by Océane Jasor, COHA Research Associate The erosion of laudable democratic processes and the pervasiveness of corruption in the Caribbean do not only affect their governments and people. Washington would be wise to realize that instability in its neighborhood translates into a poisoned environment for trade negotiations and muddied efforts at various forms of political cooperation. The U.S. must find a way to pragmatically assess and be responsive to the social and economic problems of its fragile neighbors in accordance with Washington’s long-term political interests. However, given its track record of neglect and abuse, any usable formula still sits far off on the horizon. Hopefully, Washington may learn to look after its long-term hemispheric goals in a more perceptive, constructive manner, upon which more lasting friendships will be made and genuine interests be served. Problematic Relations Between the U.S. and CARICOM As the U.S. became increasingly security-driven after 9/11, it turned to the Caribbean for support at the UN concerning the war in Iraq and other Middle East issues. To Washington’s surprise, CARICOM did not automatically align itself with the U.S. cause, despite President Bush’s threat -- passed on to the Caribbean by its then hardline White House Latin America aide, Otto Reich, via Barbados television -- where the latter stressed that the U.S. would always “remember” those countries that did not give their entire allegiance to the U.S. in its overseas engagements. But CARICOM’s decision should have come as no shock to a Bush administration that repeatedly has ignored the Caribbean’s vital economic problems, centering on trade issues. Washington has put great pressure on Caribbean economies by opposing the EU’s preferential agreements on agricultural products (specifically bananas) with Caribbean producers under first the Lomé and then the Cotonou Agreement, and by applying new regulations concerning the numerous offshore financial services based on the various Caribbean islands. So far, the Bush administration has failed to grasp that the negative effects of its policy on those sectors will more than likely encourage drug trade and illegal immigration from the Caribbean, issues of prime concern to U.S. security. For example, many small-scale farmers in Dominica, where bananas constitute 90 percent of the nation’s exports, have predicted that they will have to resort to illegal dealings, including drugs, in order to survive. It is in the U.S.’ best interest that its policies toward its neighbors be fair and consistent, if only because it shares mutual interests with CARICOM. Economic and political stability in the region is crucial if the U.S. wants to prevent the surge of more illegal activities across its borders and achieve a successful trade relationship with the CARICOM and Central American countries, now that the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) has been joined by Central America-Dominican Republic Free trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA). At the same time, it should be aware of the portentous consequences that could arise from the U.S. using its financial and trade leverage to bully the region over relations with countries such as Cuba, Venezuela and Haiti. Erosion Hits Washington’s Original Commitment to Haiti Haiti best illustrates how Washington’s episodic concerns can affect its stability while undermining democracy’s prospects throughout the Caribbean. On May 27, 2005, the U.S. Department of State urged American citizens as well as its non-emergency embassy personnel in Haiti to leave the country for security reasons. Washington’s decision triggered noticeable disappointment among Haitian officials, fearful that this would further contribute to the island’s isolation. Others were not surprised that the White House was only mildly cognizant of the plight of the benighted Caribbean country. The Bush administration seems unable to make up its mind on a course of action, affirming Haiti’s instability by deeming it unsafe for U.S. personnel and their families in the country, but summarily insisting on returning would-be Haitian refugees to the island after being intercepted on the high seas, denying that they are in fact attempting to escape harsh violence in their country. After supporting the ousting of president Jean-Bertrand Aristide and installing Gerard Latortue to lead Haiti’s Interim Government (IGH), the U.S., publicly shunned any further substantive role in the country. On May 28, Latortue declared that the U.S.’ advice to its nationals concerning Haiti’s dangerous conditions was “regrettable, and occurred at a time when Haiti was desperately in need of international friends.” Moreover, there have been recent rumors that U.S. Marines may be sent to Haiti, despite the White House’s previous commitment to not involve its forces there. The deployment of Marines would clarify that one of Washington’s primary interests was all along to try to prevent Haitian ‘boat people’ from seeking asylum on U.S. shores, and that the Bush administration was not prepared to do anything to expedite the issuance of temporary parole status for Haitians in this country. On August 20, 2004, twenty Haitian asylum seekers were arrested