Wyclef Jean Haiti – Wyclef Jean runs for President Minister of Culture Marie-Laurence Jocelyn-Lassègue Celebrates Writers, Artists and Musicians as the Fabric of Haiti [video]
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Whether you like Wyclef’s music or not, his bid to become President of Haiti is daring, audacious, and surprising.
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Historically, musicians have rarely been political leaders, especially presidents of countries, but in the case of Wyclef Jean and Haiti, the truth is so raw that it hurts: Haiti’s government has been plagued by corruption for so many generations, that even a musician can look better to the public at home in Haiti, and abroad. Leaving aside questions of Wyclef’s leadership of Yelé Haiti (his own non-profit that ostensibly paid his group a substantial sum for performing at a fundraiser that raised more than $1 million – objectively, one can see that his organization has done more good than harm, that is what is important), it is glaringly obvious that he has few formal qualifications to lead Haiti. This does not mean that he could not bring some needed change to Haiti, and already has. Effective leadership today generally comes as a result of informed teamwork, not upstart personalities running things on their own. This means that if Wyclef had the right team around him, he could continue his career as a musician, while also bringing the much-needed attention and leadership necessary for a Haitian recovery and renaissance. One analyst, Alice Barrett, writes: “Wyclef’s candidacy brought a good deal of buzz to the campaign, but many fear that he would only continue the pattern of weak executive rule, which could open up the island to increased money laundering as well as drug and human trafficking.” Whoever takes on the challenge and accepts the opportunity to lead Haiti will need to ensure what should be givens around the world: education, birth control, sustainable agriculture, equal opportunity, and a democratic country run by locals with benevolent input from the world community.
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Governments around the world have been reluctant to release the more than $9.9 billion pledged for Haiti’s reconstruction. Once there is a transparent financial apparatus in place – a system that involves checks and balances and progress reports including receipts to the donor nations – then, in principle, whoever is in power will be responsibly monitored. This should be the case in every country. There are passionate discussions recently about the importance of Haitian empowerment and indeed, the empowerment of local leaders, doctors, educators, financiers, etc. is paramount, but in the transition to a more stable Haiti, the country must have an implemented system of checks and balances that makes it immune to corruption — a system ideally applied in all countries around the world. The UN has mechanisms to help root out corruption. The reality in Haiti today is that gangs — gangs! — are often what assure the safe arrival of medicine and food to the needy. Until a reliable national security detail is in place and at work in Haiti, the population is for the most part on its own.
.
Haiti’s embattled leader René Préval has been understandably overwhelmed by the ravaging effects of the earthquake that has shaken the foundations of the country to the core. He has been criticized for being an absent leader, but in his defense, rebounding from a tragedy of this magnitude is difficult. From a psychological point of view, trauma survivors need time to recover. Trauma can cause depression which can significantly impact normal professional activity. He will hopefully welcome a chance to recuperate physically and psychologically from the tragedy of the earthquake, as a team of new leaders — using skills gained from those with experience in leading Haiti — begins to guide the country’s future.
.
Marie-Laurence Jocelyn-Lassègue, the current Haitian Minister of Culture, would make a tremendous leader. She has understood that the essence of a country is not its economy, exports, GNP or GDP, but its culture. By keeping the writers, artists and musicians of Haiti at the center of the redevelopment of Haiti, she is effectively capitalizing on Haiti’s greatest strength: the inner core of its people who are profoundly spiritual and proud. At UNESCO headquarters in Paris last March, Minister Jocelyn-Lassègue met with a group of writers, artists and musicians to strategize Haiti’s future. At the forum “Rebuilding the Social, Cultural and Intellectual Fabric of Haiti,” she said, “Culture is at the basis of our development. For us, culture is not a luxury, not an accessory. It is through culture and by culture that we’ll be able to develop certain aspects of our society.”
.
Whatever your thoughts on the leadership of Clint Eastwood as Mayor of Carmel, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Governor of California, Ronald Reagan as President of the United States, or Cicciolina as Member of Italy’s Parliament, these public icons who transcended their original careers as actors and models to become powerful political figures realize a collective dream in which the voiceless are given voices.
