On Sunday Randy Paul wrote a beautifully succinct evaluation of what the once and current president of Haiti, Renee Preval, faces in Haiti:

So, the questions that remain are:

1. Will the population be patient with Preval?
2. Will Washington show genuine support for democarcy by not meddling in Haiti?

Only time will tell, but Preval should be credited with this comment:

“My goal is to unite all Haitians. We cannot succeed if we continue to fight each other,” Preval told reporters last week.

He should be given every opportunity to succeed and all the support the world can muster for him.

On the one hand, you probably don’t need to know any more than what Randy sets out. Preval is going to have to walk a dangerous tightrope between international forces of corporate globalization and the best interests of the Haitian people. On the bright side, when Preval says that he’s a uniter, he means it, unlike certain other presidents who have been given plenty of time to reveal their true intentions and cataclysmic incompetence.

On the other hand, if you are interested in reading further about Haiti, you can’t do better than this quick press release from the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.

It makes crystal clear how Preval will have to negotiate for the middle in domestic and foregin affairs. Should Aristide come back? Find the middle - no small trick. Which countries should he reach out to for help as Haiti pull itself out of poverty? Preval is looking for the middle by going everywhere in the region and god bless him for it. Open class war on the domestic front? Find the middle ground. Let’s just hope it’s a real middle ground and that Preval doesn’t become a desciple of the infamous Third Way approach that’s so popular among the Democrats in this country when it comes to class issues.

Speaking of Washington, where is the United States in all of this? Team BushCo has been quiet about Haiti and the corporate media hasn’t pushed for any explanation beyond the standard “Democracy is on the March” line that seems to pacify them. Here’s what COHA says about where Washington’s interests lay in a section of the release called Washington Worries:

Washington will, as always, be scrutinizing what is happening on the island. Policymakers are undoubtedly troubled by Préval’s ties to Aristide and his decision to build relationships with such “pink tide” countries as Venezuela. What the U.S. mainly wants from Preval is to get Haiti off its agenda as soon as possible and at the lowest cost. It also will insist that Preval clamp down on any revival of the “boat people” trying to illegally enter this country.

This is, of course, Washington’s primary concern, as a renewed instability would lead to a higher number of illegal Haitian immigrant boats floating towards Florida’s shores, a problem Washington is eager to avoid. This may give Préval some much needed autonomy to formulate policies and build alliances that, while untraditional, may ultimately benefit Haiti. Thus, Préval’s attempts towards domestic, as well as international cooperation, including Cuban and Venezuelan aid to Haiti may not produce an immediate backlash. For decades, until the present, the State Department has been content to allow lower policy standards, based on the working philosophy that since it is only Haiti, the best need not be required.

So immigration is the big concern? I have to admit that I haven’t spent too much time thinking about that but it certainly jibes with what the 2004 US Commission on Civil Rights’ report, Redefining Rights in America, had to say about this issue of Haitian immigration:

The President also continued the government’s policy of viewing Haitians as economic and not political refugees, making it harder for them to gain asylum. Beginning in December 2001, the Bush administration instituted a regulation that allowed the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to detain Haitian asylum seekers for months without the right to a bond hearing until their cases were heard. Before that, INS did not detain Haitian asylum seekers who established a credible fear of persecution if returned to Haiti. Such refugees were released into the community and allowed to appear in court for their asylum hearings.

The new regulation sharply contrasts with the treatment of other asylum seekers. For example, Cuban refugees who arrive on U.S. land are quickly released into the community and allowed to apply for permanent residency after being in the country for one year. Asylum seekers from most other nations are typically released on bond once they establish a credible fear of persecution if returned to their homeland.

Matters escalated when, in April 2003, Attorney General John Ashcroft ruled that Haitians would be immediately and indefinitely detained without bond, even if a court determined they could be released on bail while awaiting an asylum decision. The attorney general said this policy was necessary to discourage mass migration from Haiti because Pakistanis, Palestinians, and others used Haiti as an illegal entryway to the United States, thus threatening national security. Immigrant advocates disputed this claim and, initially, the State Department did as well. Regardless, the implications have been devastating for Haitians.

The implications of all of BushCo’s policies toward Haiti have been devestating for Haitians. It’s hard for me to believe that Washington will behave any differently now that Preval is in power.

With oil running out, corporate globalization shaking out clear winners and losers all over the globe and tensions running high on every score, the world has become an interesting (in the Chinese sense of the word) place. If you’re looking for world-class drama and geopolitical intrigue, look no further than Haiti. For the sake of the Haitians, who have suffered so bitterly for so long, I’m rooting for Preval to find that middle ground he’s after. I think it’s the very best we can hope for.