3rdWorldGirl

Flashback Friday

2011-06-25T07:59:00.003-05:00

Yesterday morning (June 24th), there was a "small" quake of 3.5. My stomach contests the qualifier. In fact, my stomach, heart, blood pressure and brain categorically refuse to even acknowledge the Richter scale.

It was scary. It felt like someone had violently kicked my chair. Except they kicked the whole building.

I wanted to run. I grabbed my desk like a sprinter lines up on the starting block. Fortunately or unfortunately, I happened to be alone at the office with the only coworker who never seems to feel any strong emotion. I don't know if it's a high level of fortitude or some undiagnosed psycho-emotional disability, but he treated the whole thing like just another occurence. In fact, he seemed to take more pleasure in asking every single person he knew or met all day long if they felt it.

It's hard living with this stress. I know it's been over a year. I fooled myself into thinking I was getting over it. But I'm not. I'm as sick over it as I was in january of last year.

My boss called me on my phone shortly after but the call didn't go through. He came up about fifteen minutes after it happened and asked me why I hadn't evacuated the building like most of the employees. He wasn't here when the Goudougoudou happened so I could tell he was shaken and trying to hide it.

By then I was outside on the roof. Yes, that's the other reason I'm freaked out. My office was relocated to converted space literaly on top of a five-story building. You're not supposed to use elevators or stairs during a quake. How do I get down? I didn't even know people were outside. There is no alarm, there is no speaker system.

So I stayed on the roof for the better part of an hour with a couple of coworkers who had run up instead of down.

Nowhere to run is such a familiar feeling in this country, I should be used to it by now. Except I can't.

I also don't know how I'm going to survive all this stress. Kidnappings have started over again. After fifteen months of suspense, we still don't have a government, though we have a president. And now I have to deal with earthquakes again.

It's not that we have not accepted the fact that this island is on shaky ground. It's that NOTHING has changed between last January and today. Yes there are public service announcements about security measures and building construction safety.

Yet there is no Building Code and people are building all over the city. There is no Rescue Service that I know of. We still have the same set of hospitals plus health NGOs

At work, they told us last year that the three staircases were the exits to use in case of emergency.

Yeah, you read me right. I'm in a tall building and I have to use stairs to get out.

I don't know how we'll go on living like this. Whenever there's a noticeable quake, I want to run, I don't want to eat, I just wanna go home and stay there. In fact, today, I have to go out and I am scared of leaving the house. It's completely irrational but there it is.

Tragedy changes you. Permanently.

The Thrill of It All

2011-06-13T21:20:00.004-05:00

This morning, I didn't go directly to work. I had a couple of errands to run in Midtown so I took a detour from work.

My appointment was on time, if lengthy, but I came out happy and feeling optimistic. One of my errands just didn't happen.

So, this morning, I took the bus up to the Golden Suburb. Public transportation here, just isn't. It's private, communal transportation really. Which might explain the lack of standards and the haphazard nature of it all.

This morning, I spent a good third of the ride on some accomodating stranger's lap. He was very kind and respectful but I still felt compelled to drape my upper half over the back of the bench in front of me.

This morning, it turns out, I was not only sitting on a stranger but I was actually, and more importantly, sitting next to an armed homicidal thief.

It happened when the bus stopped at the last big intersection halfway between the two cities. I was texting so I don't recall all the details. Except when I looked up, this guy got on the bus while that man, my former seatmate, was shouting directives from the door. I didn't see the gun but others did. One had on a brown shirt, the other had a striped polo.

When the victim, sitting directly in front of me, resisted, Striped Polo said to Brown Shirt "Just kill the bitch and grab the fucking bag". The victim's neighbor, a cool-headed lady, threw the bag to the thieves. They both got down, climbed onto a motorcycle and drove off with a last angry glare at us all.

Some of the passengers told the victim to go back to the bank and ask the director to get her money back, convinced as they were that the teller must be in on it. Others thought she should go to the police. I told her to get the police and go to the bank. Brown Shirt, in a random act of kindness, had flung back at her feet the bible in which she'd hidden the US dollar cash withdrawal she had just made.

This morning, I rushed home in a daze and burst into tears recounting the event because this man, this armed and cold-blooded stranger sitting next to me, plotting this crime, was both willing and able to kill this woman for money. In front of me. Inside a bus full of regular people, squeezed in tight and dripping with sweat now that the tropical heat had defeated these past weeks of rain. At 9h30 in the morning, on a busy thoroughfare.

I spent the day with a lingering headache. You see, I was supposed to go to the bank myself. Maybe not to take out thousands of dollars in cash but I do unfortunately "look like money" as the other guy once said.

This morning, I was reminded of how exposed and alone we are in the face of crime in this city.

This morning, we all walked away alive if shaken and scared.

But what about tomorrow?

Ghostland

2011-01-12T08:21:00.004-05:00

Note: I originally wrote this about a month after the earthquake. I never published it, despite my promises to everyone. I just couldn't reread this without bursting into tears. I apologize for the grammar or spelling errors. Thank you for understanding.

Some things I can’t forget. Like all the people coming towards me out of the white mist, pale faces, eyes wide and empty, screaming and crying their fear and despair. At least, I think they were screaming, I couldn’t hear them. The world had gone mute. Or, if I could, indeed, physically hear their voices, my brain was unable to process the stimuli.

I was on my way home, hitching a ride, as I usually did, with my coworker N. Since her niece worked at the Ministry of Commerce, a few blocks from my house, she drops me off almost every day.

We took the predictable route: up from downtown via rue Pavée. There was a lot of traffic that day. I told N. that it must have been due to the launch of another long series of protests the Association of Layed Off Workers had inaugurated that day on the Champ de Mars. We had left work late enough that day for this unusually large number of cars to be noted.

We turned up in front of the Presidential Palace, right at the National Museum. N. is a creature of habit so she would have turned left on Ave Magny except there were students burning tires at the next corner. We tried the next street over, same situation

N asked me where to turn so I suggested going past the old US Consulate to circle back towards the Champ de Mars towards the Ministry of Commerce. This is were it happened.

I didn’t know it was an earthquake. I just know that chaos erupted, people were running around, cars and trucks left their lanes. And we weren’t going forward anymore. This big bus was coming towards us and I got scared. I asked N why we weren’t moving. She said it wasn’t her, the car was shaking. I stupidly thought that her transmission was shot. Of course, this didn’t explain why we were shaking like a maraca.

N told me to get out of the car, which I did. I could see smoke coming from the roundabout. I ran towards the X-ray clinic and squatted in front of an old Datsun. Red, I think it was. I laugh now at my strong conviction that this was some consequence of the riot. I remember thinking “why doesn’t all this tear gas burn my eyes or throat?”and then I said aloud “Funny, I don’t hear gun shots”.

This was when the man standing next to me said “Miss, this is an earthquake”. All of a sudden, things made sense. I saw his arm was bloody. “the wall fell on the candy vendor next to me” he said. I looked around, looking for N. It was then that I noticed how diverse the crowd was: young, old, all with wild or dazed faces.

We got back into the car, N and I, and turned around to drive up Rue St Honoré. The entire wall of the Enthnology faculty was lying on the street. We drove up the block to rue Capois but a traffic jam had already formed. N told me we had to go get her niece at the Ministry. The usually calm and collected N was looking a bit frantic while I felt dazed and detached. This young man came up and told us to stay calm, he would accompany us. I turned around and the Champ de Mars was white. People, like Gede worshippers, their faces and arms powdered with what would turn out to be dust
from the Presidential Palace and the surrounding Ministries. Some were stained red from their bleeding wounds.

I remember seeing five Muslim UN soldiers, three kneeling, two standing calling to Allah to protect
them.

We circled around the lower corner fo the square. When the Ministries came into view, I had to grab on to N or she would have gone running towards the site. The building was gone! In fact, I kept looking for buildings that were not there. Like the Palace hotel .i was in such shock that I couldn’t understand what my eyes were seeing.

N. ‘s niece was alive but she had received a violent shock to the head from falling debris. She would go into shock later, in the car. I thought she was going to die. We must have spent an hour trying to care for her wit the help of a young med student and his sister. I don’t even remember their names now but I am grateful.

I’ve never felt so helpless in my life. I don’t know CPR and don’t know how to drive. At one point, this man got out of the small SUV in front of us and told us he needed to get his brother to the hospital but didn’t know how to drive. I tried asking people going by for help but was ignored.

I was dropped off at home around 6h15 pm by my estimate. The padlock was still on the smaller outside gate so I know my mother wasn’t home. Night had fallen and in the half light of dusk I could tell the house was destroyed though the façade was standing. I looked through the car gate and could see rubble in the driveway, the French doors of the living room. I called my dogs and my cat but they didn’t come. I tried not to think about that too much.

I decided to walk up the nine blocks to my mother’s work. At the neighbor’s house at the opposite end of our street, this SUV stopped. The driver got out, a man about my age with a red shirt. I remember well because the burst of color was a shock to my eyes after all the white and black fo the square. I remember also because of what happened next. He joined the rest of his family in the yard, took one look at the fallen house and ran away. They called his name, he looked back, eyes wide, but kept running. I thought he would fall or get hit by a car. I walked on, all the while trying to get my parents and aunt on the phone without success. I stumbled over the bricks of the Sacré Coeur church; the steeple was in the middle of the street.

The street was full of crying people, walking up or down, cars trying to drive around the wreckage, other vehicles abandoned.

I took a detour towards the old family home to check on my Great-Uncle. For some reason, my mother answered finally while I was standing across from the house, looking at Uncle’s slight frame sitting, as always, on his galerie. A typical scene if not for the fact that the upper story had collapsed on one side. I’ve never cried so hard in my life. The minute I heard my mother’s voice on the phone, this wail bent me in half. I almost couldn’t speak, I couldn’t even stop this animalistic sound. She told me she was safe, in a neighborhood not far, with other employees.

How does one forget such overwhelming fear and sadness? None of us slept that night. I kept either pacing back and forth, or sitting, blankly staring at the walls, and the electric cables or the gate. I had joined my old neighbors by then. We spent the night in the street, sitting on chairs and benches. While time seemed to drag on for me and dawn seemed to take forever to come, others in the group felt it rushed by. I couldn’t even close my eyes, too afraid that a big tremor would bring the houses down. The ground never seemed to stop moving that first night. Every couple of hours, the gate would knock against the wall. One could hear the screams of fear coming up from the Champ de Mars, like a wave, with every aftershock.

Today still, some images will rise up inside of me, unexpectedly. Like this woman in Ti Four, a boy and a girl firmly in each hand, saying over and over again “I can’t leave him down there. I have to go get him from school. He’s my son, I need to get him” while walking towards the city center.

Like the corpse of this street vendor in front of Five Stars Market, one arm embracing the electric pole on the side walk, seeming asleep but unequivocally dead.

Like the muffled voice of this woman, the day after, calling out from beneath Saint Louis Roi de France church. And the reassurances that she would be saved by the neighbors frantically pulling away the bricks. They did save her. She did make it out.

At least, I hope so.

It's the little things

2010-11-23T18:55:00.005-05:00

So now we are in the last days of the electoral campaign and things are getting interesting. The violence everyone had feared is starting to rear its ugly head and we are all bracing ourselves.

I confess I haven't been following the campaign as religiously as others around me seem to have. But that doesn't mean I don't have an opinion.

Instead, my days and nights and thoughts are full of my routine.

Let me tell you about my day. I woke this morning to the sound of the cola depot next door's generator. They had been stacking boxes since 3 am at least, as usual.

Then, at the evangelical church next to the depot, the prayer guy with the crappy voice and crappier bullhorn started in on his litany.

This was 5am in the morning.

I was happy to see there was electricity but I had prepared several outfits for the week, in case I didn't get any. This also meant my spaghetti lunch didnt'spoil, always a good thing.

So I got dressed and tiptoed my way throught the junk in the alley, up the stairs. The pigs were in good shape and the pile of metal scraps the local junker was amassing managed not to crumble on my head. So far so good.

I went up the stairs, dodging the dirty water pools and random litter to wait for my ride on street level.

Now, I do this every morning: I stand about a quarter of a block away from the bridge/ravine but it didn't work this morning. Some guy was already climbing over the railing with two pig carcasses. The improvised slaughter house in the ravine had been working seriously early. I'm just glad I missed the actual deed. I'm a meat eater but I don't want the details! Thankfully, he put them in a wheelbarrow, tied them up and promptly pushed off for the nearby market.

Lucky me, my ride was late today so I got to people watch: street vendors setting up their wares on little tables; moto taxis carting a mother and her two kids; what seems like hundreds of school kids in uniforms walking together, eating fried street food and drinking energy drinks; people talking on their cells, men wearing crocs and no helmet on their bikes.

Of course, leaving Petion-Ville at 6h50am means you get to enjoy a traffic jam all the way downtown. Thankfully, once you pass what used to be the school district, things clear up pretty much by the time you reach Champ de Mars.

The tent cities that cover all the squares have become part of the scenery. The prude in me is still a bit startled to see people bathing on the sidewalks, though, to their credit, people keep some form of underwear on while doing so.

The city is still busy. Junkers are still digging throught the rubble for scraps. You recognize them by the backpacks they wear. Of course, I'm not really happy to go to work. After the aftershocks on three consecutive days last week, I worry that some of the damaged buildings might be shaken loose. Nothing has happened yet but only fools drive idly under something like Hotel Nova Scotia. Of course, one is amazed by just how many qualify as fools...

Once I'm at work, it seems pretty normal. Except employee parking is now on the site of one of the fallen office buildings. And we still only have a handfull of neiboring businesses around us. But the streets are full of people.

I'm lucky that I can go on the roof and look out on the city. The view of the bay is breathtaking...until you look down. You can trace the Boulevard by the permanent cloud of dust that covers it. It intensifies further North to the point where I thought it was smoke at first.

