Friends,

I'm reaching out to you with a sense of urgency, seeking your support for an alternative to the new transition government in Haiti. The future that we, the Haitian people, desire is not aligned with what the U.S. or the United Nations seem to want for us.

The Future We Want is the future we should all desire:
·         A Country United: United behind our Community-Led Humanitarian Intervention.

·         A Country of Strong Institutions: By a transition appointed in accordance with Constitutional norms.

·         A Country of Jobs: By a transition preparing the ground for a New Economic Paradigm Implementation.

Unfortunately, the latest US-CARICOM-brokered transition government, made up of some of our papier-mâché political representatives, puts our future at risk, threatening foreign intervention and potentially leading to conflict with African nations like Kenya and Benin. So much for African solidarity amongst nations when the greenback comes knocking at the door.

We must reject foreign interference and instead support a community-led humanitarian relief effort!

My African brothers and sisters, foreign interference and foreign intervention are not the answer. Interventions have only deepened the division of the Haitian family in the past. We remember the lessons of 1994 when 20,000 U.S. Marines intervened; dismantling our military and leaving our society in disarray and our country highly reliant on international assistance. We must not repeat the mistakes of the past.

Instead, we urge the United Nations to rescind Resolution 2699 and support our community-led intervention. We, the Haitian diaspora, are united in our desire to lead a rescue operation for Haiti, focusing on alleviating poverty and hunger. We believe working together to be a critical first step in achieving national consensus over our politics.

I'd like to reiterate to my friends at the United Nations that the newly installed transition government does not represent the voices of the Haitian people. Asking outsiders to get involved in our family affairs is not who we are, as a matter of principle. The Haitian people would never solicit intervention from the international community to fight our battles, even though our leaders find it easy to commit this cardinal sin with a free conscience. My Haitian comrades need also to be reminded that our liberation 220 years ago and our survival throughout history in a world not always kind to us were achieved with personal sacrifice and national unity. No good will ever come out of a transition government that begins life as a marionette betraying our sovereignty and inviting bloodshed when we are all guilty of failing the country through our actions or our inactions.

Our alternative, the Haiti Transition Leadership Alternative, proposes a leadership trusted to unite the country, street gangs, police corps, bourgeoisie, Diaspora, and all citizens who wish to be part of the solution and not the problem.

Recalling that long before the crisis became about street violence, it was about political instability, parliamentary deadlocks, misappropriation of funds, bad governance, incompetence, which affected one government after another over the last 37 years since our 1987 constitutional amendments.

The right transition cannot be a transition to another series of elections that leads to more political instability. It is time we stop treating our democratic process like an American Idol popularity contest. We must take time to repair the fault lines within the process through which we elect the people's representatives. A transition to a working democracy requires institutional order and reconciling popular will with stakeholder confidence.

With Peace, Justice, and Institutions (SDG 16-Sustainable Development Goal) set as our top priority, development might begin to take hold. As a Least Developed Country that we are, the most attractive prospect to grow is to harness the potential of the Diaspora Economy to drive investment and growth.

Friends, will you stand ready with the Haitian people to bring the right leadership for the country? – A leadership emphasizing collaborative peace, law and order, humanitarian relief, job creation, and reforms to our electoral process.

We believe in our ability to forge our own future, free from puppet governments and foreign dictate. Let us stand together for a future of unity, strong institutions, and boundless opportunities.

Harvey Dupiton

A Project of United Nations Association Haiti in Association with the Future We Want Global Campaign  --  ayiti2030@aol.com