for illegally entering the U.S. after their boat landed at Hutchinson, Florida. They were detained and quickly sent back to Haiti. Moreover, from February to August 2004, the Coast Guard has interdicted roughly 2, 000 Haitians and quickly repatriated them in spite of the general violence and possible reprisals facing them. If illegal immigration ranks high on the U.S. agenda, the movement of illicit substances unquestionably is a major threat to U.S. security, since counter-narcotics efforts became merged with the U.S. War on Terrorism. Who Remembers Grenada? Grenada is the perfect example that engaging in non-democratic processes cannot be the best way to solve the rampant Caribbean drug problem. As illegal drug trafficking has overtaken Grenada, Washington may dearly come to regret its inconsistency in overlooking the fact that the final destination of narcotics transiting through the Caribbean is mainly the U.S. Grenada along with other agriculturally-based economies need relief. Grenada was once seen by the Reagan administration’s ideologies as vital to the protection of the kind of democracy that the U.S. was promoting in the Caribbean and Latin America. In 1983, at the height of the friction between Castro and the Reagan administration, Grenada was moved to the top of the U.S. regional agenda. On the pretext that hundreds of American medical students attending St. George University were under the threat of the recently staged bloody coup by hard-line Marxist Bernard Coard, the U.S. invaded the island. In reality, the Grenada invasion was a small-scale manifestation of a larger conflict, as the coup gave President Reagan an excellent opportunity to display his unswerving anti-communist policy throughout the rest of the region by ordering hundreds of U.S. troops to seize the island. After the U.S.’ quick victory, its obsessive Cold War interest in Grenada precipitously waned, shortly after which Grenada became a major center of drug-trafficking and money laundering once U.S. forces departed. Along with six other Caribbean islands (Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines), Grenada forms the eastern edge of the Caribbean transit zone for drugs - mostly cocaine and marijuana products - traveling from South America to the U.S. and other global markets. It is estimated that 20% of all drugs entering the U.S. pass through this corridor. A New Vision of Hemispheric Relations Inevitably, popular discontent with current economic and political outcomes in the region will affect the U.S.’ most pressing interests in forthcoming hemispheric free trade agreements. Washington’s self-serving policies, together with its application of tough-fisted, military or diplomatic intervention stratagems and the imposition of its trade interests, simply will not do it for Latin America and the Caribbean anymore. Washington is likely to face greater challenges in coming years from the same Latin American and Caribbean countries that so complacently adjusted to its favored policies in the past or even at the present time. Over the last few decades, the U.S.’s foreign policy in the region has been characterized by a cold war-era power bloc mentality. Limited and self-absorbed foreign policy initiatives have facilitated the illicit activities such as drug running. Meanwhile, Washington was concentrating on neoliberal economic reforms. But for the Caribbean Basin countries, local socio-political insecurities and disappointingly low human development indicators dominate regional discourse. In its dealings with Latin America, the U.S. has shown only intermittent interest in local politics and comprehensive economic and political growth, with little evidence being exhibited of Washington’s capacity for long-term constructive engagement. Considering Latin America’s proximity to the U.S. and its current economic, social, and political instability, Washington’s relations with the Latin American-Caribbean region must be further up on its list of foreign policy interests. Andrew Selee, a senior program associate in the Latin American program of the Woodrow Wilson Center said in an interview with COHA, that “neighborhood makes a lot of difference. This is one of the most important lessons governments have learned over the years. Regrettably, the U.S. has not yet learned it very well.” Latin America is one neighborhood where engaged diplomacy, paired with the genuine pursuit of human rights and an acceptable standard of living, are fundamental to regional stability. Washington should prepare itself to restructure its emphasis on seeking pragmatic, comprehensive approaches to poverty alleviation, the elaboration of social justice and the encouragement of democratic institution-building, in order to augment the region’s capacity for political and economic cooperation with the outside world and the advancement of the common good. The Council on Hemispheric Affairs, founded in 1975, is an independent, non-profit, non-partisan, tax-exempt research and information organization. It has been described on the Senate floor as being “one of the nation’s most respected bodies of scholars and policy makers.” For more information, visit www.coha.org or email coha@coha.org. Reprinted from Caribbean Net News caribbeannetnews.com