Things are as close to normal as we can manage at work. Of course, all the electricity is from generators. But at least a number of phone lines have been reinstated by the telcom company. I stay in my office all day long but I remember going to the bookstore or the departement store fondly. Ah, the good old days.

At the end of the day, I pass by all these things in reverse and it stays the same: I'm shocked by the same things, inured to the same spectacles, worried about the same dangers.

If I'm lucky, and the traffic wasn't too bad, when I get home it's still light, they're not burning great heaps of trash in the ravine, the pigs are alive (for now), the church is quiet and Abner is leaving the colas alone for a bit.

I'm just not that lucky that often.

Stir It Up

2009-06-12T20:06:00.002-05:00

Author's note: I had planned to post this on the 9th but the internet did not cooperate.

Here we are, almost 10 days into the hurricane season and people are actually not looking at the sky. Oh, sure, even before June started, they were scrutinizing the mearest cloud, all worried frowns and pinched mouths. May was unusually rainy. But now, they seem to have almost forgotten the seasonal threat for a more immediat if familiar one.

Students are rioting, you see. What had started months ago as a low grumble has now spread through four different colleges. Discontented voices have become angry and confrontational protesters.

At first, it was to denounce the disconcerting changes in one school's program has become a rally around the recent law to raise the minimum wage.

You know how things happen in this country. We're one year into the Hope law and nothing seems to be moving forward. And now that the law is voted, increasing the daily minimum wage from 72 to 200 gourdes ($1.85 to $4.97 USD), everybody is upset. Industrials say they will have to fire half their personnel (a meager 25,000 factory workers). The more vocal senators and representatives are talking about " social injustices being righted". Economists are reiterating their calls to caution, competitivity with our neighbors and a progressive increase rather than a one-time boom.

The government, on the other hand, is silent. But that's how Rinse Repeat rolls. Mum's the word as a communication policy. You should try it. Really.

Of course, this whole wage debate isn't recent. Back on May 1st, while at the annual Agricultural Fair on the main square, protesters in favor of a 500gdes minimum had invested the plaza. A bit scary but this nice avocado grower explained to me, sotto voce, that she agreed with them. Things were too hard, these days, she said, and people need the money.

But now, the difference is that the alleged students are throwing rocks and burning cars. I'm on my fourth day of tear gas fumes. Yes, I live close enough to one faculty to enjoy the benefits of democracy in action.There's nothing like home, indeed.

The simple truth is we are not happy. There's the fact that the patch-up school year is closing with an upcoming gas rise (on top of the last one). And that several neighborhoods in the metropolitan area are without any electricity after suspicious fires at two major plants.

And before that, there were the elections, played out to an almost empty theatre. In the capital, anyway. The rest of the country seems to have been motivated enough. If you can call more or less 10% of voter turn-out a "success". I didn't vote but I do wonder *where* the government found the 5 MILLION dollars they contributed to the 16 MILLION DOLLAR budget. Act two, scene 1 is at the end of the month. (as if we care)

And even before that, there was the gas crisis of the New Year, and before that, the 2008 hurricane victims who are still waiting for help, and bridges, around the country.

Rumor has it that the next step is to as Rinse Repeat to step down.

Nope, we're not happy. Not happy at all.

One Good Thing

2009-02-01T12:34:00.004-05:00

While the usual turmoil is happening, I have found one good thing to look forward to this year:

BUT (isn't there always a but?) since the plantain tree is growing right at the edge of the vegetable garden, we had to be creative:

The Horse Speaks!

2009-01-28T21:45:00.002-05:00

So, the government finally decided to address the gas issues we've all been struggling with. What did they say?

" Don't worry, there's not crisis. There is plenty of gas for everyone"

Okaaaay. Too late for me to believe them but the problem isn't there.

You see, the government is still not EXPLAINING why we started the year without gasoline. Oh, wait, that's not exactly true!

They also said it was all the Gas Distributor's fault.

What else is new?

And then they said it was because DEMAND had risen, particularly with the great number of motorcycles using up the gas lately.

Am I forgetting something?

...

Nope, I think that's it. Of course, nobody in this country, least of all the government, believes in Public Relations so I'm not surprised it took them all this time to even acknowledge that there was, not a crisis (see above), but at least public concern about energy and fuel in the first place!

But, back to the PR denial issue. The other reason I don't believe them is that a different, and, frankly, likely version of what is going on already out.

Last Saturday, an anonymous caller, claiming to work in the fuel industry, outlined for popular radio host/economist Kesner Pharel, what was going on backstage. Listen to him here. It starts at 58:50 of the recording.

(I have a copy saved in Real Player. Need to figure out how to podcast it)

For those who can't click through or in case the podcast is no longer available by the time you read this, here's what he said.

- First, we buy fuel exclusively from Hurricane Hugo's company. Meaning we are completely at his mercy. For the next 25 years, to boot. He apparently fired a lot of workers so if he can't sell us gas, we don't get gas.

- Second, the big tanker that usually brings the different fuels allegedly damaged the physical port and the owners are asking Texaco for one million USD. So Texaco doesn't have a contract with the government anymore and has stopped delivering. Shell took over but, not only do they not have a signed contract, they are using a smaller tanker to bring all the different fuels.

Bottom line: we're getting too little gas at irregular intervals.

Needless to say that neither the government nor the Gas Distributors has confirmed or denied these allegations (Boy, do I sound like a reporter/lawyer or what???)

This man didn't give his name so no way to know if this is true or not. But I like that he ended his call by saying that he spoke "words of truth". The above is soo simple, it might just be true!

The government would rather we believe that the gas distributors are delinquent and don't order gas regularly enough. Worse still, I heard on the news today that Hurricane Hugo wants us to pay cash whenever the barrel of crude falls under $50 US on the world market.

So while the big guys are [still] playing the blame game, people keep getting nasty surprises at the gas stations. Some aren't selling anything at all. My ride home from work stopped at two, one near the office, one near my house and they were both officially closed. Others have either regular or super but not both. Rumor has it that Diesel is about to dip into the red any day now.

According to the caller on the radio show, the tanker should come next Monday or Tuesday, instead of yesterday, the 27th. Meaning we're going to have another slooow week-end.

You know what pisses me off? That this same government has found FIVE MILLION DOLLARS US to contribute to the [half-way mythical] partial legislatives we're suppose to have mid-april. The international community will put up the other TWELVE MILLION needed to organize the vote.

Can't you tell how in synch we are? A real meeting of the minds.

Not.

Vox Populi : Eat, Drink and...Be Wary?

2009-01-26T13:15:00.003-05:00

UPDATE : POLL RESULTS. Well, nobody voted but I'm giving the answer anyway. It's $80 US.

Here's a good one for you:

How much does it cost for three friends to eat 3 thin-crust 8" pizzas, 3 glasses of fruit juice and 3 triple-scoop ice creams*?

a) $20 US*
b) $50 US
c) $80 US

Please vote in the comments (Will update the blog and have more modern polling when internet access improves)

Results will be posted on Sunday (I hope). Four whole days for you, dear readers, to figure out if x=0, LOL!

* We don't believe in dieting, either!
** The prices are in US not only for convenience but because the US price was printed on the bill.

It's the thought that counts

2009-01-21T21:55:00.005-05:00

This morning's paper had a dozen pages out of 32 dedicated to the Inauguration of Mr Hope. Impressive if only you consider that a 32-page edition is somewhat of a big publication for that paper.

This is just a reflection of the obssession we too have developped with #44. In fact, yesterday, I barely worked at all. My boss brought in his 13" mini tv (purchased just for the occasion, mind you) and we spent several hours captivated by the grainy transmission by a local, free tv station.

Truth be told, there was a tinge of bitterness for all of us, at my office. Here you have this man, talking about getting back to work and putting aside differences to dig a country out of financial (and social) trouble.

But we don't have that.

Instead we have a president who announced in his New Year's speech that, I quote, "2009 will be hard". That's it. No hope for tomorrow, no common goal, nothing.

I did learn the first lesson of 2009, though. Rinse Repeat is a goat. Not the hairy, horned beast, no! Rather the prophetic, divining mythical creature people are always talking about here.

See, he said things would be hard and practically the next day, we fell head first into a gas "crisis". Don't ask me what happened, I don't know. The fact is, gas stations were not selling gasoline at all for several days. No explanation, nothing, but clients were being turned away.

The government simply announced the new gas prices and transportation fares. Oh, don't bother looking for them on the ministry's website. Hasn't been updated since 2005. (Efficient, aren't they?)

Aside : The only pertinent information is that the price of diesel is the same now as it was four years ago.

Public opinion started saying that the gas distributors were trying to artificially raise the price of gasoline, in opposition to the government's decision. I heard this from everyone, from taxi drivers to coworkers.

The gas importers said that the government was taking too much tax on the gallon. I had a minor WTF moment because I just couldn't make the connection. What did high taxes have to do with closed pumps?

As one can imagine, the streets were empty. Empty, that is, except around the gas stations. I have the great misfortune of living within a few blocks of 2 gas stations, each placed near intersections. Do I need to draw you a picture? A friend of mine spent 4 hours just to buy a couple of gallons of regular.

Students were stuck in the country, having, as is customary, visited their families living outside of the capital. You could really tell that education was the number one business in this city. Whenever there is a holliday (or a gas problem), I can go from my bed to my desk under 15 minutes. Quite a feat, believe me!

But back to the goat. While we were still lost in the Land of Information BlackOut (our normal dwelling place around here), we go hit by another bomb.

Parliament was considering a bill to raise the taxes on cell phone calls from 4.70 gourdes to 8 gourdes. Not only that, but there would be additional taxes to be paid on local and international calls. And the cherry on the cake, incoming calls would revert to being paid, at the same rate.

Now, I'm still stuck on the fact that I've been paying my minutes 5 gourdes for the past, what, 3 years? Were did that 4.70 gdes come from, anyway? But to go back to paying incoming calls would just cancel the whole point of having a cell phone.

So, here's were the goat comes in. Sometime last year, Rinse Repeat commented a bit acidly that we could not legitimately complain of the cost of living when everyone on the streets here seemed to have a cell phone.

Let's stop here, shall we? Because I find it terribly disingenuous of him to make such a comment. Or is he forgetting that the government basically stoped giving people landlines 10 years ago? Even if you had the money, you got no phone line. And then, like a rabbit out of a hat, the first modern cell phone company opened and, like a Savior, offered cell phones...to those who could pay them.

Back then, yes, we paid for incoming and out-going calls. And it cost a LOT. The minimal prepaid card was 330 gourdes (about $8 US today). But did the government agency who oversees communications here care? No. Did the national phone company resume their services? Nope. Unless you were a business and could pay the proper...incentives, you got nothing.

Anyway, when the bill was made public, the outcry was such that Parliament had to scratch it. After all, the cell phone companies are the new, adjunct cash cows (with the national phone co) and the two major companies announced that they would have to lay-off a large number of employees, if not to shut down completely. That really scared somebody. Couldn't have been worry for our well-being, oh no.

So there are two morals to this story.

First, when Rinse Repeat speaks, one must learn to overcome one naturally disgust, if only to find out when to duck.

And second, the consummer is the loser, period. Put up or get out. It's lose-lose every time.

Bye, bye, bye

2009-01-05T19:17:00.006-05:00

The biggest of the local newspapers published it's annual Year End Review front page caricature. While I have a difficult relationship with said publication (least of which being that they call themselves a "daily" when they only come out 4 times a week most of the year!!! Witness the fact that this issue was delivered TODAY), I have to admit, the "last page" drawings are always very appreciated.

They've changed artists, this is a younger guy who, from what I know, does mostly comic strips and albums. Now, for those who haven't been following the news (I know, I know, I didn't do much in 08), the references are, from left to right:

- April : The so-called hunger riots;
- Summer : Four hurricanes, one after the other;
- Too-Long to Care : Picking the next Prime Too...Minister, I mean MINISTER (FYI:the woman got the job);
- Two Years Too Long : The US elections
- Rinse Repeat's New Thing : Changing the Constitution. As if there's nothing more important to do. Like UPHOLD AND APPLY THE CURRENT LAWS!!!!
- The accidental death of a famous local HipHop group (though I doubt they went UP)
- Most of the year : Why Colombia is our BFF and How the Gvt shares the Lurve (or not);
- See above : Why were they here again? Do we really care anymore?

Note: I'll post the translations of the dialogue bubbles later, too much trouble with my dial-up connection today

Let's Get It On...

2008-07-01T16:07:00.001-05:00

It's official. I have the internet at home again!

Watch out World, she's baaaack!!!!!

Back, From Outerspace

2008-06-26T14:23:00.002-05:00

Well, not really. I apologize to all my readers who were dispairing of ever seeing me write her again. I had lost my mojo...and my internet access.

My apologies also to those who left comments and hoped for replies. I'm bad at checking comments even when I post (somewhat) regularly!

Anyway, with luck, next week, I will have dial-up at home again and so, will return to the ranting you are used to (if not, get to it!)

Meanwhile, in the Real World...

- Still no Prime Minister. Since Whatshisface got the boot, mid-April, we have been treated to yet another wonderful interpretive art piece by Rince Repeat. I like to call it "Mirages". Rinse calls them candidates. Go figure...

- The price of gas has officially risen. Super is 270 gourdes ($6.75*), Regular is 265 gourdes ($6.62*) and Diesel is 194 gourdes ($4.85*). Public transportation fare is up too. I myself took a taxi to work this morning for 30 gourdes. Will get back to you with the full list of new fares.

- Official exams are almost over. This year, both 12th and 13th grades had their tests the same week. As always, the numbers speak for themselves: 247,000 students for 6th grade, 180, 523 for 9th grade, and 92, 129 students for the combined final two grades. Nevermind that 50% of these kids live here, in the capital.

- Kidnappings have again increased their daily rates, despite showy police arrests. Why bother, if the kidnappers are released within a few days...without a trial? The one good thing is that school is out. I know several parents were counting the days. I myself feel a little twichy going in and out of my house.

So, there you have it, fodder for future posts. Thank you for being patient.

