pa la kòm ènmi pèp la (jan pèp la te wè ansyen lame a) men pito zanmi pèp la, moun k ap pwoteje pèp la. Se pa annik ekri koze byen long nan lang an franse sou sijè sa a ki pral solisyone pwoblèm Ayiti. Vin bò tab la, parèt sou entènèt la pou n brase lide, twoke like, pou n egzanminen ansanm pwoblèm Ayiti an lon e an laj epi gade posiblite tout solisyon yo.

Kisa Ayiti bezwen o jis? Ay, anpil koze nan repons sa a. Premyèman lè n ap analize tout pwoblèm yo depi apre depa Divalye (7 fevriye 1986), nou remake yon kokenn vid, sa nou ta rele nan lang anglè «political vacuum» (vid politik). Nou wè voye monte sou gwo sijè ki ta dwe diskite, nou wè fanatis ki la pi rèd, nou wè moun k ap di yo se kominis (komilis), sa k ap di yo se maksik lenis, liberalis, sosyalis? anfen tout «is» nou te ka site. Men pandanstan, vrè pwoblèm nan pa janm reyèlman atake sou yon baz pou abouti a anyen konkrè nan avantay mas la k ap soufri depi digdantan.

Se pa tèl ou tèl pati politik ki pral solisyone pwoblèm Ayiti. Se pa tèl ou tèl kandida alaprezidans ki pral solisyone pwoblèm peyi a. Nou bezwen lwa (pa lwa ginen ki bèbè, etatad) men bonjan lwa lachanm ak prensip pou tout moun suiv. Lalwa ta dwe la pou tout moun obsève e sa ki vyole l ta dwe peye konsekans lan. Poudayè, yon prezidan, yon premye minis pa ta gen okenn dwa fè e defè kòm sèl kòk baskou. Yon bonjan palman ta dwe la pou mande dekiprevyen manigans konsa, dekiprevyen abi pouvwa yo epi tradui yo lajistis. Men èske nou ko gen yon palman konsa? Èske palman pa toujou dan griyen, penyen lage? Ki travay gwoup endividi, sosyete sivil, patati patata pou ta rete veyatif nan koze konsa, nan veye si moun alatèt yo p ap vyole lalwa oubyen si yo pa ta pi wo pase lalwa, si lalwa pa ta sèvi papye ijyenik pou yo?

Repons a tout kesyon sa yo rete yon mistè pou anpil nan nou k ap reve chanjman pou jis kounye. Ankò, Ayisyen aji ak emosyon prèske nan tout sa y ap fè. Ann pran san nou, ann kalma kò nou pou n analize pwoblèm Ayiti ansanm. Se pa sempman yon grenn lidè, yon grenn pati politik ki ta sous pwoblèm yo, men pito se tout yon eritaj depi plis pade desanzan. Donk ann ale nan sous la pou analize pwoblèm yo epi wè preskripsyon posib yo. Mwen rete kwè ke gen posiblite chanjman Ayiti men fòk nou tout, dabò, kòmanse pa chanje fason nou panse ak fason n ap aji. (E. W. Vedrine)

REFERANS

VEDRINE, Emmanuel W.

• Aristide in past tense: homework to be corrected by Préval, Haiti's new elected president
   
• D.P.M.Kanntè (play): A bridge between fiction and reality
   
• Ki tip lame Ayiti bezwen?
   
• Haiti : Goodbye to a repressive army
   
• What type of army does Haiti need?
   
• Who Is Leading Haiti : The Haitian People Or Leaders?
   
• Babay a yon lame represif
   
• It's One To Bring The Snake To School And The Other To Make It Sitting Down

     

What to do with the Haitian army?

Emmanuel W. VÉDRINE, University of Rhode Island

Boston Haitian Reporter,
November 2006

It’s not a question of rushing to say “long live” or “down with” the Haitian army. One of our problems is that Haitians are very emotional. They act upon emotions for any little thing.

For a long time, I’ve been following the psychology of some (conservative) Haitians on the internet on how they would approach issues regarding the army. The worst is that those that I notice who so-called got far in school don’t even take time sometimes to do some logical analysis. Rather, let their emotion and fanatism carry them away. Therefore, “Voye monte” or just talking for talking, somehow, has always found a little spot.

