Overview

In 1825, France ille­gally extorted an “inde­pen­dence debt” from Haiti that amounts to $21 bil­lion in today’s dol­lars. In effect, Haiti was forced to pay for its free­dom. The crush­ing bur­den of the debt is the prin­ci­ple his­toric cause of Haiti’s under­de­vel­op­ment, and is directly respon­si­ble for today’s grind­ing poverty in Haiti. France con­tin­ues to resist pres­sure to repay the colos­sal inde­pen­dence debt. In August of 2010, a hun­dred promi­nent aca­d­e­mics, authors, and human rights activists signed on to an open let­ter to French Pres­i­dent Nico­las Sarkozy, argu­ing that the case for repay­ment was “morally, eco­nom­i­cally, and legally unas­sail­able.” France dis­missed the peti­tion, point­ing to its record of deliv­er­ing other aid to Haiti, but did not address the legit­i­macy of the debt.

Resti­tu­tion Analysis

• Open Let­ter to French Pres­i­dent Nico­las Sarkozy Urg­ing Resti­tu­tion, signed by over 90 lead­ing aca­d­e­mics, authors, and other promi­nent figures.
• Haiti’s Inde­pen­dence Debt and Prospects for Resti­tu­tion, by Anthony Phillips, May 2009
• Pro­vide Jus­tice, Not Char­ity, By Brian Con­can­non and Anthony Phillips, Florida Sun-Sentinel, July 2006
• Tes­ti­mony of Dr. Paul Farmer Before French Com­mis­sion On Haiti’s Claim For Resti­tu­tion (Eng­lish), Novem­ber 3, 2003
• Douze points en faveur de la resti­tu­tion à Haϊti de la dette française(French), Paul Farmer, Novem­ber 3, 2003

Resti­tu­tion News

• France Dis­misses Peti­tion for it to Pay $17 Bil­lion in Haiti Repa­ra­tions,Chris­t­ian Sci­ence Mon­i­tor, August 17, 2010
• Bil­lions of dol­lars promised for Haiti fail to mate­ri­al­ize, TheStar.com, August 16, 2010
• France urged to repay Haiti bil­lions paid for its inde­pen­dence, The Guardian, August 15, 2010
• France Isn’t Pay­ing Back What it Owes Haiti After All: The Ques­tion is, Why Not?,Cen­ter for Eco­nomic and Pol­icy Research, July 16, 2010
• Haiti, We’re Sorry, –Deniece Alleyne LL.B, St. Kitts & Nevis Demo­c­rat, June 4, 2007