* at a 40 gdes exchange rate

On which side to butter

2007-09-12T09:31:00.000-05:00

The biggest bad news to hit us this week is that the price of wheat has risen. According to a spokesman for the State Mill being interviewed on the radio this morning, we import 28,000 tons of wheat a year but the prices are now around 230-237 euros per ton. That grain becomes the total source of white flour (or "Farin France", French flour as we call it) produced and sold in Haiti.

This increase is already felt here in the price of bread. A baguette of French bread as gone from 15 gourdes ($0.41 US) to 24 gourdes ($0.65 US). A messenger boy at work told me that the breakfast egg sandwich has shrunk to a pitiful size on the streets, while it's price stays the same. This is a staple for many Haitians who do no eat at home before they leave for school or work.

Sliced bread, already above the 30 gourdes mark, is sure to tople over into the 40 gourdes or, more dramatically, the 50 gourdes bracket. Unfortunately, I was not able to access the news websites (server restrictions at work) to give you a sampling of what is being said about this situation.

That same spokesman mentioned above tried to be positive and reassuring. Apparently, they haven't noticed any dramatic change in the sales of flour to the bakeries around town.

He goes further to explain this more expensive wheat on...biofuel! According to him, the growing market for ethanol has not only put corn and cane in the spotlight but has put more pressure on wheat since it seems to be replaced by those two other crops.

Notice this is not what the article linked to above says at all.

I'm not a big bread eater so I don't feel concerned yet. But this is bad news for us all, most especially the parents who are already struggling to send their kids to school. I remember eating quite a number of sandwiches over the years.

Tuition is one thing, but lunch is another. When you're lucky enough to get one, that is.

Of course, we've always eaten a lot of root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, green plaintain, yams, bread fruit. I guess we're just going to have to eat them more.

Want to hear something ironic? Last month, the Minister of Economy was speaking to the House of Representatives Commerce Committee about how certains prices were actually lower. Nobody believed her then.

Now? Let's just laugh it off.

Like Taking a Grass Snake to School

2007-09-05T10:43:00.000-05:00

According to the Ministry of Education, Monday was the first day of the new school year.

According to real life, it wasn't.

I'm very aware of school issues because I have the (mis)fortune of living on a street that boasts three (3) kindergartens and one (1) high school. So I always know when school is in or not.

Well, it's been very quiet both Monday and Tuesday. This morning, the kindergarten across the street from my house was open but the mustn't have received all their students yet. Though I could hear the children's voices and they played the usual songs about ducks, and boats and cuckoos in the forest, there wasn't nearly as much traffic or even pedestrian activity as on a regular school day.

My mother also works in a kindergarten and she tells me that her back-t0-school day is set for next Monday. And, if things go according to the same pattern as the last few years, she'll still be receiving kids as late as October.

Nothing I've cited above is surprising, or even new. All through my own schooling, the official starting date was almost never respected by the nuns. Parents, for their part, rutinely sent their kids abroad on vacation for the summer, without a second thought for the school schedule.

What is changing, though, is the number of people who cannot afford to pay for school. The numbers are growing and we cannot deny this truth.

Of course, there is the dichotomy between "good", usually private, schools and the state schools.

The more elite private or foreign schools are, of course, proportionally more expensive. A former coworker paid 25,000 Gdes (about $685 US) per semester for Kindergarten for her son at the French school. This was two or three years ago.

And then there are the Catholic schools. About five (5) of them are both elite (and elitist) and have a very good ranking in the national exams. I went to "the best". Well, we were (and still are) fighting for that title with our Arch-Enemy.

They are not as expensive as the other private schools but still more expensive than other, less reputable schools. People, regardless of their religion, are constantly fighting to have their daughters admitted. For that same reason, I try NOT TO MENTION I'M A FORMER STUDENT.

About 800 kids try out every spring for 1st grade at my old school. There are only 80 seats available. You can imagine the pleading, begging and even bribery that goes on. Especially since the nuns give priority to their "legacy students".

The government has little control over these schools, or the prices they charge. I don't even know if the DGI (our tax people) audits schools or not.

As for the state schools, there are too few of them, the quality of the education is terribly poor. I should know, I keep meeting the kids that come out of there. Poor reading and writing skills in French. Even in speach, it's obvious they're working with limited knowledge of the language and its construction. But that another topic for another post right there.

The one good thing the Ministry of Education did was publish the official tuition for the different levels in the state schools.

Can you believe that there are parents who cannot afford the 100 gourdes ($3 US) to send their children to grammar school for the year? Let alone spare another 100 gourdes so these kids can eat at the cafeteria.

Yet, it is true. It even made the front page of the papers last year. The press has also related the trials and tribulations of the parents struggling to send their kids to schools this year.

So it seems the prover was right. For most people getting their kids an education is like taking a grass snake to school.

And affording it is like making that snake sit in class...

Shaken, Not Stirred

2007-08-03T12:16:00.000-05:00

It seems that things are heating up in the country as we move into the second half of the vacation months.

On the one hand, the weather has decided to roast us alive. Last night, around 7h pm, it was a murderous 35 Celcius (95 F). I was feeling weak and disoriented, especially since I'd been in those high temperatures since coming home from my AC-cooled office.

Of course, it's hurricane season. Last one was Chantal, but we've moved on to another one in-the-making. Though it should mostly affect the South of the island, it's giving me the worse heatwaves!

I'm also worried about heartquakes. We've had consistently high temperatures so the danger, IMO, is there.

But people are also trying to roast my mind. Here's an overview of the last few weeks:

- My phone is still dead. It's been almost 6 months. I actually got a bill for 992.34 gourdes (about $28). I wrote to them to say I didn't appreciate the joke. I have little hope of the situation changing anytime soon since the head of the state phone company has been trouble from disgruntled employees.

He's been interviewed over and over again over the massive firings going on. Can you blame the guy? When he came into the job, the co had 5,000 employees. Among them, eight (8) doctors, including a gynecologist and an urologist!!! He says he only needs between 750, but is willing to go up to 1,200 employees.

I think he's serious. There's even an ad in the papers looking for a company to restructure the IT department. The proble, as always, is the other people. The director publicly admited that the reason only 25% of the 150,000 land lines in the metropolitan area are working is good old sabotage. I'm pretty sure it's true since a LOT of people suddenly lost their phone service at roughly the same time.

He also promised cable internet for next summer. Oh, I want, I want! But will he (and I) get it? Let's wait and see.

- Major corruption/criminality crack down. Two high-profile business men are being questioned by the police over allegedly selling a man a car that had skipped the whole customs thingie. They seem to have even forged the official papers and signatures. The poor buyer got the surprise of his life when officials refused to give him his car.

Notice my very diplomatice/professional tone. That's because I'm jaded, baby. I don't believe the officials are clean, I don't believe the car dealers are clean, I don't believe this is going far. Unless somebody big has it in for the dealers, this all will die down soon.

Oh, the government is running anti-corruption ads but it's a pot and kettle situation, as far as I'm concerned.

On the other hand, the US DEA has been fishing for drug dealers left and right. Lawyer-types and the common man are incensed at this intrusion. I'm pretty sure some sort of deal has been signed.

Maybe I'm imagining things but isn't surprising that the IADB just gave us $12.5 million US, lump sum even, for "restructuring the government"? And promising us more next year?

- Mr Big Stuff UN is in town this week. You can tell by the volume of UN in the streets, especially when they are blocking streets without any explanation. Mr BS has been up down, crosswise this city. He met with Rinse Repeat first and that was fun: each was talking his own spin and I was LOL myself breathless.

Oh, people are in a tizzy. Mr BS said the city is dirty, people got upset. He said the UN isn't living any time soon (if ever), people got mad. Big Stuff says that they'll not be living until things got better "in the long term".

Rinse Repeat especially doesn't seem to agree with the UN issue. Nationalists agree with him, it seems but what's anybody doing about it? When they first came here, people said it would be for 10 yrs. After that press conf, maybe we should double that estimate...

We're also getting a new head of the MINUSTAH next month, a Tunisian diplomat. He's the first North African in the job. So now we are switching the hot chili peppers for harissa.

- The house of representatives has flushed the Culture Minister. They say he did some funny stuff with the Carnaval money. Rumor has it that Rinse Repeat himself told the Culture Min that he SHOULDN'T give money to the different elected officials usually envolved with Carnaval money ie the mayors, representatives and others.

Today, in fact the President is meating with the House. Is he giving them what-for? or just cold hard cash? Rumors are flying. Some say Rinse Repeat will NOT get rid of his BFF Minister. Others think this is the beginning of the end for either Rinse or the House.

See what I mean when I say my brain is set on broil? And we haven't even got to the State Examen Results yet. School is in a little over a month away. Gas prices are high, there's very little electricity, everybody is broke (ok, that's not new).

I need a liquid nitrogen bath, quick!

So Fresh and So Clean

2007-06-21T14:42:00.000-05:00

I'm posting this specifically for my Third World Readers, both here on the island and across the American Continent.

"FDA Advises Consumers to Avoid Toothpaste From China Containing Harmful Chemical

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today warned consumers to avoid using tubes of toothpaste labeled as made in China, and issued an import alert to prevent toothpaste containing the poisonous chemical diethylene glycol (DEG) from entering the United States.

DEG is used in antifreeze and as a solvent.

Consumers should examine toothpaste products for labeling that says the product is made in China. Out of an abundance of caution, FDA suggests that consumers throw away toothpaste with that labeling. FDA is concerned that these products may contain "diethylene glycol," also known as "diglycol."
FDA is not aware of any U.S. reports of poisonings from toothpaste containing DEG. However, the agency is concerned about potential risks from chronic exposure to DEG and exposure to DEG in certain populations, such as children and individuals with kidney or liver disease. DEG in toothpaste has a low but meaningful risk of toxicity and injury to these populations. Toothpaste is not intended to be swallowed, but FDA is concerned about unintentional swallowing or ingestion of toothpaste containing DEG.

FDA has identified the following brands of toothpaste from China that contain DEG and are included in the import alert: Cooldent Fluoride; Cooldent Spearmint; Cooldent ICE; Dr. Cool, Everfresh Toothpaste; Superdent Toothpaste; Clean Rite Toothpaste; Oralmax Extreme; Oral Bright Fresh Spearmint Flavor; Bright Max Peppermint Flavor; ShiR Fresh Mint Fluoride Paste; DentaPro; DentaKleen; and DentaKleen Junior. Manufacturers of these products are: Goldcredit International Enterprises Limited; Goldcredit International Trading Company Limited; and Suzhou City Jinmao Daily Chemicals Company Limited. The products typically are sold at low-cost, “bargain” retail outlets.

Based on reports of contaminated toothpaste from China found in several countries, including Panama, FDA increased its scrutiny and began sampling toothpaste and other dental products manufactured in China that were imported into the United States."

This reminds me of the whole syrup tragedy of ten years ago when almost a hundred children died. Yes, it was a Chinese product then also (Nevermind that China is one of our Best Friends 4 Ever).

So you've been warned. Pass the word. Don't let that minty fresh feeling be your last sensation on this earth!

The Heat is On

2007-06-21T14:16:00.000-05:00

Today is the official first day of Summer.

The typical reaction here to this announcement is a very bored : "So What?"

How else to react when you've been feeling the heat for weeks now. I personally don't walk into my house after a long day at work.

No, instead, I swim through a room-full of hot air. Sauna hot. Iron forge hot. The skies are overcast and gray but there's no rain. Or if it does rain, it's not long enough to cool us off. It's the hurricanes-in-the-making, obviously, but what does that knowledge do for me? Nothing!!!

It's also amazing how difficult living out of the range of a fan has become. Brushing your hair, coming your teeth, getting dressed, eating, sleeping: if it can be done with a fan on, you do it. And you're always sure to stay in range of the wind. Wouldn't want to drip sweat all over the floor, now, would you?

Don't have a fan? Must be that you are either a fish in the sea (the problem is then moot) or you're rich enough to have AC. If that's the case, get out of my face (sometimes resentment rimes!)

If, like me, you had the misfortune of your aged, trustworthy and faithfull fan dying, buck up. It's going to cost you a sweet 1,500 gdes ($41 US, give or take) to get a standing fan. Almost makes the heat seem nice.

But what worries me the most is the fact that our electricity regimen is usually linked to sporting events (like the Gold Cup, World Cup or Olympics) or political doings.

Are we going to fry alive with none of those things to stimulate the Electrical Company's output of energy?

Looks like it.

Gypsies, Thugs and Thieves

2007-06-13T13:57:00.000-05:00

Note: I was supposed to post this last week but, some days, inexplicably, my server hates Blogger. So I changed a few verb tenses, cleaned it up a bit and posted what you'll read bellow. Still working on getting links in English.

Last week certainly lived up to it's full potential of madness and pain. Let me break it down for you:

Monday

Started off with a bang! No 1 Bank had live entertainment and fireworks. The police blocked off the streets, traffic was crazy, but mostly everybody was wondering WTF was going on.

From what I've pieced together, a man and a woman tried to cash a fake check in US dollars at the main branch, smack in the middle of The Golden Suburb. The man, rumor says, had already cashed a similar check the previous work day (Saturday?) and the bank teller was suspended.

So they were waiting for him. The bank security tried to detain him, he broke down the (front?) door, shots were fired, the police came. Both are under arrest but an unfortunate bystander was wounded to the shoulder.

Up to now, no official commentary from No 1 Bank's Management. Not surprising, nobody likes to explain anything in this country. This isn't the first time a spectacularly public crime has been hosted by No 1 Bank, either. Last time was back in 96 or something and there was a hostage situation, if I remember correctly.

No 1 Bank's arch-rival, No 2 Bank, must be enjoying this. Of course, this is nothing compared to the white-collar crime(s) being committed daily, I'm sure, at both banks.

Maybe I should take my money out of there...

