WikiLeaks' cables reveal US twists Haiti's arm for its own interests

Recently released diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks show how much pressure Washington is giving to Port-au-Prince that seem to ruin the country's road to recovery after the 12 January 2010 earthquake.

An Al Jazeera report in the attached YouTube video says the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere was bullied to American pressure. Several US companies are profiting from it since the January 2010 quake, the cables said.

The US Embassy and contractors for clothing giants like Levis Strauss and Hanes signaled displeasure at Haiti's plan to increase the minimum wage for factory workers to $5 minimum wage per day but American officials advised Haitian government that it "did not take economic reality into account," suggesting $3 per day instead.

The secret spiller also revealed that Venezuela—a US enemy—offered Haiti crude oil on relaxed, lucrative terms but the cables alleged that energy companies and Washington twisted the arm of Haiti to prevent the deal from going through.

The cables also suggested to what extent the US is controlling the country. During a visit by Sec. Hillary Clinton, she was described to have repetitively attempted to talk Preval and Bellerive to set up state-run refugee camps, which the Haiti government thought was risky or could lead to protests.

In another YouTube video by Democracy Now, Kim Ives of Haiti Liberté said that the height of arrogance is "when an ambassador is pushing around a president of a country telling them what to do, and they don't understand this, they don't understand that."

There are many more interesting revelations such as multi-million dollar government housing contracts that US companies were alleged to have profited from according to the report of WSWS.

Details of this report here.