[CORBETTLIST] 43702:leiderman: regime change: washington post editorial takes notice

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Date: Sun, 28 Dec 2014 16:34:47 -0700
        leiderman: regime change: washington post editorial takes notice
From:   leiderman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date:   Sun, December 28, 2014 2:46 pm
To:     leiderman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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Stuart Leiderman leiderman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject:

Per below, smack-dab in the middle of today's Washington Post editorial
page.  I
suspect that when a major newspaper uses such media capital in terms of
prominent
column space, that something is already in the wind.

Of note, John Kerry cancelled his December visit to Haiti, followed by the
head of
the US Agency for International Development announcing his resignation. 
When small
countries cause big headaches, superpowers too may realign internally and
abroad.
For Haitian-Americans, it could be cause for alarm or a window of
opportunity.
Fact-finding will reveal which.  Or, everyone could just let the
not-so-invisible
hands do their deeds.  January 12 could be another 7.0...but not geological.

- - - - - - -

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/without-international-help-haiti-faces-a-political-meltdown/2014/12/27/71f90ea8-87bb-11e4-9534-f79a23c40e6c_story.html

Without international help, Haiti faces a political meltdown
By Editorial Board December 27 at 7:02 PM

FROM TIME to time, Haitis chronic political dysfunction erupts in crisis and
violence, compelling the international community to re-engage with an
impoverished
country it might prefer to disregard. Haiti is at just such a juncture
right now.
Policymakers in Washington and elsewhere should pay prompt attention,
before the
predictable calamity arrives.

The brewing crisis arises from a three-year-old political impasse between
President
Michel Martelly and legislators that has blocked parliamentary and municipal
elections. An election date came and went, triggering mounting protests
and street
violence in recent weeks.

Now the clock is ticking toward what looks like a watershed. On Jan. 12
the terms of
most members of parliament will expire. In the absence of a duly elected
parliament,
Mr. Martelly will be empowered to rule by decree, a dangerous scenario in
a country
with a history of autocracy and instability.

Some lawmakers in the politically fractured parliament think Mr. Martelly,
elected
in 2011, has been angling all along to establish a de facto dictatorship.
In fact,
parliament shares the blame. A group of six senators has blocked
legislation to
establish an electoral council on the grounds that its composition and
rules would
favor candidates loyal to the president. With no council in place,
elections are off
the table.

To his credit, Mr. Martelly tried to break the impasse this month by
forcing the
resignation of his prime minister and close political ally, Laurent
Lamothe. Mr.
Lamothe, a wealthy businessman, was widely seen as Mr. Martellys hand-picked
successor for president; the hope was that his departure would clear the
way for a
compromise between the president and the opposition, leading to elections.

So far that hasnt happened. If a vacuum develops, Mr. Martelly will be
the last man
standing; he says hes prepared to lead by decree if no deal is struck
leading to
elections. Even the presidents moderate opponents say that would trigger
a wave of
violence.

Recognizing that the standoff has become dire, Secretary of State John F.
Kerry has
urged a negotiated settlement that would open the door for elections to be
scheduled as soon as possible. Yet without more aggressive mediation by
U.S.,
United Nations, French, Canadian and other diplomats, the chances of such a
settlement are slim.

As it happens, the senators terms will expire and parliament will be
dissolved on
the fifth anniversary of the earthquake in 2010 that killed more than 100,000
Haitians. As Mr. Kerry pointed out, too much progress has been made since
then
toward rebuilding Haiti to risk extinguishing all hope amid renewed political
violence.

To dismiss Haiti as a basket case or shrug off its troubles as insoluble
is to
forget a history that suggests that without outside help, the country can
deteriorate into anarchy, at which point ignoring it is no longer an option.

- - - - - - -

leiderman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[CORBETTLIST] 43702:leiderman: regime change: washington post editorial takes notice

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