Find out more here:

http://www.haitienmarche.com/sommaire.php (scroll down, Fr)

http://www.lenouvelliste.com/article.php?PubID=1&ArticleID=44652 (Fr, again, sorry!)

Tuesday

By now, we all knew this week wasn't going anywhere good. Particularly since two events were converging : the Certificat (official 6th grade exam) and the Public Transportation Strike.

The result was chaos, as you might imagine. I was insanely late for work, no buses or taxi. I think most of those kids must have been late for the exam.

I understand the drivers frustration, the price of gas is insane: 95 went from 173 gourdes to 209 gourdes. 91 went from 171 gourdes to 205 gourdes. Diesel went from 103 gourdes to 109 gourdes. Only kérosène (used for lighting and cooking) hasn't moved.

The rise in gas prices comes on top of the whole license plate issue. (More on that later). The last time the prices went up, the government got envolved and fixed the fares. Some of it was normal, but some prices were insane. The negotiations included promises but I have not idea which; evidently, they weren't kept or we wouldn't be here...again.

Wednesday

Day two of the bus strike but the streets are so free that, as always, the population as adapted. I myself had to arrange a ride with a neighbor. Couldn't afford to be so late to work again.

I wonder how this turmoil will translate in the exam grades?
This wasn't the real news of the day. No, instead what really had people talking was the death of gang leader Yoyo Piman in a shoot out with the Police and the UN.

This 25 year-old thug was wanted for murder, kidnapping, rape, auto theft, among other things. The French wanted him because he's accused of killing a Haitian-French business man.

Besides the obvious reasons, this caused talk because people are a little torn over the whole UN envolvement. On the one-hand, one can't complain about them being passive anymore; on the other, the police still can't do it's job like a grown-up.

Either way, the kidnappings are still going on.

Flip it and reverse it

2007-06-01T13:23:00.000-05:00

Let's try something different today. Instead of my version of the story, why don't I let you see a different perspective.

People, meet Celine. I promised to blogroll her months ago and shamelessly forgot. So I'm showcasing her. Please visit her blog,

A Bee Bumbling Around

I've met her in person but I have to say, reading her blog has been very eye-opening. Experiencing this country from someone else perspective has done me some good.

I couldn't stop there so I tried to find you guys other blogs written from Haiti about Haiti. It wasn't easy. Most of the blogs I found were by UN or NGO workers. Here's what I found so far:

Martin Baran's Fotoblog (check his sidebar for more pix)

Yon Ayisyen (hasn't been updated but whatever)

From Haïti (MINUSTAH guy, in spanish, his sidebar is worth a look)

Haïti chez Guy (this one is in cache but I found it interesting)

Circles of Change (this is an NGO guy, more of an announcement blog, don't know the thing)

Ben Terrall (outdated but another poor misguided activist...IMO)

Haïti Recto Verso (not sure if it's an NGO or what but check it out anyway)

Kiskeyàcity (A Woman! Check out her archives, she did something on Haitian bloggers. And, she knows about me. I'm thrilled!)

You might notice that most are foreigners, and most of the foreigners are outside of PaP. Still can't find an active, 100% haitiano-haitian blog but still looking. I was also surprised by the number of blogs (mostly political or activist) that talk about us. Usually with an agenda to push but still...I always feel like, when things are bad here (or even when they're not) that nobody but our diaspora cares out there. I like to think that their are many Afghan, Iraqi, or whatever suffering national who must feel like that too.

Feel free to browse around what I found for you. Blogroll, aggregate (I'm a GReader addict myself!) and I shall do the same...eventually.

Inner musings :

Somebody tell me I'm not the only lazy (female) blogger on this island, please!!!!

Whatever you say...

2007-06-01T12:49:00.000-05:00

I had an interesting experience this week. My brother had a son earlier this month and this past Wednesday he took me to the Bureau d'État Civil so I could sign as a witness for the birth certificate. And boy, what a great experience that was!

This public office is unfortunately situated right smack in the middle of a market. Hundreds of people coming and going, cars honking and practically rolling over your feet. You even get the crazy UN driver actually doing reverse in this milling nightmare!!!

So we go in. I'm leading our little file, followed by my brother and his other witness, D. I walk right in, through the lobby, up the stairs, down a corridor and into this small room, our final destination. Why is this weird? Well, for the number of people we meet all along the way, NOBODY ASKED US WHAT WE WERE DOING HERE.

Several dozen people, on the front steps, in the hall, on each step of the narrow stairs: no questions, a few comments (what kind of sick fool tries to pick up a woman on a stairway, anyway?) but most were content to just lean again the walls or tables. Probably their version of technical support...

Let's take a pause here. Because my hitman fantasy kicked in right about then. You see, whenever I go into formal settings, I think of crime. If I go to the bank, I think of armed robbery or a heist. When it's a public office, it's usually more violent. This is what happened here. Something by Tarrantino. We would all be wearing dark suits and sunglasses. Our guns in metal briefcases. Surprise. Panic. Chaos.

I love it.

Ok, back to reality. The room we go in has two tables. On the right, two women with what will turn out to be the registries. On the left, The Public Official himself.

We go in, wait our turn after these two ladies, and sign at the both of a page in each registry. Another mystery: how do they expect two people to sign on the dotted lign when the space is barely big enough for one signature in the first place???

The Public Official signes and seals the certificate, gives it to my brother and we leave.

That's it. The kid has been declared.

Now the title of this post came to me later, when I actually read the birth certificate and realized that nowhere on there is there mention of any ID number. Not for my brother, the father; not for either of us witnesses. My Sister-in-Law tells me that they didn't even ask for some sort of proof from the Maternity: a bill, a receipt, an affidavit from the doctor. Nada.

Basically, my brother could have named any woman, declared any gender of child, cited anyone as witnesses, they would take his word for it.

I mention this to a coworker who had studied law. Apparently, this has always been the case. Worse, there are two (2) types of birth certificates : the mother's and the father's. Wait, it gets better.

The mother can declare her child herself and name a father. Except this birth certificate can be contested by the real/fake father. Not so the case of the father's certificate. It's permanent.

As my coworker said, in a country of Miraculous Births, they figure any man willing to acknowledge a child, must really want to.

They'll believe you, whatever you say...

And when the party's over...

2007-03-07T11:55:00.000-05:00

I miss last month, I really do. Last month afforded me 10 solid days of denial. From the chocofest of Valentine's day to a two-day work week (finally Rinse-Repeat did something I can actually enjoy!), what's not to love. As a bonus, the Carnaval was even pretty and (somewhat) on schedule this year : streets full of costumes, inaugural ball on Saturday night at the Presidential Palace, beautifully decorated stands on the plazza, only a few dozens wounded (well, at least according to the police but whatever)...

But it's back to harsh reality ever since. And boy, do we have stuff on our plate!

The banking scandal is dead. It think I can say safely say that. After all the special commission said it interviewed dozens of people and found no proof of Whistleblower Senator's allegations that several senate members were bribed into voting the decree concerning Socabank.

That story is almost dead. The Senatorial Special Commission said it didn't find any proof. Are you surprised? Even better, Whistleblower might even get sued over this.

My take on this is simple: I think he told the truth. I just don't know why or for whom he did this. This is not a country were the truth is made public. I wonder who was coordinating this behind the scenes...

The new thing is that Rinse-Repeat is talking about amending the 1987 Constitution. And wouldn't you know it? The two main issues are citizenship and money.

Note : For those who don't know, the law doesn't allow double citizenship. But the Haitian diaspora (who, last year alone injected, some 1.65 billion U.S. dollars in this country, 77% of which went to food and lodging for the families receiving these transfers) is limited by this law and it's been talked about a lot, especially in the last 10 yrs or so.

Back to the story. The best part of this is that the law doesn't let us hold referendums. So basically, the gvt can do whatever they want to the Constitution and we, the citizens/electors/tax payers will just have to live with it.

So I might just wake up one day and discover that the deal is done and that the "haitian dollar" as ceased being fiction and turned into cold hard cash. Or that all my Canadian, US, French or whatever else friends and relatives will legally be Haitians too! Wonders never cease, I tell you.

All this is part of the great virtual reality show called Haitian Politics.

Real life, as I live it, is a little more basic.

Kidnappings are as popular and lucrative as ever. A friend of mine's mother was the victime of a kidnapping recently. Except this time, they broke into her house in the middle of the night and drove away with her in her own car. The initial ransom was $300,000 USD, I think. Her family negociated a drastically lower price and so now they are broke.

I was very surprised by this b&e technique but it turns out that this is the new modus operandi. Other people have been taken the same way. My aunt's neighborhood was ringing with gunshots recently. Luckily, the people ran away in the night and escaped their fate.

There's something incredibly scary about being attacked at night. This is blackout country, people. So if you have to run for your life, you'll probably have to do it in the pitch blackness. Unless it's around the full moon. Otherwise, zero artificial light. I know several people who've lived through this and they are scarred for life.

But being attacked and abducted day and night isn't the scarriest part. It's the rape and torture part that chill my blood. And the killings. Quite a few kidnappings have been reported on the news.

Recently, they found the victim's decomposing body in the water cistern of an empty house. The neighbors had smelled something rotten. There were also two men, bound and gaged inside the house. The dead man's family had paid twice, for a total of $34,000 USD. They still killed him.

Last night, another coworker was kidnapped. Asking price : $800,000 USD. There are several witnesses, she was with friends.

I'm torn between fear, anger and disgust. I can't be the only one who wonders why this isn't over yet? The UN are allegedly cleaning up the slums of gangs and criminals. And yet kidnappings have never stopped. It's going to be 4-5 years since this started and it only gets worse.

I don't sleep well at night. It's been a while since I had this problem. About six months, I would say. So I bought exercise DVDs and it helps. A little. I drink tea at night. I blog.

Except the problem doesn't go away, does it? I still have to go to work everyday. And come home everyday. And go to bed everyday. And hopefully wake up safe and sound, everyday.

And people get kidnapped and killed. Everyday.

P.S. Sorry the links are all in French, couldn't find them in English.

And that's a wrap!

2006-12-31T08:11:00.000-05:00

So 2006 has finally (FINALLY!!!!!) reached it's last day. Happy new year everybody else. I can only hope the same will be true for us here but there's no guarantee. L'espoir fait vivre...

I decided to make 5 New Year's Resolution but also (stole this somewhere) 5 New Year's Indulgences because I need some fun in my life (in case you hadn't noticed, not much of that in 06). So here we go:

5 Resolutions for 2007:
1- Eat more balanced meals (like have a real breakfast)
2- Get to work on time or die trying (what can I say, love my bed and my books)
3- Go dancing (or try to. I just realized I love dancing. Who knew!?!)
4- Exercise something other than my brain (that one's going to be tough. See 2)
5- Write the damn book, already! (No comment)

and now the best part, 5 Indulgences for 2007:

1- Eat more chocolate (it's good for the brain and for fighting headaches but who really cares?)
2- Music, music, music (even if it's unhip stuff like Fado or jazz)
3- Makeup is fun! And so is jewelry! (hey, it's a twofer!!!)
4- Mani/pedis are good for the soul (I'm positive that's true)
5- Celebrate the big 3-0 every chance I get (like, every month)

Let's see if a year from now, I' ve kept up more with the Resolutions or the Indulgences...

In A New York Minute

2006-12-13T13:26:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm back at work today. Couldn't hide my head in the sand longer than a day. Not that yesterday was completely blissful and ignorant but a girl can try, can't she?

Anyway, the bad news (and is there any other kind of news around here?) started pouring in the minute I got into the office.

First, my boss. He comes in, says Good Morning and then tells me that a bus full of kids was hijacked and the kiddies sequestered. Apparently, the kidnappers had warned the neighborhood that they would strike.

Then I hear from my mother that rumors are running wild about kids being kidnapped in every school in town. It seems that at least two little girls were taken from a Catholic school not too far from my house. That's not counting the kid they took last night from his own house.

The way my boss explains it, the kidnapping gangs wanted the major schools (most of them private catholic schools) to pay a "kidnapping fee" of $15, 000 USD each to insure that said schools wouldn't have to worry about any unfortunate incidents. Since the schools didn't pay...you know the rest.

According to the police, they are targeting grammar school kids between 4 and 9 years old. Vulnerable age, isn't it? I mean, if adults don't always survive the current kidnapping wave, how can children?

By 11h am, I need a break. Instead, I got the newspaper. The headlines : "Our kids are being taken while the Prime Minister "negociates" with the gangs", "The State Hospital smells like rotting corpses as the non-medical staff continues its strike" and "Cap Haitian jail overcrowded and unsanitary".

Well, so much of taking a breather. I don't know what Santa's going to bring since yesterday there was also a lot of violence and shooting in several parts of the country following the partial results of the municipal and local elections.

You see, somebody forgot to explain to the candidats that democratic elections mean the guy with the most votes gets the job, the car and the money, NOT the one with the most armed supporters.

For this very reason, the Electoral Council decided not to publish the election results for the capital. I think they're trying to let us enjoy the hollidays, whatever that means.

Except, the candidats don't care about us. They want their election results and they want them NOW!

Now, where did I put that bottle of rum, anyway?

Special Post : No Sturm or Drang...If I can help it

2006-12-12T09:31:00.000-05:00

Today is my birthday so I thought "Why not spare them the ranting, raving, politicking etc.?" Why not indeed? So I google my bday to see what happened.

