State, social elites and local governance in Haiti

This dissertation explores the incentive structures for farmers to participate in civic associations providing concrete goods and services and for governments to allocate and enforce secure property rights in Haiti. It submits the following hypothesis: Citizen participation is higher among secure property owners than among insecure ones. The analysis tests the hypothesis by comparing the civic participation rates of owners and non-owners. The data fully supports this proposition.; The limited motivation deriving from insecure property rights is likely to be reflected in decreasing support of, and participation in civic associations, particularly in rural contexts. This generates the corollary hypothesis that the limited civic participation of insecure farmers weakens civic associations. This original analysis tested the corollary hypothesis by gauging levels of civic participation in two detailed case studies. The first locality, Verrettes, displayed land concentration, low to intermediate levels of tenure security and weak civic participation. The second locality, Camp-Perrin, enjoyed intermediate to high levels of ownership security and displayed strong civic participation. Field data, which consist of extensive survey and interviews, fully support the corollary hypothesis.; The dissertation further argues that the nature of a political regime shapes its response to low levels of confidence in the legal sector. The authoritarian regime failed to adequately respond to the low public confidence in the court system in Haiti. Instead, it adopted a supportive attitude towards a narrow set of constituents. In contrast, the democratic regime implemented an agrarian reform because of its responsiveness to its constituency and the ability of mediating groups to pass crucial information to elected officials. Such information includes the number of individuals they represent and institutional ability to provide political support to the democratic regime.; Two clear overall messages emerge from this cross-regional analysis of inter-relations between property rights and civic participation. First, under conditions of resource constraint, emphasis on property rights holds the greatest prospects for stimulating civic participation and strengthening the foundation of civil society in Haiti and countries at similar levels of economic development. Second, efficient resource management is best achieved amidst communities where property rights are diffused.