On April 17, 2025, Emmanuel Macron commemorated, with the honors of the Republic, the bicentenary of France’s recognition of Haitian independence.
A symbolic gesture, to be sure, but not enough to erase two hundred years of injustice. Behind this 1825 recognition lies an economic crime: an indemnity of 150 million gold francs, extorted under threat of French cannon fire, for the price of the freedom of a people who had already conquered their emancipation by force of arms.
In 1825, Haiti, the first black republic to emerge from a victorious slave revolt, was strangled by this illegitimate ransom. A ransom that ruined the country, mortgaged its development and fueled centuries of instability.
Today, Emmanuel Macron speaks of injustice and announces a joint commission to “examine our common past”. All well and good. But when will France acknowledge that this debt was not just immoral, but criminal? And above all, when will it make concrete reparations for this historic theft?
The French president praises the “shared ideals” of the French and Haitian revolutions. Nice rhetoric. But while he celebrates these values, Haiti sinks into chaos, the direct legacy of predatory colonialism and decades of interference.
A commission of historians is useful, but it won’t be enough. The truth is known: France plundered Haiti. What’s needed now is not words, but deeds.
Macron carefully avoids the word “reparations”. Yet how can we talk about “responsibility” without mentioning restitution? The 150 million gold francs of 1825, adjusted for inflation and interest, represent tens of billions of euros today. Haiti needs this sum to rebuild.
Can France, which is still reaping the benefits of its colonial past, really pretend to turn the page without settling this debt?
Acknowledging the crimes of the past is a necessary but insufficient step. If France truly wants to “assume its share of responsibility”, it must go beyond symbols and commissions. It must make restitution. Emmanuel Macron is right about one thing: “acknowledging the truth of history offers nations an exceptional opportunity to build a common future”.
But this future will only be possible when France finally pays its debt. Not just in words. In money. In justice.
It’s time for the Republic, which claims to be the heir to the Enlightenment, to stop economizing on its morality. Two hundred years is enough. Haiti has waited too long.
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