France did not recognise Haiti’s independence until 1825, and then only after the new state agreed to pay reparations of 150 million francs (later reduced to 60 million); Haiti did not repay the resulting debt until 1922. In January 2004, Haiti’s government commemorated the bicentenary of independence. Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was to be overthrown shortly afterwards, used the occasion to demand that France repay the reparations, which with interest, he said, amounted to $21.7 billion. 9.Lynch, Spanish American Revolutions,