Well, let's just say it's a mixed bag. See for yourselves:

World History (and it ain't pretty)
1098 - First Crusade: Massacre of Ma'arrat al-Numan - Crusaders breach the town's walls and massacre about 20,000 inhabitants. After finding themselves with insufficient food, they resort to cannibalism (Yikes! No wonder I’m so bloodthirsty sometimes)
1642 : Abel Tasman discovers New Zealand
1799 : Napoléon Bonaparte is First Consul of France
1804 : Spain declares war on the United Kingdom
1870 : Joseph H. Rainey of South Carolina becomes the first black U.S. congressman.
1894 : Japan invades Korea
1897 : Belo Horizonte, the first planned city of Brazil, is inaugurated.
1901 : Guglielmo Marconi changes the world with a kite and some copper wire.
1915 : German Hugo Junkers flies the first all-metal plane.
1941 : World War II: Great Britain declares war on Bulgaria. Hungary and Romania declare war on the United States. India declares war on Japan. (Busy day, wouldn’t you say?)
1952 : First French supersonic flight, aboard a Mystère II. (cool name)
1963 : Jamhuri Day, Kenya gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1964 : Prime Minister Jomo Kenyatta became the first President of the Republic of Kenya.
1979 : Pakistan President Zia-ul-Haq conferred Nishan-e-Imtiaz on Nobel laureate Dr Abdus Salam.
1979 : Rhodesia changes its name to Zimbabwe.
1999 : The Erika brakes in half and dumps ten thousand tons of oil on the northern French coasts
2000 : The US Supreme Court says it’s Dubiya in Florida (Oh, Joy !)
2001 : Caribbean leaders recognize the Caribbean Sea as a commun heritage (Big whoop)

Famous (and Almost) People Born Today
1773 : Robert Surcouf, French privateer
1791 : Marie Louise, archduchess of Austria, second wife of Napoléon Ier and Impress of France
1821 : Gustave Flaubert, French writer
1863 : Edvard Munch, Norwegian painter (yes, I’m keeping it simple)
1893 : Edward G. Robinson, American actor
1900 : Sammy Davis, Sr., American dancer
1903 : Yasujiro Ozu, Japanese filmmaker (who actually died on his bday in 1963, cool)
1908 : Manoel de Oliveira, Portugese filmmaker
1915 : Frank Sinatra, American singer
1923 : Bob Barker, American television game show host
1924 : Ed Koch, Mayor of New York City
1937 : Roberto Benzi, French orchestra director
1938 : Connie Francis, American singer
1940 : Dionne Warwick, American singer
1943 : Grover Washington, Jr., American saxophonist
1957 : Robert Lepage, Quebec playwright, actor and film director
1957 : Sheila E., American musician
1967 : Yuzo Koshiro, Japanese musician and composer
1970 : Jennifer Connelly, American actress
1972 : Kevin Parent, Quebec singer and songwriter
1975 : Mayim Bialik, American actress (Remember Blossom?)
1977: Yours truly
1978 : Jason Wallace, Scottish Porn Star (couldn’t resist that one)
2003 : Keiko, the orca who played Free Willy and the sequels

You' ll notice the number of artists born on this day (yes, I'm including the big mammal). No wonder I turned out this way...

Catholic Saints (yes, those too!)
It's Virgen de Guadalupe day in Mexico. She appeared to Juan Diego in 1531. Ten millions or more pilgrims will travel to her church. Ay mi madre!

But also today is Ste Jeanne de Chantal (née Jeanne-Françoise Frémyot)who founded the Order of the Visitation in France. She was a brainiac apparently and a disciple of St Francis of Sales. And, even cooler, she's the grandmother of Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, marquise de Sévigné, another writer. (It's a sign, I tell you! LOL)

Why do I add these two saints? Well, they were the only women associated with Dec 12th but, you' ll notice, they have/had clout and I like that.

Once more with feeling

2006-12-06T14:05:00.000-05:00

I just got an email calling everyone to protest the gvt's choice of negociating with vs punishing the kidnappers and other criminals running amok in this country.

So grève/huelga/silent protest for next monday. Not surprising. Kidnappings continue though I haven't heard stories has traumatizing as the ones I reported here.

On the other hand, I did get a fwd'ed email accusing the Prime Minister of getting a cut on the ransoms. Hence he's...apathy?

In the words of my laundress : "verite a ap pale kounye a "

The truth is finally out...

Stay tune for the next episode of your favorite soap : "Haiti, trials of our lives".

Meanwhile, chaos in Mariani over the local elections or asec. I hear even buses didn't go through yesterday. In PV, there's a call for a recount because, allegedly, there were ballots already cast BEFORE the elections started. There were also student protests in front of the Primature and near the Presidential Palace.

It really is the season to be merry.

P.S. Forgot to mention it but about a dozen prisoners escaped the city jail by digging a hole in the wall. Who needs TV in a city like this!!!

Plucking the chicken

2006-12-04T15:01:00.000-05:00

Remember when I told you that Rinse Repeat was planning on paying thugs again to do nothing? I got a couple of emails from a friend who works in a public office that confirm that this is already going on, among other things.

I had to do some editing for clarity but here is what he had to say on different subject. [I'm the one commenting here] :

At work

My last boss what fired because he'd been named by the interm government. The new boss called back all the chimè that had been fired, some over two years ago, so they could claim the back salaries they had'nt "earned" in all that time.

The old boss had managed to turn a profit; the new one is giving away money to people who never worked a day in their lives, including when they supposedly "worked" here two years ago. Worse, current employees got in line to get the checks just like all those chimè and nobody even noticed!

And the ones who where hired under the interim govenment, and got fired after the elections, didn'nt get zip.

Let's not forget all the "chime" standing outside off the office who want to see their pal (I mean the director) and who start shooting when they feel they've waited too long. They're not particularly nice to the current employees either!

Meanwhile, six months can go buy and the real work doesn't get done. They say the new boss is putting some of the office funds in his own pockets. [quite possible and not surprising at all]

In the streets : the cops

When the police stop you, it is not to ask you for your papers or other items. But to ask you for some booze. [great! now we have to provide their drinks too? ]

In the streets : taxis

Did it ever happen to you? You're in a cab and two young guys get in and start asking people for money. There are guys like that on Delmas road : they always get in, watch the passengers, ask for money and then they leave whitout paying. The driver never says anything. [I wonder if that means he's in cahoots?]

I posted this as proof, not only that I am not a paranoid, neurotic freak (a feeling I get from time to time ) but also that there are several other people living here, who are witness to this mess and who are fed up!!!! My friend needed an outlet and you, my readers, need to know.

Urban Camping 101

2006-12-04T14:19:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was election day. Municipal, local and even legislative (in the Artibonite, apparently).

But did I care? No. Did I vote? No. Did other people vote? I wonder. The streets were sooo empty, even for a Sunday morning that my mother and I were rather puzzled. My neighborhood was quiet, QUIET, for goodness sake!!!!

So if we didn't vote and didn't go out, what were we doing, you ask. Worrying, that's what! We're down to between 1h15 and 2h of electricity per day. And this does not make us happy.

Our fridge has turn into a pantry, the ants pantry specifically. We practically don't buy fresh anything anymore. Except certain vegetables like carrots or potatoes or onions that don't really need refrigeration. And since we can't save left-overs, we only cook what we can eat in one meal.

Milk isn't a problem since we've been drinking condensed milk for years now. But things like eggs or bread are surprisingly problematic. We now buy half-cartons of eggs, instead of the whole dz but the bread either goes stale or it molds over.

I have mold phobia, people. And it was EVERYWHERE at first. Now that we basically don't get electricity for much of the day, the mold has dried, we cleaned out the fridge and threw out the last 2 eggs.

Needless to say, I'm trying to use as little electricity as possible. So we don't watch tv/listen to the radio unless there's electricity. I don't know when my inverter is going to give out but I want to make what ever juice is left last as long as possible. So only the lights are on at night. Very depressing.

Very little ironing. Which is in itself a nuisance. You see, while knit clothing would be the obvious solution, my clothes are handwashed so they get scrrrrrubed out of shape by our laundress. So I only had regular fabric clothes. Well, cotton = ironing. I haven't figured out the solution to that one yet; don't want to get a wood-coal iron, ecological responsability and all that. Needless to say, handwashing is here to stay since a washing machine would be useless these days. So round and round we go...

Think that's bad? Rumor has it that the first trimester of 2007 (if not the end of 2006) will be completely energy-free. No electricity. Pa p gen kouran menm menm.

This is very depressing, especially when you hear that some neighborhoods already have no electricity at all, while others, such as Cité Soleil or Delmas 33 (nearer the airport, though) have 24h/7 electricity. I have a friend in Musseau who told me they get electricity during the week but not the week-end .

Now, I've lived through this sort of thing during the embargo so I know I can survive it but it's HARD!!! I just know the price of meat is going to soar. And bye bye yogurt, I'll probably have to change to calcium supplements.

All this brings me to Santa and my list. I used to joke during the embargo that we need everything is two sets : electric and manual. Well, here we go again. I call it Urban Camping 101.

As my mother pointed out last night, first thing we need is a solar-powered lamp. Then a dynamo FM radio. And maybe a dynamo flashlight. Oh, and the blender will have to be replaced (I already have a whisk but I'm thinking more along the lines of a meet grinder).

What else? Hum...I'll have to cut off the internet and the cable service so I need some entertainment. Scrabble and cards we already have. (This is the perfect time for me to learn to play poker, btw). I think the monopoly set is still complete but you could come up with a Clue or a Trivial Pursuit, always wanted one of those.

Did you get all that, Santa? Oh, and don't bother hohoho-ing when (if!) you come, I sleep badly enough as it is, a heart attack isn't a good stocking stuffer. So just come, do your thing and leave quietly. Beware of Sophie, next door, she's the bite-and-drag type.

As to wether or not I've been bad this year...well, I'm sure we can work something out for next year. See you when I see you, Nick.

Just like that...

2006-12-01T10:47:00.000-05:00

Today is the first day of December, my favorite month of the year. Except it's been a while since December 1st was full of happy anticipation for me.

The last two weeks have been more and more difficult. Mostly it's the kidnappings/murders that have me down. Last week, everyone was glued to their radios, listen to this mother's testimony. Her 20 year-old daughter was kidnapped and held captive for nearly 10 days. The kidnappers wanted $300,000 USD for her release.

The poor woman "sells" phone calls for a living and couldn't possibly come up with this sum, even in her wildest dreams. After days of constant negotiations, and with the help of neighbors, she scrapped together a mere 10,000 gdes. Finally, they called her and told her to go to a certain neighborhood to find her daughter.

What she found was the girl's body. They'd broken her arm at one point and shot her. Probably in both eyes. They told the mother she shouldn't have tried to contact the police so they were "throwing [her] back [her] kid".

The day after this terrible interview, one of the employees at work was kidnapped near her home. Which is in the same neighborhood the girl was taken. Those kidnappers (although it could be the same group) asked for the same amount, $300,000 USD. The employee's family paid an undisclosed amount and she was released. She's since left the country.

A few days later, I read in the papers that the body of a six year-old boy was found in Cap-Haitian by his father. The man had paid the ransom twice, in gourdes and in US dollars, but still they killed his son.

Everyday, you hear a different kidnapping story. This Monday, a priest is abducted inside the parish school he taught at. Tuesday, at least six women were kidnapped in broad daylight; all were alone in their cars when abducted. At least four more people were taken that same day. Two high-profile victims were on of Preval's former ministers and a well-know professional.

Wednesday, Thursday, today, probably the same has already happened or will soon enough.

Meanwhile the police says it arrested six hundred people for the month of November alone. Meanwhile, the municipal and local elections are for this Sunday and so the candidats are campaining. Meanwhile, the President, the Prime Minister and nine Ministers are all currently traveling abroad.

The Prime Minister, before leaving, told the press that his government believes that dialog and negotiations are the way out of this situation. One senator thinks that the death penalty should be reinstated for murderous kidnappers. A LOT of people agree with this.

So, if right now, you're dreaming of egg nog and fancy diners, and cakes and decorations, of caroling and gift shopping, enjoy it.

Others aren't so lucky.

We won! We won! We won!

2006-12-01T09:41:00.000-05:00

Some good news, people (enjoy it while it lasts). Our very own BélO won the Prix RFI Découvertes 2006.

Unfortunately, I only have links in French at this time. Those who wish to, can listen to Claudy Siar of RFI's Couleurs Tropicales. He does a two-part show from Douala, Cameroun around the contest.

For the record, this is our second win, the first being Beethova Obas, back in 88. And I'm sure it won't be the last...

Ayiti cheri, mete pou yo!!!

Hello, Is It Me You're Looking For?

2006-10-31T20:35:00.000-05:00

So you clicked and nothing had happened in months. Where was I, you ask? The imp in me wants to say "Guess where?". Or the drama queen would say "I was hiding from the world" and toss her head tragically. Or better yet, the mysterious seductress (believe it or not, I have an inner femme fatale, I swear!) would murmur "Depends on where you were looking" and smile suggestively.

It's none of that. Reality, so prosaic sometimes I could cry, is that I just didn't feel like it. You see, once the excitement of the elections died, there was nothing to do but dodge kidnappers and weep over you food bill.

I did both, religiously. And then the summer vacation came and the city died. The streets were empty, except for those lucky few who have jobs and have to drag themselves everyday to work, no matter what. This is what I did for weeks and weeks.

Then school opened again...except, the streets were still empty. Where were the kids? The first day of school, I saw a total of 4 kids. On a street were there are dozens of schools of all kinds, it was rather shocking, to say the least.

Even that is past, parents must have found the money to send their kids. This is the no 3 priority for my fellow denizens, right after food and lodging, I think.

I do have one other good excuse for not writing, the usual one : Technical Difficulties. My phone has been working, or not, throughout the summer. In fact, last weekend, it didn't work for 24h, between two rain showers. I didn't realize I had an hydraulic phone myself until this happened!!! For some reason, at work was no better. So any little bit of inspiration I managed, died at the sight of Cannot find server!

My morale is as it always is: high for 5 mn, low the rest of the time, like everyone else around me. I don't believe people who say they are not scared or depressed or worried. How can you not be when OP (alleged popular organizations, whatever that means) are threatening "Operation Baghdad 2". Sounds like a b movie, right? Make that a b horror movie.

It started yesterday. They say that kidnappings will return to their 30+/day regimen, with assorted crimes and/or violent acts if the Gvt doesn't give them back the fake jobs they had under The Ex. And Rinse Repeat said yes, that whore! He's promised them 25,000 jobs in the public service.

