HAITI

HAITI. -

I. GEOGRAPHY

A mountainous, extremely fertile island, situated between Cuba and Puerto Rico; it has an area of 76,420 sq. km. and is the second of the Greater Antilles.

Formed predominantly of very ancient rocks (crystalline schists, gneiss, basalts, andesites), it is covered by compact limestones and Mesozoic argillaceous limestones. The region, traversed in its centre by a great mountain chain, presents morphologically mature forms. Climatic conditions vary greatly owing to the diversity and complexity of the relief. Given the abundant rainfall, H. is rich in perennial watercourses, although they are short, owing to the structure and extent of the region. During French rule, which began in the middle of the 17th century, the Blacks imported from Africa came to predominate over the indigenous inhabitants and white immigrants.

Politically, the island is divided into the two Republics of S. Domingo and H. The latter comprises the western part of the island of the same name, with an area of 27,884 sq. km. and a population of approximately 2,500,000 inhabitants. About five hundred Italians, among 4,000 whites, live in the capital, Port-au-Prince, the island’s largest centre. Agriculture is the principal occupation; coffee cultivation, introduced there in 1738 by the Jesuits, is highly developed. Sugar cane, cotton, and cacao are important economic resources. Most trade is conducted especially with the United States, within whose sphere of influence the Republic lies.

Jesuits, Dominicans, and Capuchins undertook the mission among the slaves, who were won over to the Church, although they remained entangled in fetishism, witchcraft, and superstitions. After the expulsion of the Jesuits in the eighteenth century and of the Dominicans and Capuchins during the struggle for independence, the Republic of H. (from 1804) introduced a state-Church regime, which remained in force until 1860. In 1860 a concordat was concluded, and in 1861 the ecclesiastical hierarchy was established, with the archdiocese of Port-au-Prince and the suffragan dioceses of Les Cayes, Capo Haitano, Les Gonaïves, and Porto Pace. Only Port-au-Prince had its archbishop; the other dioceses, on the other hand, were occupied only gradually, in 1873 and 1893, and the last in 1928. It was above all the archbishop Alexis-Jean Guilloux (1819 [1870]-85) who labored for the improvement of pastoral ministry and schools. Since the country lacked priestly vocations, a special seminary for H. was established in Brittany, from which more than 520 priests emerged over the course of 70 years. Since 1922 there has also been a seminary in H. Nevertheless, despite the efforts of the Montfort Fathers in Porto Pace (since 1871) and of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Les Cayes (since 1942), the shortage of priests remains considerable.

For the map of the ecclesiastical jurisdictions, V. ANTILLE.

IV. LEGAL STATUS OF THE CHURCH

Relations between the Church and the State are regulated by the following agreements: 1) the Concordat, ratified on 10 May 1860, with two annexed reciprocal notes; 2) Additional Conventions of 6 February 1861 and 17 June 1862; 3) the Convention “on the property of the Catholic Church in H. and on the organization and administration of parish church-wardens’ boards,” ratified at Port-au-Prince on 25 January 1940.

The Concordat, concluded approximately 90 years ago, secures for the state authority, in the person of the President of the Republic, many privileges, some of which are now entirely unusual: the privilege of appointing bishops, who may exercise jurisdiction only after having received canonical institution; the Holy See may, at its discretion, defer or even withhold it; in that case it must inform the President of the Republic, who will proceed to appoint another candidate (art. 4); an oath of fidelity by bishops, vicars general, parish priests and parochial vicars, and all other members of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, as well as by those in charge of religious schools and institutions (art. 5); and the obligation for bishops to consult with the president or his delegates in order to modify parish boundaries (art. 11) and to establish religious orders and institutions (art. 12).

The two annexed reciprocal notes further specify the meaning and scope of certain articles of the Concordat and establish that, should the President of the Republic not profess the Catholic religion, the Concordat will be modified with regard to the rights therein attributed to a Catholic president, which could not be exercised by someone professing a different religion.

Neither the Concordat nor the other agreements expressly regulate certain matters of vital importance to the Church, such as marriage and education; there is only the general provision of art. 17 of the Concordat, according to which “all matters concerning ecclesiastical affairs that are not mentioned in the present Concordat shall be regulated in accordance with the discipline of the Church in force and approved by the Holy See.”

