Haiti: The Struggle for Sovereignty. Андрей Тихомиров

      In 1844, the Dominican Republic was formed in the eastern part of the island. The President of Haiti (since 1847) was Ouluk, who proclaimed himself emperor in 1849, tried to reunite the entire island, but was defeated by Dominican troops. After his overthrow (1858) and the final establishment of the republic, power struggles, frequent rebellions and coups continued in Haiti. There were mainly two parties fighting: the "national" party, which reflected the interests of the wealthy elite of the Negro peasantry, and the "liberal" party, in which the petty bourgeoisie and the intelligentsia played a leading role. The frequent coups were also caused by the intrigues of Western powers seeking to strengthen their positions in Haiti. Given the strategic and economic importance of Haiti, the United States was particularly active in trying to assert its control over the island. From 1847 to 1915, American warships under the pretext of "maintaining order" appeared at least 20 times in Port-au-Prince. Since the end of the 19th century, the increased penetration of American capital began, and by the end of the First World War, the US monopolies, with the direct support of the State Department, drove out French and German capital. In an effort to gain monopoly dominance in the Karaib region, the United States tried in every possible way to impose a bonded customs control treaty on Haiti. During their intervention in 1911-1915, 6 presidents were replaced who refused to sign such an agreement. In December 1914, the US imperialists, sending a detachment of marines, seized Haiti's gold reserves, which were then transported to New York. In the summer of 1915, the United States occupied the city and forced its protege Dartigenava (1915-1922) to be "elected" president of the republic. However, the American Admiral Caperton became the true ruler. Under his pressure, in September 1915, a treaty was signed giving the United States the "right" to intervene and establishing full military, political and financial control over Haiti. But it was only after new pressure from Washington that the country's congress ratified (at the end of 1915) this imperialist treaty. In 1918, the occupiers imposed a new constitution on the people of Haiti, which for the first time in the history of the republic allowed foreigners to own land on the island. As a result, American capitalists seized the best lands. They used forced labor of the population to cultivate their plantations. Having seized the National Bank of the country, the United States imposed a bonded loan on Haiti in 1919 and took control of foreign trade.