Still, no matter how upset I am over this, I hope he keeps his promises because they're already burning tires and blocking the streets.

And so my stress rises. And I have no solution to this. Tomorrow and Wednesday are hollidays and I'm going to the beach. Yay!

But (you could feel it, right?) I'm sooo scared. Scared to leave my house empty for so many days. Scared to take the roads. Scared to sleepover outside of the city. But mostly scared to come back!!!

On the other hand, I do need a tan...

You Give Me Fever

2006-05-31T22:08:00.000-04:00

ETA: This post was drafted on May 31st but I never finished it and even forgot completely about it *gasp*. Since I'm going to come back on this soon, you can catch up on the history of this "situation". Have fun and watch out for the next installment! Sorry for the spelling or other errors. I'm giving it to you raw, LOL!

This month of may has been really hot. And I'm not talking about the weather or the political stuff. Oh, no! nothing so futile.

I'm talking about the cell phone wars. You read me, the streets of this city are all atwitter because there's a new kid on the playground and he doesn't play nice.

But before we get to that, I've got to take you waaay back, all the way to 1999, the year of the cellular advent.

Sure, before that there was the CB of the mid-eighties. How could I forget? I couldn't watch the Disney Channel in peace because the signal scrambled everytime a kid wanted to ask his mother if he could have his dessert. And there was a first cell company but only the lucky few, as far as I can tell, had them and they were HUGE.

Then, sometime during 1999, all the landline phones of the national company started going out of order. I recall quite clearly wondering how so many of my friends and family could have their phones busted when none of them lived in the same neighborhood. Lo and behold, Cell Co. No 1 comes out and everyone rushes to get one. I didn't. Not only because the prices seemed a little much but I thought it was a bourgeois fad.

Cell Co. 2 pops up. CC#1 isn't happy. They don't talk for about a month and then kiss and make up. I actually got my first cell phone because my office got a deal with CC#2 and I could pay it off each month.

Both hiked they prices. People grumbled but put up with it.
You see, that's how it works here: since almost everything is a monopoly (blatant or not), most people settle for shutting up and living with the situation as best they can. That is, until May 1st...

Fever when you kiss me...

After months and months of teasing, and enticing, and suggestive comehither stares, Cell Co.#3 finally launched its services. And then all hell broke loose. For a solid two weeks, all people could talk about was this new kid, bulldozing into town.

And believe me, no pussyfooting at all.

The number of stores alone had to make you take notice. And their colors: red and white. I think a blind man's retina would be seered by CC#3's trail of fire across this city. Everywhere you turn, a red store.

They have t-shirts, caps, lanyards, bracelets. It's like a giant tomato exploded on our heads over night.

Fever when you hold me tight...

And when word got out that CC#2 didn't want to talk to CC#3, the new kid took off the gloves and put out an ad naming CC#2 and offering free phones for all who wanted to defect from CC#2.

For two weeks straight, lines of people, from before dawn, in front of each and every store. And believe me, there are plenty of stores to choose from. I counted on the list they posted in the papers, 33 stores between my house and my office.

Now, all through this battle, CC#1 had been very quiet.

La parentÃ¨se EnchantÃ©e

2006-04-21T21:49:00.000-04:00

It's been a while I know. I needed a break and I took it. I made a short trip to visit my aunt and managed to almost not talk about "the situation" with anyone.

Almost because, of course, the minute anyone found out where I come from, they wanted my opinion on all the news they heard about the elections, insecurity etc.

I have to say my most startling conversation was with this volunteer. She assumed I'd voted for Rinse-Repeat which shows you the level of spin people are spewing and ingurgitating. If the poor girl had had access to other sources of info, she'd realize I am truly not the person to assume this about.

I tried to explain my vote choices and my general position in a calm and rational way. Not an easy task, believe me. Especially since I tried and failed to blog about the election results for the first round.

I had to delete all of my first draft, and the second, and the third. By the fourth, I realized this wasn't going to happen. I just couldn't seem to say what I felt without using words that started with f-, c-, g-, m- or a-.

I'm still upset. Whenever I manage to forget that both Haitians and the Int'l don't believe we are worthy of and, actually, even need true democracy and laws and all that jazz, somebody reminds me.

So let's talk about the infamous results. I say infamous because I'm still violently opposed to handing out any blank vote like it's some damned bonbon.

I also cannot stand hearing about how grown up it was for the Haitian people to go vote and not kill each other all over the streets. Practically since the beginning of the registration process, I've heard people say that they were going to "sell" their vote. And just as soon, everybody believed that Rinse-Repeat would win!!!

So big whoop, we voted and no bloody massacre. One could tell from the questions of the foreign press that they were sooo disappointed, boohoo.

I'm still convinced the alleged "spontaneous" protest in favor of Rinse-Repeat being elected on the first round is manipulation. How else to explain that all this crowd would have brand spanking new t-shirt and posters of their dear candidate? In this dirty, no water country? Yeah, right...

As if that comedy wasn't enough, the second round for the legislatives was today. Logical sequences are also absent, you see. Every election will apparently have it's own special counting system. No wonder schools are rare here. Can't have too many people wondering why 1+1 doesn't always equal 2, can we?

Anyway, my mother voted. I didn't. Early numbers estimate that only 8% to 15% voters bothered to go today. My mother went with friends and it was the same site as for the previous round. Except no line, no crowd, nada. To hear he tell it, the whole experience was like a Sunday afternoon during World Soccer Championships.

Meanwhile, I was busy enjoying all the electricity we had. This was my second at-home day (thank you, temporary govt!!!) so I've been doing all the stuff I couldn't do during the terrible blackouts we've just had: ironing, sewing, blending, mixing, curling my hair.

As you can see, my self-imposed vacation is over. Can't wait to see how this latest farce plays out. [insert smirk here]

Ain't no mountain high enough...

2006-02-07T22:38:00.000-05:00

Well, I voted and made it back in one piece. And I have the proof right here:

It went surprisingly well. I'm still in shock. I didn't sleep well at all. Even though I put my alarm on for 5h am, I was awake before that.

We all got dressed and ate a quick breakfast. We met our neighbors around 6h am but there were latecomers so I guess we got to the voting center around 6h30. Like I said in my previous post, we were transferred to a school, the Lycee Marie-Jeanne.

When we got there, the line was to the half point of the street. Around 7h, I left the group to see how far it was. It was up to 3 times that many. I'm guessing 100 people, easily.

So we waited, and waited. At around 7h40, the voting started. It was supposed to begin at 6h but they were late. At 8h25, there were 20 between me and the gates of the school.

While all this waiting was happening, the elderly and the pregnant got to cut in front. There were also the observers, the party mandated people, some press and the local police. I only saw 1 Canadian cop, which was a big surprise. My father says the police was in plain clothes.

At 8h40, my mother and the rest of our group got in but my brother and I, we were locked out. We got in 10 minutes later.

You were assigned a classroom by alphabetical letter and there was a bit of confusion. Lots of people lost their temper because they couldn't find their correct line.

I was out of there by 9h45 am. In the end, my mother, brother and I voted in the same room. They had to find our names on a list with the card number and a picture. You get checked, you vote, then you sign to get your card back, they paint your thumbnail and tada.

I have to say the biggest problem for me was that the only thing separating you while voting was this cardboard contraption: two pieces of carton fitted together in the middle. No real privacy.

And it was even worse for the couple of voting posts outside in the yard. Anyone could see what the voter was marking. Plus, school benches are NOT for adults, thank you very much.

We went down the line before we left for home. I estimate 200-250 people were in line. And there was at least as much at the center across the street.

My aunt lived in Petion-Ville, in the mountains actually, and she went at 2h30, got out at 4h30. Heard the same story from someone else, but she was at another center in PV.

All in all, it was a good day. A few casualties but no big drama. I don't get why the journalists at the official press conference where so negative in their assessment.

Ok, so the next step is the results. I'll let you know asap. For now, I'm off to bed, I'm dead on my feet. Who knew doing your civic duty was so tiring?

The View From My Window

2006-02-06T23:52:00.000-05:00

I thought you guys would like to see what "reaching your voters" means here :

You can tell right away which candidates have a lot of money and which don't.

Nothing but good times ahead

2006-02-06T23:40:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow, I vote. And I'm scared. No big surprise, my fear, if you've been reading this blog regularly. Except this time, past experiences seem to excuse my cowardice, if only a little.

Today, though, I stayed home. The government gave its employees three days off; schools have been closed since Friday. The rest made up its on mind on whether to work or not.

I was glad to stay home, though I couldn't find the energy to do much. I'm anxious. They say that is Mr Rinse Repeat isn't elected, the bad guys have promised to bloody and burn this city. They say that even if he wins, that will happen. That it has always been planned that way.

It's been very quiet lately. At night, I haven't heard anything other than airplanes and helicopters. Even the constant background of generators stopped since we've had electricity every night since the week-end. During the day, no news of kidnappings or crime, but it could be they are happening in secret elsewhere, if you catch my drift...

It wasn't quiet Saturday, though. It was the last day for campaining and you could tell by all the fresh banners, and posters, and balloons, and billboards covering what seems like every available inch of wall or lamppost in town. Saturday, particularly, saw several candidates rousing the troops one last time. Of course, it made for as many traffic jams since the candidates picked strategic points to rally their followers.

And ads urging us to vote where everywhere these last few weeks. On the radio, on TV, in the papers, in the streets, pushing, and pushing, and pushing. I joked with my family that printers and glue manufacturers will come out of this electoral season with beatific smiles. I'm not sure those who will have to scrape and repaint their walls will be as happy.

It's been an interesting campaign. Full of rumors, accusations, puzzling silences and even the death of a candidate. Rumors say that the winner has already been chose, that the irregularities were arranged during the registration process. This seems plausible. Elections, in the last fifty years at least, have not been known for their fairness or transparency, regardless of what anyone might pretend.

The government channels are also showing ads on how and where to vote. They put the reworked list of voting centers in the papers but I checked mine again online, on the website they set up for it. My original center was a block from my house. Then it moved to 2 blocks away, in a neighboring high school. Three days ago, I discovered I would have to walk 8 blocks to vote. So we changed our strategy. Instead of going each one in turn, we've decided to go with a group of neighbors. I've put out my clothes and made breakfast already. We're leaving at daybreak. I want to bring my cell phone but I don't know if I can; I'll have to check.

So tomorrow, I vote. And I'm still scared. I try not to think too much beyond Wednesday. Or maybe I should say Tuesday night, since the UN etc promised partial results for tomorrow night. This is what worries me the most : what's next?

The polls will be opened from 6h am to 6h pm. It promises to be a grand affair. The numbers a impressive. 3 millions voting cards delivered, 9 thousand UN troops, all the police force (well, those not dead, imprisoned or MIA, at least), 12 helicopters and an staggering 36,000 national and international observers plus the newly trained electoral security agents. No motorcycles, strict limitations on speed or vehicle access to centers.

We also made the news. This one is a given. We always get our 15 mn of fame when something big like this happens. It seems like every day, on French, Caribbean or Canadian TV, they have a segment or a documentary on our "situation". I haven't watched US channels but I imagine that even CNN Headline News found something to say about us. I expect to meet a few foreign reporters at the center, although the big agencies will probably crowd the more "interesting" ones like near the slums of Cite Soleil or at the Prime Minister's office in Musseau.

Most people want to vote, if only to deprive one candidate or another from winning. I don't know who exactly I'll end up voting for, I'm more sure of whom I won't vote for. I'm not convinced my ballot will matter one way or the other but I'm not willing to gamble on it. There are also a number of people who will not vote and say so. Either by political belief or lack of interest. The former group say that it isn't our elections, once again, but those of the foreign players. I agree. Those in the latter group just don't think it's important anymore. Most days, I agree with them. Except, I want to do something, not sit and wait as always.

I just hope...

Anyway, stay tuned folks. Surely, I'll have more to tell. Tomorrow.

ho, ho...oh

2005-12-27T12:31:00.000-05:00

I promised a blitz of blogging...and I didn't deliver. Before you complain, I have the perfect excuse: it's the government's fault.

Yes, you read me right. It's all their fault. They went and did exactly what everybody was afraid of: the elections have been posponed. Maybe until January 22nd. They'll let us know for sure any day now. Which means the anxiety of who/what/when will last at least that long.

I'm personnally anxious for us to turn a page. I don't believe there will be elections, democratic or otherwise because it doesn't seem like that's the plan. We're crawling with NGO types, military types, diplomacy types and for what?

When I registered as a voter, I discovered the office by happenstance, walking down the street. It wasn't written anywhere that I could tell. Ditto for getting the card back. My mother stumbled upon the line the first day so we went the next.

Is there a point beyond ridicule? If so, this is what it must be like.

Not that anybody else thinks it's going to happen, either. This canadian journalist doesn't believe so. Neither do most cab drivers I've talked to or any one else for that matter.

I don't even think we really care. We've had gas problems. Sure the streets are almost empty because school is out for the hollidays but the lines in and around gas stations last week were not fun at all.

And then there's the news that we beat Colombia for highest kidnapping rate ever. Rather hard to be proud of such a reputation. I'm personnally very scared to go out. Allegedly, we've gone from 30 kidnappings in Nov to 30 for the first week of December alone. Yikes! I'm also not convinced, like the Police seem to be, that this is purely criminal.

Take for instance this guy who gets kidnapped when he just made a withdrawal at the bank. He gets cornered and kidnapped by armed men. Logically, this is a set-up. Somebody at the bank tipped off the bad guys. Were the story takes a chilling twist is that the unfortunate woman on the sidewalk is taken too. And tortured, to hasten the ransoming process. That one smells like a crime of opportunity. Doesn't it?

I think it's a tool. Which is nothing new. In the past, whenever there's been talk of trouble here and foreign intervention, suddenly your phone or cable doesn't work and thieves are all over you. Can't be just a coincidence, can it?