It does not seem, however, that this provision has been taken into account with regard to the legal regulation of marriage. Haitian legislation, modeled on French legislation, recognizes civil marriage and permits divorce; and a law ratified by the government on 6 May 1949 made the procedure still easier. One should, however, recall a law of 16 December 1929, supplemented by a presidential arrêté of 10 January 1930, by virtue of which religious marriage, not merely Catholic marriage, may, under certain conditions, have civil effects.

As for schools, art. 23 of the new Constitution, which came into force on 23 December 1946, proclaims freedom of education “in conformity with the law, under the control and supervision of the State, whose duty it is to concern itself with the moral and civic formation of citizens.” The functions of the State with regard to private schools were established in a decree-law of 17 January 1942. In practice, Catholic schools enjoy great freedom, and there are many of them, although their number is insufficient to meet the need.

Religious instruction is compulsory in state schools. The government’s appreciation of the Church’s work in the education of youth is demonstrated, among other things, by the Convention signed on 3 March 1932 by the bishops and the government and ratified by Parliament on 6 July of the following year, by which the parish priests of rural areas were entrusted with the founding, organization and direction of “presbyteral schools” subsidized by the State.

A law enacted in July 1947 threatened in some way to disturb the good harmony existing between the government and private Catholic schools. The law provides that “the history and geography of H. and civic instruction may be taught only by Haitian professors.”

The Frères de l'instruction chrétienne refused to comply with this provision in their schools; they did, however, found a juvenat for indigenous vocations, which will enable them to have Haitian professors of their own; for its part, the government did not compel the aforesaid religious to apply the law.

The Convention of 25 January 1940 regulates many important questions concerning the property of the Church in H. and the organization and administration of parish church-wardens’ boards. By it, the Catholic Church and its institutions (dioceses, seminaries, parishes and religious congregations) are recognized as possessing juridical personality and the right of ownership and free administration of their property.

The bishops are the administrators of the property of their respective dioceses (art. 2) and exercise supreme supervision over parish property and its administration.

The latter is entrusted to the parish priest and the director of the Council of Notables, assisted by a churchwardens’ council (art. 8), whose composition and functions are described in detail in arts. 9–33.

The property of a parish church may be used only for its benefit (art. 4). Buildings intended for worship, episcopal residences, parish houses and their dependencies, seminaries and buildings intended for education are exempt from taxation (art. 5); the immovable property of churches may not be sold, alienated or exchanged without the authorization of the higher ecclesiastical authorities (art. 42). The Church’s right to solicit offerings for religious and charitable purposes is recognized (art. 7).

The State’s contributions to the Church are considerable. With regard to parish churches, the contributions are provided by the municipality (art. 53); for cathedral churches, episcopal palaces and diocesan seminaries, they are provided by the Government (arts. 59–62).

The latter also—in implementation of the undertaking referred to in art. 6 of the additional Convention to the Concordat dated 17 June 1862—provides an annual subsidy to the Seminary of St-Jacques, in the diocese of Quimper, France, where French priests who wish to go and exercise the sacred ministry in H. are prepared (in the Republic, of approximately 300 priests, only about forty are Haitian; the others are for the most part of French origin), and to the Apostolic School and Minor Seminary of Port-au-Prince. Other contributions are established in this Convention and in the other one of 6 February 1861 for the archbishop of Port-au-Prince and the bishops of the other dioceses, for vicars general, parish priests and parochial vicars.

President of the Republic Elia Lescot extended to these same persons, in a decree-law of 12 January 1943, the right to a civil pension, confirmed by a decree of the Government Junta of H. dated 28 August 1950.

Ippolito Rotoli

IV. SCHOOL SYSTEM

The rural school is the center of the education of the youth of H., where, in addition to orthography, arithmetic, and geography, they learn hygiene, sewing, embroidery, carpentry, weaving, practical agriculture, and animal husbandry. There are 563 state rural schools, 105 Catholic primary schools, and 6 national secondary schools directed by religious personnel. The education of teachers is provided at the «Scuola di scienze applicate e di agricoltura» and in the summer courses for teachers, which are compulsory.

The University of H., founded in 1921, continues the traditions of the National School of Medicine, Surgery, and Pharmacy, founded in 1863, and of the National School of Law, founded in 1859.

The education of the Catholic clergy is provided at the Ecole Apostolique Notre-Dame à l'Archevêché à Port-au-Prince, at the Grand Séminaire de St-Jacques à Lampaul-Guimiliau, at the Collège St-Martial à Port-au-Prince, and at the minor seminary Ecole Apostolique à St-Pol de Léon.