A bounced check
By Miguel Ángel Ferrer
Miercoles, 20 de Enero de 2010
We Mexicans have a lot of experience with earthquakes. We know, by experience, that a 7.0-plus magnitude quake doesn't destroy well-built buildings. Mexico City's Torre Latinoamericana has resisted both the 1957 and 1985 disasters without the slightest hint of damage.
We know that modern civil engineering has the technical and scientific knowledge to build buildings and structures that resist earthquakes such as the one Haiti experienced last week. And we know that such constructions are designed to resist earthquakes with greater magnitudes than the one that has destroyed Port-au-Prince. This knowledge, therefore, obliges one to search for an explanation as to why Haiti's situation is so immense. After the 1985 tragedy, we knew that public and private buildings that fell, for example, were built with thick wire instead of metal rods, and that many of those were built without complying with construction regulations.
It's important to remember that the majority of large buildings that fell or were damaged were public: the Tlatelolco housing complex, a National College of Technical and Professional Education school, the Health Secretariat's Juárez Hospital. And if its true that the strongest-hit zone was the downtown area, there were, and are, very tall buildings that weren't affected. The lack of building compliances during that time was the reason for such an immense tragedy. And this non-compliance has no explanation other than corruption and complacency between construction companies and public officials.
Shoddy construction is on par with selling 900 grams of something when the customer pays for a kilogram. Both classic cases of fraud and deceit.
In Port-au-Prince's case, all fingers point to corruption. Aggravated and inherent corruption in the neo-colony. One mustn't forget that Haiti is a neo-colony of the United States. A Yankee neo-colony occupied by the military, even though these forces hide their original imperial image under the mask of the United Nations flag. It's well-known that colonies and neo-colonies are fertile ground for lucrative business. Buy them cheap and sell them more expensive. Sell people things they don't need but sell them indispensable items, like food and medicine, at the price of gold.
Who can challenge these practices? A government installed by its colonial master? A proconsul that represents the metropolis and not the subjugated country? And having already taken advantage of the fraudulent construction business (even the UN building), perhaps the most profitable business to rebuild the city is what's next.
www.miguelangelferrer-mentor.com.mx
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