Not with the UN reportedly renting left and right for an average of 5 years. Not with Mr Rinse-Repeat a favorite if not a sure thing for President. (So much so, he didn't bother until recently to talk to the press, or so they say)

A friend says that if he is our next president, she's definitely leaving the country. After what we've lived through so far, can I blame her? Worse still, with the current crime rate, can she stick around long enough to find out?

'Tis the season to be jolly, right?

Intellige Clamorem Meum

2005-12-02T12:39:00.000-05:00

Until recently, I had been very discreet about my blogging. I had told only a few close friends and family, half of which didn't eve sign up for the thing. And that was just fine by me.

I guess I treated this blog like I do all my writing. I think it sucks, basically. Not only was I voicing thoughts and feelings I wasn't sure I wanted to share with people I saw every day, but, true to my type A personality, I decided to do it in a language I'd initially learned from an animated rabbit.

But I needed to say something. Hence the title this post. It's from the Latin version of book of Psalms, and means : "Understand my outcry". Because this huge scream was building in me and it needed to get out. I couldn't share it with my friends or family because they were either in it with me or too far away to fully understand. Paradoxically, I needed a forum of people who were somehow virgin of all the stories and rumors if only to get my own story out.

I think I had an epiphany in spring 2002, actually. My official favorite artist, Barnett Newman was being showed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and I just was struck dumb by the power of his colors. I couldn't find my favorite "Outcry" but this one, the "End of Silence" (detail) ties in nicely, don't you think? (Of course the physical and emotional effect is lessened by the distance. The actual exhibit gave me chills)

So I blogged. And then, I started getting feedback. Not necessarily comments directly on this page, no. But a few people, some of which I didn't know at all, had linked from the only 2 sites online that blog rolled me (you know who you are, I think) and read my posts. Not only that, they said they liked what they read, were even touched by it. Who would have thought!?!

So I took my courage into my own hands and posted the URL on a group I belong to, inviting them to look at the pictures I put up. Yes, I was being coy. What I really wanted was for them to read the rest. It worked.

Predictably, this is not enough for me. I want to read blogs by others like me. I want to know that I'm not the only mouthy third-worlder out there. I want to see that other Haitian women are speaking out, telling their story.

So I'm putting out an ad:

Wanted
Women bloggers of the third wold. Must be opinionated, frank to the point of bluntness and unafraid. Haitian, Caribbean, Latin America and/or island nationals preferred. Please post link in comments. Transgender applications not received at this time.

One last thing. If you're not sure if you belong to the 3rd or 4th world, it's simple: check out your country's score in the UN Humand Development Index. I'm generous so I'll take anything under 0.80.

Tis the season to...whatever!

2005-12-01T13:53:00.000-05:00

So we're starting the final month of the year. I am beyond glad to see 2005 go, I'm almost dizzy with relief. If only 2006 could be better...

I was discussing this with my mother last night and I realized two things:

1) I can't remember the last Dec when I was actually looking forward to a new year. I don't think it was 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 nor 2004. Maybe 1999, because of the millenium hype? Though I might have been distracted by the bog anxiety.

2) I'm so glad I don't have children!!!! Between the fact that our exchange rate is stagnating at 43,50 gourdes for a dollar, which means every time I get to the cash register at the supermarket, I fear imminent myocardial infarction, and the fact that all those shootings, murders, kidnappings, mutilations and rapes have left me so rung out, I can't even listen to a jingle or a hymn without sneering, I just want this nightmarish year to be OVER.

So if I had kids, I'd have to go through all the Santa, carolls, tree trimming ritual. And to do that I'd have to be drunk for 40 days (including the first week of the New Year, of course, since school children here don't go back until after Epiphany).

Alas, 2006 isn't going to be much better. How do I know this? Simple. The government has announced that elections will be held January 8th, and inauguration February 24th at the latest. That's, respectively, the first non-holliday Sunday of the year and the Friday before Carnival.

Oh, Joy!

In other news, I'm decided to do a blogging blitz for Advent. So between today and Christmas Eve, I'm challenging myself to post something every day! (don't hold your breath). I'm also "improving" on my blog content, as you can tell from the side bar's growth, to your right. Suggestions are welcomed.

And, before I go, a word about today, World Aids Day. While the UNICEF's statistics, for example, can be staggering, there is some good news available. Starting with the fact that initiatives like PIH/Fonkoze in the fight against AIDS has won a prestigious prize, to the real deal : research in Haiti shows antiretroviral drugs work even on us!

So maybe some things, like human life, are really worth fighting for, even when it all seems relative.

Finally, something to cheer about

2005-11-14T14:20:00.000-05:00

Proof that not only is there some good news on this island but that I actually know about it:

My favorite milk drink/yogourt Lèt Agogo won the first prize in the CEPAL/ECLAC competition titled Experiences in Social Inovation. Read about it here and find out about the project here.

Oh, and their milk drink (20 gdes in local grocery stores) looks like this:

I'm so happy, I think I'm going to invest in the dairy project!!!

The View From My Window

2005-11-04T11:35:00.000-05:00

While I was working on my previous post, a protest started in front of my office building and I just had to give you the scoop. The front banner says it's the National Coordination of Cooperative Victims (see here and here for details.)

First, the group grew to fill the intersection, then it became a sit-in, which of course backed up traffic for the whole block.

And then gun shots were fired. Apparently, it was a police officer in plain clothes who was pissed off that his SUV couldn't go through. What I did see with my own eyes is two men in t-shirts and jeans with their black handguns drawn.

Of course, the crowd panicked. My own heart skipped a beat when the first shots were fired because I sit with my back to the window. Anyway, no harm to anyone that I can see. The protest is regrouping as I write this.

A sampling of the signs and chants: "We don't want of live like animals, we don't want the IMF", or "We don't want to be hungry, we don't want the IMF", and after the incident, they chanted "Latortue stole our money, now he's shooting at us".

That last one is rather inaccurate (Latortue "inherited" the problem) but then again, it's not like much has been done in favor of these people.

New column! The View From My Window

2005-11-04T11:05:00.000-05:00

Introducing my new column: The View From My Window where I'll post pictures I take on the streets of my city.

This is a picture of my front yard. The caption: "One man's campaign is another woman's litter"

Kreyòl Pale, [krēōl'] Konprann

2005-10-28T14:45:00.000-04:00

Today is International Creole Day. To celebrate this day, a few words in that tongue, shall we?

Jodi a se Jounen Entènasyonal Lang ak Kilti Kreyòl. Sa vle di tout moun ki pale kreyòl sou latè ap fete bèl lang sa a ak moun ki pale li.

[translation: Today is Int'l Creole Language and Culture Day. This means that everyone worldwide who speaks Creole is celebrating this beautiful language and its speakers.]

I was very happy to watch a debate on Guyane's television around this celebration. I was surprised to see how well I understood what the 7 participants were saying, except, of course for the use of "ka" with verbs which always confuses present and future tenses in my head, but that's another debate altogether...

I was also rather discouraged. It seemed their problems with Creole are almost the same : French is considered a 1st-class language, Creole isn't. People think using more Creole in daily life will cut us off from the rest of the world. Creole is still not considered a "real" language by a lot of people.

One guest, the owner of the local television station we were watching, said that 10 years ago, the station was even stoned because he aired the news in Creole. Things have progressed yet he still has to fight with his guests to get them to interview in Creole.

This situation fits in well with my previous post. Most candidates are using Creole and Rasin music to get the vote. Yet walk into any public office and everyone wrestles with French, all the forms are in French. In fact, I sometimes feel things in Creole are ID and the Constitution.

I hate that this language that all Haitians communicate with is so politically charged. You're "smart" when you speak French, and "dumb" when you speak Creole. And yet, if you actually analyze what most people say in French, was comes out and what they mean are two different things. So it's a means of control and, well, oppression. If you say something only in French, you're guaranteed to filter out almost 95% of the population. This is a good way of making sure people only understand what you want them to.

Our former Prezidan, a great actor in his own right, took to making all his speeches in Creole. Smart man to communicate directly with "the masses". Yet, when he was away, I wonder what stories he told in French and in English...

There are several issues that need to be addressed by the candidates. Foremost is Education. School is mostly taught in French with French books. Is it any surprise that we get such poor results in the official exams? An expert said it best on TV the other day : Children here don't go to school to learn, they got to practise memorization skills.

I was taught Creole in school, in 3rd or 4th grade, for all of 6 months. Never again afterwards. In fact, I was forbidden to speak it even during recess. I didn't even have an opinion on Creole in schools until a few years ago I saw a documentary on Hawai'i.

There is a school on the main island there that experimented in teaching class entirely in the Hawai'ian language (I don't know the correct term). The only class they had in English was literally English. Those students ended up with the highest scores of SAT for that state.

Imagine what would happen if every single law, news article, movie, book or textbook was available in Creole. Every single Haitian would not only have equal access to knowledge, he would also be able to question what's going on around him.

The question now becomes : who really wants that ?

Alien-Nation

2005-10-28T13:15:00.000-04:00

The electoral campaign has been in full swing for several weeks now and we are living the boomerang effect. Forrest Gump said it best : "Stupid is was Stupid does". In our case, "Half-baked is what Half-baked does".

One candidate in particular has been the focus of a lot of opposition from the electoral council itself. To the point you would have to be in a coma not to notice this special treatment.

You see, his nationality was contested because the 1987 Constitution and the electoral laws state that you can compete for state office if you renounced your Haitian nationality. After a lot of haggling, debate, vociferous public discussions, he seems to be back in the race.

I am not a fan of this man, I don't belong to his party, I don't even think I'll vote for him. In fact, I'm rather set against him because he's the US White House favorite, apparently. Still, I wasn't against him running.

Why? Why if he's been living in the US for decades? Why if he's made millions, it's said, in the Texan food industry, (which does not do much to impress me anyway)?

Because it's almost unspeakably hypocritical and biased, that's why! I spent 9 mos working in a small institution with 52 employees. From the Director to the gardener, all of them either had 2 passports, were in the process of getting another, had close relatives ie parents, siblings, cousins who either were foreign nationals or citizens.

Worse still, of the 20 some candidates for President, no one is very offended by their allegiances, except for that one guy. I don't know if it was a preemptive strike but another candidate took out 4 pages of a local newspaper to publish his credentials: both his parents birth certificates, his own and his US green card!!!! Do I really care?

The Constitution and the laws are wrong because they weren't made for the long term. It was convenient in 86-87 because a lot of Duvalier's people fled the country. But when you ban them from the elections for only 10 years, what happens next? It's been almost 20 years since Jean-Claude et Cie left the island. Are we even surprised there are three openly pro-Duvalier candidates for presidency?

All this led me to question what makes one a "true" Haitian. I examined myself. I'm not particularly patriotic because I find patriotism to be a posture. One of my ancestors fought in the War of Independance but so what? Look what happened to that ideal. Some days, I curse my parents for birthing me into this chaotic mess. Most days, I wish I could drop everything, empty my bank account, grab my passport and run for the airport.

Speaking of elections, I'm not sure I'll even vote. Will it be a truly free and democratic vote or is the President already picked out, like the rumors say? I don't trust any of the candidates but so are shameless whores. As friend said, there are some unnatural alliances being made for this campaign. And besides, what have those overnight political parties done for the community, anyway? The older ones bring nothing new. The newer ones sprouted out of the blue.

I do have my voter's card. I registered at the voting office closest to my house. My entire family did, by the way. But I was shocked to realize that, of the thirty people there, office staff included, nobody physically looked like me. I'm light-skinned, everyone else wasn't. They were staring at me and talking about me rather openly. Was I a naturalized Dominican? Was I a bourgeois?

I'm getting used to this more and more. When I get on a bus, people seem surprised that "someone like me" even takes public transportation! Beggars on the streets call me blan as if I were a foreigner. Worse still, people who identify with me are all sure I'm living abroad and that I'm just here for a short visit!?!

So where do I belong in this society? Why am I voting for, if I'm such an oddity? And who's my candidate, anyway?

La Grosse Fatigue

2005-09-23T15:45:00.000-04:00

Several people have urged me to write more. I would like to but my muse often goes to visit her relatives in Les Irois and she can't make it back on short notice.

Seriously though, I do think a lot about my posts (which might go against blogging practises but...) and sometimes I change my mind about what I want to talk about. Or I have no electricity or no internet access.

But mostly, I'm just tired. Tired of thinking in a country where thinking isn't encouraged.

Tired of having my common sense taken for granted. Why did my parents bother to send me to school if everbody acts like I'm too deaf, dumb or blind to understand what the hell is going on?

Tired of being afraid to go outside past dark because I might witness something I shouldn't, get shot or out right killed?

Tired of accidently stepping into puddles of human blood. It's happened to me twice this month alone and it's disgusting. Plus, I watch CSI, that stuff doesn't wash off just like that, you know.

Tired of wondering why I go to work if I just get poorer and poorer every day. I got an inflation increase at work. So What? My buying power is lower than the couple of extra bills I got on my paycheck.

But mostly I'm tired of being disappointed all the time. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Why do I wake up in the morning if the day is somehow going to be worst than the last? School has started for three weeks now but the streets are almost empty before 7h am and after 5h pm. Where has everybody gone to hide?

So, for now, if you don't hear me, it's okay.

I'm just tired.

Blame it on the rain...or not

2005-09-02T15:00:00.000-04:00

Is it really all Katrina's fault, what happened in Louisiana and Mississippi? Or is it ours? The US news channels are all showcasing the destruction, the despair, the looting but I don't really see anything being said about what causes this foul weather and how the cities can take measures.

Surely it is too early for them to focus on that. But still, the questions beg to be asked. Am I the only one who's noticed that the world is getting a little agitated these last few years? I remember clearly being taught in school that we, the poor countries, were more susceptible to these natural disasters. Because, because, because. But this summer, countries in Europe I had never before heard of suffering from this, had flooding and landslides : Switzerland, people, was muddied up!!!

I saw a French panel of experts from all fields essentially saying that the temperature rise (1 degree/year) is at the root of this phenomenon since hot ocean waters cause hurricanes to begin with.

