Articles

Le Sommet Brésil-Caraïbes : Lula devient le champion de la cause haïtienne

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  Brazil’s Lula Champions Haiti’s Future at Historic Caribbean Summit By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson (Le Français suit) In a remarkable display of regional solidarity, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has positioned himself as a forceful advocate for Haiti’s future. During the first-ever Caribbean-Brazil Summit held in Brasília, Lula not only pledged concrete security and economic assistance to the embattled Caribbean nation but also took aim at one of the most painful legacies of post-colonial injustice: the so-called “independence ransom” Haiti was forced to pay to France in 1825. “ Haiti cannot remain eternally punished for its independence ,” Lula declared before a crowd of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders, Latin American dignitaries, and international development officials. The Brazilian leader’s words struck a chord, not merely as diplomatic rhetoric, but as the outline of a transformative doctrine—one that seeks justice, not charity, for the world’s f...
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Haïti à la Croisée des Chemins Constitutionnels : Entre Modernisation et Reproduction des Inégalités

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  Haiti at a Constitutional Crossroads: Between Reform and  the Reproduction of Inequality By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson (Le Français suit ) On May 21, 2025, a new draft Constitution for Haiti was unveiled with the stated goal of modernizing national institutions. Spearheaded by the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT) and the Steering Committee, the draft is the result of a broad consultative process involving voices from across the country and the diaspora. It contains several notable advances: it recognizes the civil rights of Haitians living abroad (Articles 13, 72-3, and 76-3), enshrines the right to unionize (Article 38-3), and includes, for the first time, environmental provisions (Articles 220 to 225). However, strong criticisms have emerged. The draft bars dual nationals from running for office (Article 73), restricts unions by mandating political neutrality (Article 38-4), grants only symbolic recognition to popular movements (Article 68-5), lacks enforceabl...
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La nomination de Marjorie Michel : un tournant historique pour Santé Canada

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  Marjorie Michel’s Appointment: A Symbolic and Strategic Reset for Health Canada By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson (Le Français suit) OTTAWA — May 17, 2025 In an era marked by mounting public skepticism and institutional fatigue, the appointment of Marjorie Michel as Canada’s new Federal Minister of Health is more than just a historic first—it is a potential turning point. After decades of documented struggles around transparency, inclusiveness, and accountability, Health Canada now finds itself at the intersection of deep reform and overdue reckoning. Michel, a former Deputy Chief of Staff to Justin Trudeau and newly elected MP for Papineau, brings more than political credibility to the table. She brings representation, resolve, and reformist credibility. Her leadership marks a rare moment when the symbolic and the strategic converge in a department long criticized for operating in the shadows of federal governance. The urgency could not be clearer. Health Canada, despite recent legi...
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Cost-Benefit Analysis of President Boyer's Decision to Sign the 1825 Indemnity

  Cost-Benefit Analysis of President Boyer's Decision to Sign the 1825 Indemnity By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson Context and Assumptions • Historical Situation: In 1825, under the threat of 14 heavily armed French warships, Jean-Pierre Boyer agreed to pay an indemnity of 60 million francs or to France to secure recognition of Haiti’s independence and avoid military devastation. • Assumptions: o Haiti's GDP in 1825: 6 million francs or. o Cost of Total War:  Total devastation of Port-au-Prince and major coastal cities.  Disruption of all economic activity.  Population losses, destroyed infrastructure, famine. o Duration of War: 10 years (analogous to the Napoleonic Wars or other prolonged conflicts of the era). o GDP Decline during War: Assume GDP falls by 80% due to destruction and famine (common historical benchmark during wartime occupation). o Recovery Period: Assume that after the war, Haiti would need another 15 years to return to pre-war GDP levels (c...
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Boyer face à l'ultimatum français de 1825 : Le choix du moindre désastre

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  Jean-Pierre Boyer and the 1825 Ransom: Choosing the Lesser Evil to Secure Haiti’s Survival By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson (Le Français suit) By 1825, Haiti stood at a crossroads that no young nation should ever have faced: total war against the most powerful navy in Europe — France — or accepting an unbearable financial burden to guarantee its sovereignty. President Jean-Pierre Boyer, often criticized for his acceptance of the "ransom of independence," made the grim but rational choice: faced with the threat of military annihilation, economic blockade, and renewed slavery, signing the ruinous indemnity agreement was the safer path to preserve Haiti’s very existence. The Heavy Legacy of Isolation and Threats From its birth in fire and blood in 1804, Haiti found itself shunned by the colonial powers of the Atlantic world. France, in particular, refused to recognize the legitimacy of a Black republic forged by formerly enslaved people. Instead, from 1814 onward, the French Bou...
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Les États-Unis désignent les gangs haïtiens comme organisations terroristes étrangères — Un changement de politique inévitable

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  U.S. Labels Haitian Gangs as Foreign Terrorist Organizations — A Policy Shift we Long Argued Was Inevitable By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson (Le Français suit) Port-au-Prince, Haiti — April 19, 2025. In a sweeping move that reshapes the U.S. approach to Haiti’s security crisis, the Trump administration has announced plans to formally designate Haiti’s most powerful criminal networks—including the infamous Viv Ansanm coalition and the rural-based Gran Grif armed group—as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) [1]. As one of the earliest analysts to publicly argue that these gangs met the threshold for terrorism, I believe this decision—though politically fraught—is long overdue. The implications are profound. Under the new classification, the U.S. will be able to pursue not only gang members but also those who enable them—from arms traffickers and money launderers to complicit Haitian politicians and business elites. Anyone found providing "material support" to these groups wi...
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Haïti, Oligarques et État Capturé : Le Miroir Troublant de la Dérive Américaine

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  Haiti’s Poligarchs and the Global Playbook of State Capture By Patrick Prézeau Stephenson (Le Français suit) As the United States confronts an unprecedented fusion of political power and private wealth under the renewed Trump administration, Haiti serves as a sobering mirror—one that reflects the devastating consequences of unchecked alliances between oligarchs and politicians. While many in Washington debate the implications of Elon Musk's expanding influence over government contracts and policy [1], Haitians are living through the long-term fallout of what political scientists now term “state capture.” The term may sound academic, but its reality is all too concrete: in Haiti, this alliance—between economic elites, transnational criminal networks, and politicians—has hollowed out institutions, weakened democratic governance, and driven the country into a tailspin of violence, displacement, and despair. And the similarities to the rising trend of “poligarchy” in the U.S.—where ...
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