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26719: Ives replies to Mitchel Cohen: (reply) The infamous "Sprague fiasco" on Haiti (fwd)
From: K. M. Ives <kives@toast.net>
Mitch,
You say that "Jeb Sprague smeared this small, hard-working group [Batay
Ouvriye] as having been paid-off by various U.S. government agencies." That is
false. He did not smear them. He simply stated a fact. They received money from
the AFL-CIO's Solidarity Center, which is, any honest analyst agrees, an arm of
the U.S. government. Sprague lays this out.
Batay Ouvriye admits they took money from the Solidarity Center and that they
even KNOW what kind of tool the Solidarity Center is (however, both they and
the Solidarity Center refuse to reveal how much money has been given to BO --
we know it's at least $3,500; if they really feel taking that money is so
innocuous, let's know the total disbursed).
The point here is NOT the amount of money given; it is NOT whether a group is
"hard-working"; it is NOT whether workers rights in Haiti need to be defended.
The point is that OBJECTIVELY Batay Ouvriye and other ultra-"leftists," no
matter what their intent, aided and contributed to Washington and Paris'
destabilization campaign to overthrow Aristide. That is why the U.S. government
has no problem to channel money to them. Washington has not and would not
channel money to a group calling for Aristide's return. They don't want that.
You suggest that "Sprague et al... have vested themselves in Pres. Aristide's
politics and organizational formations inside Haiti, and cannot tolerate
activists who criticize Aristide's pro-IMF policies FROM THE LEFT and demand an
end to the U.N. occupation there." That's just wrong. Haiti Progres, PPN, Chalo
Jaklen, Kakola, and other Haitian left organizations have all criticized
Aristide "from the left" and have nothing "vested" in "Aristide's politics and
organizational formations inside Haiti," and are in the forefront of the
struggle against occupation... and the IMF.
These left groups all fought and are fighting the coup fomented by George W.
Bush, Jacques Chirac, and Paul Martin. They fight it on principle as a
violation of sovereignty and democracy. Haiti's majority elected Aristide. You
might disagree with some of his policies or methods or goals, but please, don't
"pote dlo nan moulen" (bring water to the mill) of imperialism. That is what
the ultra-"leftists" did and are doing. That is why the Solidarity Center gives
them money. And that is why Jeb Sprague's research is valuable.
Kim Ives
P.S. Thank you, Mitch, for at least disowning the gratuitous Larouche
comparison. I'm not sure what the "Big Lie" technique is, but Haiti Progres
certainly has no affinity for the conspiratorial fabrications of a nut like
Larouche. But we do have an interest in analyzing and fighting the mechanics of
the empire.
----- Original Message ----- From: "Bob Corbett" <corbetre@webster.edu>
To: "Bob Corbett's Haiti list" <haiti@lists.webster.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, November 29, 2005 7:59 AM
Subject: 26704: Mitchel Cohen: (reply) The infamous "Sprague fiasco" on Haiti
(fwd)
From: mitchelcohen@mindspring.com
I want to add my own views to Daniel Simidor's on-target critique of the Jeb
Sprague fiasco concerning Haiti, below.
Student Jeb Sprague gave a talk, based on research he is doing for his Ph.D.
thesis, at the Haiti War Crimes Tribunal in Washington D.C. that promised to
elaborate on charges he'd made earlier against Batay Ouvriye, which were
widely published within the Left in the U.S. With the help of a number of
groups including, sadly, Haiti Progres, Jeb Sprague smeared this small,
hard-working group as having been paid-off by various U.S. government
agencies. When activists in the Haiti freedom movement challenged him to
document his charges which, as Daniel Simidor points out, endanger the lives
of activists in Haiti, Sprague swore he had the documentation and would
present it.
Now it turns out that Sprague's "documentation" was a complete lie. But
instead of apologizing, Sprague and those who have glommed onto his
dissertation research (shades of the Downing Street memos!) to pursue their
own political agendas are pushing it still, even though there is no truth to
it. This is a shameful way for a "researcher" to conduct himself (and note
should be taken by his Ph.D. committee about this), let alone for other
leftist groups to recklessly continue the deception and smear tactics.
One does not have to agree with Batiye Ouvriye's entire program to understand
what Sprague et al.'s unscrupulous behavior is really about: That there are
those who have vested themselves in Pres. Aristide's politics and
organizational formations inside Haiti, and cannot tolerate activists who
criticize Aristide's pro-IMF policies FROM THE LEFT and demand an end to the
U.N. occupation there.
My only disagreement with Daniel Simidor is that I would not describe Ben
Dupuy as LaRouche-like; I think that clouds the issue politically, even
though I understand that Daniel is referring to the "Big Lie" technique that
LaRouche and Dupuy both use ....
Jeb Sprague, Haiti Progres, and other organizations and individuals who are
spreading this lie need to retract it immediately and apologize for their
reckless, sectarian behavior.
Mitchel Cohen
Brooklyn Greens / Green Party