So I'll just go ahead and say it: the US, once they get over the shock, should reassess their environmental policies. They are notorious worldwide for refusing to sign the Kyoto accords on gas emissions and the hothouse effect. And they are one of the biggest polluters, being the biggest industrialized nation these days. If you only take care of the victims, you don't solve the problem, you perpetuate it.

All these images on TV bring me back to Gonaïves, last year. Some stories are so similar. People being surprised by the strength of the water, spouses being torn from their loved ones hands, house disappearing. If there are about 20 hurricanes forecast for this season, I'm worried about what is coming up. After Gonaïves, everybody in the Capital is a little anxious. We're the most populated city on this island, slums clog the canals, the slightest rain turns the streets into rivers.

The property line of the house I live in has shrunk over the years because of the rains widening the ravine behind us. It's family owned and no one thought to have work done when it was still time. My neighbours back wall fell last year, I wonder if mine will this time around.

15 more potential hurricanes to go. God help us all.

Both sides of the story

2005-08-11T15:45:00.000-04:00

I haven't posted in a while. My original blog would have had this title but the subject would have been the media, propaganda and the nature of truth.

I'm not writing about this the same way, instead let's stay on the island and let the lobbyists do what they do best.

The big news these days is the fact that our former president's party signed up on the last day of enrollment for political parties to participate in the election. There are now 63 parties in the run. Why did they do it? Why, indeed when all partisans of the ousted president are clamoring for his return to his legitimate, democratically elected post? Well, some of these party leaders are saying that one should differentiate between those who believe in the party's ideals (such as those who enrolled), and those who believe in their exiled leader's ideals. Whatever they may be...

As far as the temporary government is concerned, the elections are on. They've even extended the registration period until September 15th. Hordes of people are rushing to sign up for the National ID card. Of course, the government sold us on the idea by saying it could be used as regular ID for 10 years (sic). I had mine made in early July when there weren't any long lines under the sun. I could have gone earlier but I waited until an office opened nearby. Now, you have to expect a very long wait at every registration office. Some people still don't know what's going on, witness this man I overheard commenting to his companion that it must be "some check they're giving out". Because, of course, money is the only thing that will motivate people, these days!!!

When we forget the elections, there are the usual topics: security/disarmament/human rights violations; trading petty insults with our loving neighbor; the price of gas/government subsidies (or not!).

Meanwhile, people are filing the streets of the city once more. School starts over next month and many parents are out buying books and fabric for uniforms. We are all still wary and we do jump at the least little sound but not as much as before. Things are different but not resolved. We hear less of kidnappings and such but they still exist.

So Crime is lower but still very present. Case in point : A friend of mine had just gotten home when an armed stranger put his hand over her mouth and a gun to her temple. The story doesn't end tragically for once but being confronted by three armed criminals is not exactly reassuring. Also, a man and his wife were shot at while driving by in their car. The husband's brain exploded (sic) and the wife took a bullet to the neck. I haven't heard another version of the story yet so it's an unsolved mystery, still.

The Other Victims

2005-07-20T16:15:00.000-04:00

The kidnapping and murder of reporter Jacques Roche has been the sole headline of most news organizations here since the actual abduction and, of course, the day his body was found. Tomorrow would have been his birthday. The paper he worked for dedicated most of its last issue to him, his work, pictures, letters of sympathy etc.

The funeral is tomorrow and there is a march planed. The government declared it a national day of mourning. Today, radio stations had special shows about him. Fellow journalists and friends expressed their anger and bitterness over this crime. Fellow poets read Roche's work and their own, in memoriam.

But what about the other victims? I'm not talking about other people who have been kidnapped, tortured or murdered. What about the majority of victims, the survivors. Roche's relatives who came from the USA to bury him. The guys who played football with him. The people who live on the streets where his body was dumped. His coworkers who had to brave gunshots to identify the body. Us all, who heard the news, saw the pictures, read the poems.

Who cries for us? Who prays for us? When the dead are buried and gone, and we have to live on. And pretend we can make it without them. Who will save our souls from the black hole this irretrievable loss pulls us towards?

I have been Identified

2005-07-12T16:10:00.000-04:00

Not by the police or the "shut-up-or-we'll-disconnect you" squad. Nope, Saturday morning, around 10h am, I got my national id card. I need it to vote in the oct-nov elections. 7,000 seats to be filled, after all . As an incentive/coercion, the government decreed that it would be valid 10 years and would be used for opening a bank account, getting a new passport, etc. Plus it's free and who can resist a freebie?

The shocking part was the speed. In 10 mn, I walked there, answered questions, took a picture, had my prints scanned and walked back. Unheard of!!! Of course, you don't get the card until Septembre. Stay tuned for the sequel to this adventure...

Dearest Dennis' numbers are in: according to the officials it's 11 dead, 20 wounded, 3 missing, 15 000 homeless, 154 homes dammaged, 102 homes destroyed. Don't do the math, I couldn't figure it out myself. This assessment does not take into account dead cattle or flooded fields.

Meanwhile, the police has published a list of 300 "suspected criminals, actively wanted" (whatever that means) including their purpoted address and weaponry. Apparently, Wilmé's death hasn't meant even a slowing down of criminal activity in the capital. 10 people rumored to have been kidnapped yesterday alone. 3 funerals, at least, of former kidnappees (2 post-traumatic deaths, 1 suicide).

And to top it all off, the dominican foreign affairs minister is here to talk shop. Let's review what they have to discuss: import(us)/export(them) between the two countries, massive haitian illegals dumping on the border by the dominican gvt, the free zone thing planned around the border line, and, always, money (can't leave out that one).

Hasta luego!

Stormy Weather

2005-07-08T12:45:00.000-04:00

I didn't blog all last week because I was in a sort of reprieve state. Living here is like being perpetually attached to a horizontal bungee cord: it feels like freedom until you're jerked back to reality. Anyway, there was also the Soccer Confederation Cup so relative peace and quiet. Relative meaning fewer kidnappings, killings etc. On the surface, of course.

But this week, hurricane season has officially started. It's always launched with the advent of summer but you know you're in it when the first storms hit. Dearest Dennis has swept by us, bringing rain, choppy seas and strong winds. The southern peninsula is probably a muddy mess as I write this, I haven't heard the news yet. In fact, I try not to read the news. I skim the headlines of the office paper and rely on my father for the analysis. He's really good at it.

Besides the weather, the other big news is the death of Dread Wilmé, one of the gang leaders behind the local chaos. He was shot during a UN troops-led operation in his stronghold. They nicked his femoral artery, bye bye Willie!!!! Of course, his followers/gang members have sworn revenge.

Is this good or bad news? I can't tell yet. On one hand, the USA has refused to send troops of Marines (the usual solution) to help the UN, despite Mr Annan's plea. So it's up to those mostly Brazilian soldiers of peace to clean up the cage. On the other, they have started cleaning since a number of prominent rats are now dead.

So, I'll do what I always do: wait and see.

Dead Quiet

2005-06-22T15:20:00.000-04:00

There was some action downtown today. Witnesses say about thirty armed men came out of their holes to take the city. Most of the banks evacuated their personnel, some by armored car. What a ride that must have been. I'm telling this third hand because I didn't hear a thing from my office, I face the other was completely.

Also, a chain letter, signed by a number of organizations, political or not, is asking people to stay home for three days. As I am both physically and psychologically wrung out, I'm staying home. So no new entries before Monday, at least.

What will happen over the weekend? Especially since the Minister of Justice is stepping down this Friday. Who knows?

We're just going to have to wait and see.

Fear City

2005-06-21T16:20:00.000-04:00

This was the headline of the latest paper. It seems I am not alone in my nervous state, if the testimonies are anything to go by.

The fear is heightened lately because this month is officiall exams month. 574 000 kids, spread over 4 different grades, are taking state tests all month. The department of education had to change exam locals at the last minute because those buildings were too close to the action. Or the bad guys (the BGs, let's call them) were directly targeting them.

Yes, you read right. School kids are still being victimized in this mess. Some 12th graders have already had their exam passes (without which they cannot get in to take the tests) torn by armed BGs. The government intervened and those kids were able to get new passes asap. I know parents who've taken the week off just to make sure the kids are safe. For what it's worth, anyway.

Kidnapping victims were also in the news. They've started telling their stories. This one woman was kidnapped by mistake, not the first time this has happened. Except she was "stolen" by a second group of captors so her family had to pay the ransom twice to get her back. They hit her in the face and kidneys so she would cry out when they called the parents. More impressive that way, you know.

Another tells of dismembered body parts, supposedly of those whose relatives couldn't come up with the money. Of course, this serves as a warning to the newly kidnapped. Get us the cash fast or it's chop chop for you.

Feeling nauseous? I am.

That Familiar Feeling

2005-06-16T15:45:00.000-04:00

I am afraid. Just in case there was a lingering doubt in anyone's mind, let me make myself clear: I am scared. I wake up with fear, I go to work anxious, I come home with my heart in my throat, I go to bed afraid. Every day, every hour, every minute, every waking or sleeping second of my existence is ruled by fear. Just wanted you to know.

Now for the headlines.

The Minister of Justice resigned. A lot of people say it was more than time. I'm not sure. I am biased, of course, as he was a teacher of mine in college. But we all know the truth, no matter how disturbing it is : we are the USA's pawn in this. After all, weren't there American congressmen/women asking for his resignation for the unlawful detention of Aristide's former prime minister? Thy will be done...

The radio was also broadcasting interviews with arrested young members of the gangs terrorizing this city. You hear these boys, some of them with high-pitched voices still, explaining how long they've been in the game, what weapons they've used, and what their functions are. Chilling.

And now the sprinkles : government employees are now the targets of the kidnappers . I have the dubious honor of being one of those. So far this week, two of my coworkers have been kidnapped near their homes. The first one, a woman with no clout or status whatsoever in the administration, was told they would decapitate her if her family couldn't come up with $50,000 USD [at least 4-5 years of her salary, no less]. The kidnappers settled for $14,000 since the family could not afford more.

Stories and rumors abound, of course. They say American Airlines will shut down its flights by the end of the month. They say the airport will also close. They say the kidnappers have lists, and access to potential victims' financial information. They say this is the beginning of a civil war [we can't seem to achieve that status yet].

They say a lot of things. Which will become true?

Modus vivendi

2005-06-14T09:50:00.000-04:00

I was torn over whether or not to post this one. Should I tell you everything, at the risk of turning you, whoever you are, from my blog? Wouldn't it be better, safer, to gloss over things, joke about them, just to keep you coming back?

But then, why did I start this blog? Because I need to tell somebody. Because I find myself in the same place I was almost 15 years ago : feeling overwhelmed, trapped and with no one to share the burden with.

So, I'll risk it. I'll tell you all. Can you handle the truth?

At the end of last week, two of the owners of a well-known, very popular pharmacy were abducted in front of their store early in the morning. They were kept for a couple of days and released one after the other when the ransom was payed. This has become a daily occurrence here. You fear it but you get used to it. It may happen to you today or tomorrow but you're just relieved to get home each night until it's your turn.

Except for the stories the victims tell. Oh, it would be harrowing enough to be kidnapped by armed criminals in broad daylight. Only, these men, these creatures have taken to beating and torturing their prey. Those two victims I told you about? The woman was struck to the face with the butt of a handgun. Her brother's eardrum was pierced with a pencil. Just for fun, it seems. It's not like they were resisting.

Long story short, the criminals were paid, the victims returned home. Shattered, but alive. Maybe that's all we should hope for.

Mehr Licht!

2005-06-09T10:45:00.000-04:00

I was thinking of how I would write this post and the worst thing happened...I woke up to electricity! Of all the rotten luck in the world. Here I was, about to complain, and whine, and bemoan the fact that I hadn't seen a spark of electricity since midnight last Sunday.

Worse, this sad state of affairs would have been the perfect excuse to insult those thugs who run our lives here in the Capital. Rumor has it that the severe power outages are due to the fact that the mazout that the turbines run on can't get delivered because the electrical company has to cross a really hot neighborhood.

Well, can't do any of that now. My mother told me the electricity came on around 10 pm last night and I left for work at 7h40 am this morning and IT WAS STILL ON!!!!!

I'm getting really suspicious. They're not planning on giving it [gasp] every day!?!?!

I can't bare the thought...

Homecoming Fiesta!

2005-06-06T12:05:00.000-04:00

I was on vacation abroad and came home last Tuesday. It had been a pleasant trip, away from the madness that passes as my life here. But (yes, it was coming), at the airport, I met with an older couple I know. Turns out, a very dear friend of mine got robbed at gun point in the middle of the night during my trip. My enthousiasm at going home started to wan. I got on the plane feeling a little low.

As I was being driven home, my father called on the cell phone. "They" were burning down a major downtown market and, as usual, shooting up the streets. I knew then that my vacation was truly over.

But (here's another one) I hadn't heard it all. Oh, no! I went to lunch last Saturday with another friend. And she started telling me about her insomnia. And things that had happened in the month I wasn't there. About the robberies, the shootings. And about this young woman who was kidnapped. And rapped by her four abductors. And about her suicide the day after her return home (against $5000 US, all they could afford). She hadn't told her husband a word about her detention. Would he really want to know?

I went home that afternoon and cried. And didn't leave the house againthat week-end.

Ignorance is bliss, said the song. I wish I were so blessed...

Everything about (almost) Everything

2005-06-02T08:46:00.000-04:00

So I've succumbed to the madness. I'm weak that way. But the truth is simple : I don't know when to shut up. Nobody believes me when I say that as a child, I was so quiet, my mother used to come into my room at random times just to make sure I was still on earth. Boy, have things changed!

The internet has changed my life. Now that I've bored my entire family with my rants, raves and impetuous declarations, I'm going worldwide. I'll tell you everything. What I think of my next election, how to recognize a ripe avocado, what the neigh-boor [pun intended] is doing. You've been warned...