April 17, 1825 – April 17, 2025: Two centuries have passed since French King Charles X issued a decree demanding that Haiti pay France 150 million francs in exchange for recognizing its independence, which had been declared on January 1, 1804. This ransom was intended to compensate the former slave-owning colonists who had fled Saint-Domingue during the War of Independence. At the time this decree was delivered to the young nation, freshly freed from slavery, 14 French warships carrying 500 cannons were stationed off the coast of Haiti, ready to attack. Faced with this threat, Haiti’s then-president, Jean-Pierre Boyer, gave in to the extortion.
By the time the first payment was due in December 1825, Haiti was unable to raise the full amount and was forced to borrow from French banks to meet this odious “debt.” This led to what is now known as the “double debt.” At one point, France agreed to reduce the amount from 150 to 90 million francs. Adjusted for inflation, this sum represents approximately 21 billion US dollars or 20.4 billion euros in 2025.
From that point on, Haiti was trapped in a vicious cycle of debt that lasted nearly a century, as the country continually borrowed t
o make payments. All the resources of the young nation—won through immense sacrifice, particularly the labor of former slaves working as peasant farmers in the coffee fields—were drained to pay France for a so-called “compensation” to slaveholders. It is worth remembering that these slaveholders had, for over two centuries, subjected millions of Africans to forced labor, inhumane treatment, and slavery to enrich themselves and the French empire. As if this weren’t enough, to keep the state functioning, Haiti’s leaders resorted to mass deforestation of precious woods for export, a process that continues to devastate Haiti’s environment to this day.
Securing restitution and reparations
Paying this shameful debt severely undermined Haiti’s development. From the outset, resources that should have been used to build infrastructure and support the nation were diverted elsewhere, pushing Haiti into a cycle of debt and dependence. The consequences of this historical robbery remain glaringly evident today. The wound of the ransom remains open, and healing is slow. Meanwhile, slavery has since been officially recognized as a crime against humanity, and global movements are rising to demand justice and reparations for its lasting impacts.
This call for restitution and reparations from France must be understood in the context of the bicentennial of this extortion and the broader mobilization of Afro-descendant communities. While this movement was relatively quiet during Haiti’s bicentennial celebration in 2004, it has gained significant momentum today. Inspired by Afro-descendant movements worldwide—in Haiti, the Americas, Africa, and Europe—various groups are forming, organizing conferences, and shedding light on a history that has been deliberately omitted from French and global historical records. Historians, researchers, economists, anthropologists, journalists, and other professionals are contributing to this effort. Notably, The New York Times invested considerable time and resources to investigate and explain why Haiti—the first Black nation to abolish slavery and break away from the colonial system—remains the poorest country in the Americas.[1] The publication of their findings sparked widespread international and domestic attention.[2] Their research revealed how the money Haiti paid in “independence debt” enriched French banks, tightened foreign control over Haiti’s economy, and even funded significant French infrastructure projects, including the construction of the Eiffel Tower.
In anticipation of the bicentennial of this unjust decree, several books on the subject have also been published. These include Haiti: Notre Dette[3] by Frédéric Thomas, Esclavage et Réparation: Comment Faire Face aux Crimes de l’Histoire? [4] by Louis-Georges Tin, and Haïti-France: Les Chaînes de la Dette. Le Rapport de Mackau (1825)[5], co-authored by Haitian historian Gusti-Gaillard and geographer Jean-Marie Théodat, with an introduction by Fritz Alphonse Jean, the current coordinator of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council.
Beyond these publications, numerous discussion groups have emerged across Haitian civil society—from university circles and the peasant movement to youth organizations. Despite the profound insecurity that plagues Haiti today, these groups are creating posters and public service announcements to remind Haitians of this critical historical injustice. For instance, “Kolektif 1825,” a group of professors, researchers, and students from Haiti’s State University, holds online lectures every Saturday, exploring various aspects of the ransom for academic audiences. Another group, “Kolektif Afwo Desendan” (KAAD), comprises members of Haitian civil society and the diaspora who have participated in the United Nations’ Permanent Forum on People of African Descent (PFPAD). At this forum, the demand for restitution and reparations from France to Haiti has been formally included in the forum’s final resolutions on two occasions.
On the political front, momentum is also building. Two members of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council (CPT) have made official statements indicating that the Haitian state is committed to pursuing restitution and reparations from France. Supported by the government, the University Council of Haiti’s State University has established a National Committee for Restitution and Reparations, chaired by former university rector Fritz Deshommes. This committee has called on Haitian authorities to declare 2025 the “Year of Restitution and Reparations” and to e
ngage French authorities to negotiate the terms of restitution. Following a January 2025 meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, CPT President Leslie Voltaire announced that Macron has pledged to make a formal statement on April 17, 2025, the 200th anniversary of Charles X’s decree.
As the fourth session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent approaches (April 14–17, 2025, in New York), Haitian civil society groups at home and abroad are preparing to present their case. They will renew their call for UN support in securing restitution and reparations. These groups intend to request the creation of an international commission of Haitian and global experts to investigate Haiti’s right to restitution for the independence ransom and broader reparations for the historical harms of slavery. The commission will work with the French state to establish a long-term investment fund dedicated exclusively to developing Haiti’s infrastructure—transport, services, energy—and critical sectors such as education, health, and agriculture.
In 2025, the African Union (AU) has also prioritized the issue of reparations under its annual theme, “Justice for Africans and Afro-Descendants.” The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is advancing its Global Reparations Fund, established in 2023, while the Pan-African Parliament’s consultations have led to the Gorée Declaration, rooted in the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.
The Haitian civil society movement for restitution and reparations advocates for global solidarity with the Haitian people. It calls for strategic alignment with other communities affected by slavery and colonial violence, recognizing the interconnectedness of struggles for justice across the African diaspora and beyond. Success in Haiti’s claim could undoubtedly accelerate reparation movements worldwide.
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/20/world/americas/haiti-history-colonized-france.html
[2] https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2022/05/23/haiti-comment-la-france-a-oblige-son-ancienne-colonie-a-lui-verser-des-indemnites-compensatoires_6127378_3210.html
[3] https://www.cetri.be/Haiti-notre-dette?lang=fr
[4] https://www.editions-stock.fr/livre/esclavage-et-reparations-9782234074880/
[5] https://www.hemisphereseditions.com/anciennes-parutions/haïti-france%2C-les-chaînes-de-la-dette
