V o L u m e I : a d

dubious distinction of being the Western Hemisphere’s

poorest nation. The United States turned a blind eye to

much of the Duvaliers’ tactics because they were staunchly

anticommunist and kept the population in check. Baby

Doc Duvalier hung on to power until February 1986 when,

after three months of increasingly violent protests against

the government’s policies, he fled the country for France.

Between 1986 and 1990 Haiti was ruled by a series

of provisional governments while prodemocracy reformers

sought to overhaul the Haitian political system. After a

new constitution was ratified in 1987, there was a brief

glimmer of hope that democracy and stability might finally

come to the embattled nation. A national election was held

in December 1990 that was internationally supervised and

believed to be free and fair. The winner of the presidential

race was a young, charismatic Roman Catholic priest,

Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Aristide, considered a progressive

reformer, sought to initiate badly needed land reform and

to jump-start the moribund Haitian economy. Yet violence

and intimidation persisted in Haiti, much of it directed by

the Tontons Macoutes and opponents of Aristide. Less

than seven months into his presidency, on 30 September

1991 Aristide was overthrown in a violent coup led by Dr.

Roger Lafontant and supported by the military and Hait-

ian elites who feared Aristide’s reform agenda.

In September 1994 Aristide was returned to power

with American support, and a U.S.-led international peace-

keeping force (MLF) was dispatched to Haiti to ensure

the peaceful transfer of power. Although much hope was

placed in Aristide’s leadership, it soon became apparent

that his administration was tolerant if not supportive of corruption and polit-

ical intimidation. Nor was he able to bring about any substantive improve-

ment to the economy. Aristide attempted to run for the presidency again in

the December 1995 elections but was constitutionally forbidden. Instead,

René Preval was elected, although Aristide and his supporters attempted to

destabilize his government by claiming that the election results were invalid.

This led to deep divisions between the executive and legislative branches

and eventually to political gridlock. In December 2000 Aristide ran for pres-

ident again in yet another disputed election and in February 2001 was inau-

gurated amid much controversy. Three years later, rebellion broke out among

Aristide’s opponents as tales of widespread government corruption began to

circulate. In the meantime, the Aristide government had not ameliorated the

abysmal economic situation. Finally, under pressure from the United States

and other nations, Aristide left office on 29 February 2004, another sad story

in the troubled history of Haiti. Aristide was succeeded by Boniface Alexan-

dre, chief of the supreme court.

Paul G. Pierpaoli Jr.

Haiti

889

Haitian dictator President François Duvalier shown in

battle dress in his office during operations to put down 

a rebellion against his regime, 28 July 1958. (Bettmann/

Corbis)

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See also

Aristide, Jean-Bertrand; Duvalier, François

References

Fatton, Robert. Haiti’s Predatory Republic: The Unending Transition to Democracy. Boul-

der, CO: Lynne Rienner, 2002.

McKissick, Patricia C. History of Haiti. Maryknoll, NY: Henry Holt, 1998.

Trouillot, Michel-Rolph. Haiti, State against Nation: The Origins and Legacy of Duva-

lierism. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1990.

Federal Republic of Germany (FRG, West Germany) academic and politician.

Born in Mainz on 17 November 1901, Walter Hallstein studied law in Bonn,

Munich, and Berlin, obtaining a doctorate in international law in 1925. Four

years later he secured the right to lecture at the university level and taught busi-

ness law at the University of Rostock (1930–1941) and then civil law at the Uni-

versity of Frankfurt-am-Main (1941–1945). Taken prisoner by the Americans

in 1945, he founded a camp university before being released. He returned to

Frankfurt-am-Main in February 1946 to help reestablish the law faculty there.

In June 1950, Chancellor Konrad Adenauer chose Hallstein to lead the

West German delegation to discuss the Schumann Plan for European inte-

gration in Paris. Along with Jean Monnet, Hallstein was one of the key

founders of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). When this

task was completed in August, Hallstein joined the Chancellor’s Office as a

state secretary for foreign affairs. Hallstein moved to the foreign office in

1951, and in 1955 he rose to prominence as the creator of the so-called Hall-

stein Doctrine, which would serve as a foundation for West German foreign

policy for the next fifteen years. The Hallstein Doctrine stated that with the

exception of the Soviet Union, West Germany would not establish diplo-

matic relations with any state that recognized the German Democratic Repub-

lic (GDR, East Germany).

Although perhaps not as well known for this as for his doctrine, Hallstein

went on to win recognition for his work in the European Economic Commu-

nity (EEC). He became president of the EEC Commission (EC) in 1958 and

unveiled the Hallstein Plan for the EC the following year. His vision of a

united Europe clashed with the emerging Gaullist notion of a “Europe of

Nations.” Hallstein resigned his post in 1967. He returned briefly to German

politics as a representative in the Bundestag from 1969 to 1972. Hallstein died

in Stuttgart on 29 March 1982.

Timothy Dowling

See also

Adenauer, Konrad; De Gaulle, Charles; European Coal and Steel Community; Euro-

pean Economic Community; Germany, Federal Republic of; Hallstein Doctrine;

Monnet, Jean; Schuman, Robert

890

Hallstein, Walter

Hallstein, Walter

(1901–1982)

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