If some of us would agree to see the army’s return, I believe that we’d have to be very precise in terms of exactly what army we’d like to see:

• Would most Haitians like to see the return of a repressive army again?
   
• Would the Haitian people like to see a puppet army that’s only waiting for orders from abroad to kill its own people?
   
• Would the Haitian People like to see an army that would be doing coups back and forth in order to put people it wants in power?
   
• Would the Haitian people like to see an army that is in favor of a small group, and one that is defending only the interest of foreigners?  

I don’t believe in just talking for talking when we want to address, for sure, important issues concerning Haiti. It is quite clear that the few men enrolled in the Haitian Police, without having real or heavy weapons, won’t be able to do an efficient work to provide security for the whole population, to disarm bandits, kidnapers who are still circulating in the country and who are terrorizing the population through their crimes. But, nevertheless, does it require the return of the old army that gave repugnance to the Haitian people after its disappearance? Here, we say “disappearance” because it’s not really functioning since a long time and neither the Haitian parliament yet voted on its physical elimination.

Yes, Haiti needs an “armed forces” that does not need to be called “the army”. Me, personally, I see a national guard corps that would be spread out throughout the country and to give at the same time, the reinforcement needed by the national police force. How to recruit these people? A crucial question for us to think about. Should they include in it former servicemen who already had records, those who have their hands dipped in all sort of crimes? Another question to think about: Who is going to train them and to serve whom? And I don’t believe the most important thing would be to teach them only how to shoot as skills.

In our discussion, I rather see a whole program focusing on civics. That is, it would be important for them to receive a formation that would define the purpose of their works towards the motherland, a formation where they would not be seen as the people’s enemy (the way the people see the old army), but rather friends who are protecting the people. It’s not just writing long literature in the French language about this issue (as I’ve read some writings related to it) thinking that’s going to solve Haiti’s complex problems. But instead, it would be better to come around the table, participate in on-line forums in order to exchange ideas, and to think together about Haiti’s all problems and see the possible solutions.

What does Haiti really need? Gosh, so many things that we would include in this answer. First, when analyzing the problems from the time of Duvalier’s departure (February 7, 1986) up until now, we notice such a big gap, what some people would call “political vacuum”. We see talking for talking in almost all great issues that should have been carefully discussed, we see more fanatism, and some people who are labeling themselves as communists, Marxist-Lenists, liberalists, socialists, indeed all “ist” we could cite. But meanwhile, the real problem is never tackled on a basis to end up to anything concrete in the advantage of the mass who has been suffering for so many years.

It’s clear that it is not such and such political party or a particular leader or such and such presidential candidate who is going to solve the country’s problems. We need laws (not “lwa” or “native spirits inherited from Africa” or gods who are dumb since the word ‘lwa’ (in Creole) carries the meaning of laws and spirits in the Haitian language, but rather “real laws” voted by the parliament and principles for everyone to follow. Laws should have been one for all; in other word, observed by everyone without any distinction and those who violate them should have been punished. First of all, a president or a prime minister shouldn’t have had any right to act the way they want to as supreme chief. A real parliament should have been there to question them about what’s going on, why the abuse of power and bring them to justice. But, do we have yet such a parliament? What have been the work of group of individuals, the civil society, so on and so forth in issues like this, in watching to see if those who are leading are violating the laws or they aren’t above the law, or if laws are being used as toilet tissues?

The answer to all of these questions remain to be a mystery for many of us who are still dreaming of changesin Haiti. Again, Haitians act with emotions in almost everything they are doing. Let’s take our time, let’s calm down in order to analyze together Haiti’s problems. It’s not only a single leader, orpolitical party which is the source of the problems, but rather a legacy for more than two hundred years and the mentality that need to be changed. So, let’s go to the source of the problem to analyze it and then see what we can come up as prescription for Haiti. And most of all, by begin to change our way of thinking and acting.

E. W. Védrine is an author and linguist who writes frequently on cultural issues related to Haiti and its Diaspora. He lives in Boston.

E.W.Vedrine

     

Emmanuel W. Védrine
E. W. VEDRINE CREOLE PROJECT, Inc.
P.O.B. 255962
Dorchester, MA 02125-5110 (U.S)
e_vedrine@hotmail.com, e_vedrine@yahoo.com