Read more http://bestgreensandiego.wordpress.com/
- Bridget Brigitte http://www.bridgetmusic.com/ is a songwriter who has helped facilitate the delivery of aid to Haiti earthquake survivors with an international non-profit first-response organization, and is CEO of the Women’s International Center. This article was previously printed in SongNotes.
.
Historically, musicians have rarely been political leaders, especially presidents of countries, but in the case of Wyclef Jean and Haiti, the truth is so raw that it hurts: Haiti’s government has been plagued by corruption for so many generations, that even a musician can look better to the public at home in Haiti, and abroad. Leaving aside questions of Wyclef’s leadership of Yelé Haiti (his own non-profit that ostensibly paid his group a substantial sum for performing at a fundraiser that raised more than $1 million – objectively, one can see that his organization has done more good than harm, that is what is important), it is glaringly obvious that he has few formal qualifications to lead Haiti. This does not mean that he could not bring some needed change to Haiti, and already has. Effective leadership today generally comes as a result of informed teamwork, not upstart personalities running things on their own. This means that if Wyclef had the right team around him, he could continue his career as a musician, while also bringing the much-needed attention and leadership necessary for a Haitian recovery and renaissance. One analyst, Alice Barrett, writes: “Wyclef’s candidacy brought a good deal of buzz to the campaign, but many fear that he would only continue the pattern of weak executive rule, which could open up the island to increased money laundering as well as drug and human trafficking.” Whoever takes on the challenge and accepts the opportunity to lead Haiti will need to ensure what should be givens around the world: education, birth control, sustainable agriculture, equal opportunity, and a democratic country run by locals with benevolent input from the world community.
.
Governments around the world have been reluctant to release the more than $9.9 billion pledged for Haiti’s reconstruction. Once there is a transparent financial apparatus in place – a system that involves checks and balances and progress reports including receipts to the donor nations – then, in principle, whoever is in power will be responsibly monitored. This should be the case in every country. There are passionate discussions recently about the importance of Haitian empowerment and indeed, the empowerment of local leaders, doctors, educators, financiers, etc. is paramount, but in the transition to a more stable Haiti, the country must have an implemented system of checks and balances that makes it immune to corruption — a system ideally applied in all countries around the world. The UN has mechanisms to help root out corruption. The reality in Haiti today is that gangs — gangs! — are often what assure the safe arrival of medicine and food to the needy. Until a reliable national security detail is in place and at work in Haiti, the population is for the most part on its own.
.
Haiti’s embattled leader René Préval has been understandably overwhelmed by the ravaging effects of the earthquake that has shaken the foundations of the country to the core. He has been criticized for being an absent leader, but in his defense, rebounding from a tragedy of this magnitude is difficult. From a psychological point of view, trauma survivors need time to recover. Trauma can cause depression which can significantly impact normal professional activity. He will hopefully welcome a chance to recuperate physically and psychologically from the tragedy of the earthquake, as a team of new leaders — using skills gained from those with experience in leading Haiti — begins to guide the country’s future.
.
Marie-Laurence Jocelyn-Lassègue, the current Haitian Minister of Culture, would make a tremendous leader. She has understood that the essence of a country is not its economy, exports, GNP or GDP, but its culture. By keeping the writers, artists and musicians of Haiti at the center of the redevelopment of Haiti, she is effectively capitalizing on Haiti’s greatest strength: the inner core of its people who are profoundly spiritual and proud. At UNESCO headquarters in Paris last March, Minister Jocelyn-Lassègue met with a group of writers, artists and musicians to strategize Haiti’s future. At the forum “Rebuilding the Social, Cultural and Intellectual Fabric of Haiti,” she said, “Culture is at the basis of our development. For us, culture is not a luxury, not an accessory. It is through culture and by culture that we’ll be able to develop certain aspects of our society.”
.
Whatever your thoughts on the leadership of Clint Eastwood as Mayor of Carmel, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Governor of California, Ronald Reagan as President of the United States, or Cicciolina as Member of Italy’s Parliament, these public icons who transcended their original careers as actors and models to become powerful political figures realize a collective dream in which the voiceless are given voices.
Read more http://bestgreensandiego.wordpress.com/
- Bridget Brigitte http://www.bridgetmusic.com/ is a songwriter who has helped facilitate the delivery of aid to Haiti earthquake survivors with an international non-profit first-response organization, and is CEO of the Women’s International Center. This article was previously printed in SongNotes.
