Lingering Hangovers and Leftovers
Chapter 26
It was Ash Wednesday and many celebrants were feeling the deleterious effects of the night before. Pounding headaches, upset stomachs and nausea seemed to be the norm. The fasting required by Lent added to the discomfort. Empty stomachs, in particular, made people irritable and anxious. They were downright uncomfortable and grumpy. And these conditions helped to vent their anger and focus their aggression once again. It was the Christians versus the Voodooists and the clashes between the two groups were getting out of hand.
The Mayor of Port-au-Prince called for calm, called for peace and called on the national government to impose martial law. The conflict was beginning to rip the psyche and social fabric of the city apart. What started as a religious conflict was devolving into full-fledged civil strife, a free-for-all, where politics played a role as much as religiosity. The situation was extremely fluid, with allegiances made and broken by the day. It seemed as if dispirit groups were coming together for purposes of self-interest and little more. And the fault lines were extending beyond the city. The various political parties now vied with one another for power and preeminence. Each wanted a piece of the action if the current regime got a no confidence vote and snap elections were called. However, a coup might come first if things didn’t settle down.
The public had had enough of the years of injustice, political corruption, repression, impoverishment and government inefficiency. A volcano was brewing and there seemed no way to stop it from blowing its top.
Dick Avery’s strategy had unleashed consequences that he couldn’t have foreseen. In the Diplomatic Security Service, prescience was doled out sparingly, although 20-20 hindsight and finger pointing were never in short supply.
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A state of emergency was declared for the city, just short of martial law. Leave was cancelled for the gendarmes, a curfew imposed on the populace and a ban on groups of more than four people congregating at any given time. Tempers and tensions were rising. The city council was holding impromptu meetings several times a day to figure out what to do. The meetings were closed to the public which angered many.
Out of desperation, the President of Haiti called the United Nations Secretary General for help. The president rightly worried about blood flowing in the streets of the capital if things continued to worsen. The Secretary acted quickly by sending a battalion of UN troops to Port-au-Prince as a stop gap measure to quell the violence. But he knew it wasn’t enough given all the ills of the country. The UN General Assembly agreed that more needed to be done to effect fundamental changes in the Haitian government and economy. Ordinary citizens were demanding such changes and it couldn’t ignore their pleas.
Haiti had always been a problem child and an embarrassment to the organization. So much had been done in terms of humanitarian aid and development assistance over many years, yet things really hadn’t really improved for the average person. The Secretary now saw an opportunity to make real progress with what he had in mind. The Haitians had invited him and he would become their unwelcomed guest. If he had his way, they’d get more than they bargained for in the deal.