Two interesting recent articles provide further information on topics discussed recently on Nonsuch HP. This quite provocative article in the Times argues that many of Haiti's troubles stem from the legacy of French imperialism. Haiti declared independence in 1804 (it is the second oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere) but was forced to pay a massive fine for the next 122 years. This crippled the economy and left the country vulnerable to weak governments and despotic regimes. In 2004 Jacques Chirac set up a Commission of Reflection to examine France’s historical relations with Haiti. It concluded blandly that the demand for restitution was “non-pertinent in both legal and historical terms".
This article by Simon Jenkins in the Guardian explores the current obsession with historical relics, as seen in the Radio 4 series and David Dimbleby's programme on BBC1. There is even a CBBC programme called Relic where children from Hounslow have to unlock the secrets of historical objects to avoid getting trapped inside the British Museum (has anyone seen this?). Jenkins says, "We once derived mental comfort, uplift and local pride from worshipping saintly relics in church. Now we are supposed to find them in a museum. (Museums) have made the relic more important than themselves, yet requiring their priestly interpretation." What are your thoughts?
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