Unpleasant Inheritance

In the 2008 elections here in the US, many bemoaned the sorry condition of the United States and feared for the new President’s ability to address any of the grand challenges which faced the nation.  Beginning a term in office in the middle of two wars and the greatest economic collapse since the Great Depression was certainly a challenge, yet the task facing Haiti’s new president Michel Martelly seems at least equally daunting.  Though relief efforts in the wake of Haiti’s quake held international attention for some time, the nation is still in sore shape even compared to its starting point as the poorest nation in the western hemisphere.

Already President Martelly has faced sore criticisms from the international community and human rights organizations for inviting former rulers Aristide and Duvalier to his inauguration.  He is besieged by some of the same questions of nationality that troubled the US president until very recently, and by a sorely polarized nation struggling to recover from natural disaster.  A message of national unity, obviously the right choice for the current state of society but the sorts of social and economic urgings President Martelly has forwarded thus far as solutions to Haiti’s problems might be a difficult pill to swallow for some.

Initially I was among those uncertain elections should even reasonably be held in a nation still pulling itself together, yet there is much to be said for moving on and the positive impact of business as usual.  A successful election in the wake of a society-collapsing natural disaster is sincerely something to be proud of.  The nation of Haiti and its new President have displayed an encouraging degree of endurance in this success.  The promises made on the campaign trail were bold, and yet precisely the sort of changes people might hope for in such an impoverished nation.  As with any successful election, particularly in such circumstances President Martelly is sure to have the grace and favor of his people for a time, but the road ahead is equally certain to be a very difficult one.