Haiti’s Iconic National Palace Set for Demolition

One of the most recognizable images from the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti is its National Palace in Port-au-Prince.

Its white dome sunk into the base of the building and the palace became an icon and metaphor for the country’s perennial political troubles after the 2010 earthquake.

Now, the palace is going to be demolished by the aid agency started by actor Sean Penn.

Anchor Marco Werman talks to reporter Amy Bracken, who is in Port-au-Prince.

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Marco Werman: Haiti is braced for a long night tonight. Heavy rains and winds from tropical storm Isaac will be battering the flood-pro nation well into tomorrow morning. Haiti has seen more than its share of natural disasters. Hundreds of thousands are still living in makeshift camps after the devastating 2010 earthquake. One of the most recognizable images from that quake was Haiti’s National Palace in Port-Au-Prince. Its white central domes sunk into the base of the building. Now the palace is to be demolished by the aid agency created by actor Sean Penn. Amy Bracken is Haiti for the World. Earlier today we caught up with her in front of the presidential palace. Is it news Amy that the ruin palace is going to be demolished or is it”¦who is actually going to do the demolishing?

Amy Bracken: It depends on who you talk to. Some people are very angry that it’s Americans who are going to do the demolishing or lead the demolishing. That would surely employ Haitians to do the job. Other people, they say all they care about is the fact that it’s going to be demolished. They don’t care who does it. They just want it done it soon.

Werman: Now the National Palace was grand by any measure, built in a boussard [sp] style, several domes, columns. When was it built?

Bracken: It was actually built a century ago. In 1912 there was a competition of architects, Haitians and French architects. Haitian architects won the competition, designed it. It was being built when there was a coup. This was during a period of series of coups. The president was assassinated and the National Palace was burnt down, most of it was burnt down in the process of being built. The US took advantage of the instability in Haiti and moved in and began their occupation of the country. So it was actually under the US occupation that the palace was rebuilt, or that the building process continued.

Werman: Given its colonial style and its colonial connections, was the palace something that the Haitians were proud of? Is anyone upset that it’s going to be demolished?

Bracken: It actually is something that people were very proud of. I think it’s a symbol of Haitian pride, even if it’s sort of a colonial style. It was a Haitian architect. Even if it was rebuilt or built by Americans originally it’s still a symbol of Haitian strength. People talk about the earthquake decapitating the country. I mean it was these major government buildings that were destroyed, and a lot of them were very grand and beautiful. Port-Au-Prince is surrounded by mountains. If you go in any of the suburbs by some of the neighborhoods, you look down on the city and the National Palace is the first thing you see. And there are a lot of people hanging around, the parks that surround the National Palace, and it’s very visible from so many angles. And it’s just upsetting for people to see this on a daily basis.

Werman: What’s going to replace the presidential palace?

Bracken: Nobody knows. It’s a mystery what’s going to replace it, who will design the replacement, who will build the replacement, and when it will happen. As far as just the demolition, they said a couple of days ago that it was going to begin anywhere in the next ten days. And it’s interesting to see the anticipation. There are a lot of people hanging around the palace just looking to see what’s happening. And they’ve spotted some members of Sean Penn’s organization, but who knows how long it’s going to take. Estimates range from a couple of months to three months, and everybody knows that in Haiti things can take much, much longer than expected.

Werman: Given how ramshackle the building currently is, with tropical storm Isaac coming through Haiti, is there a chance that that could topple the palace even further?

Bracken: I think that isn’t much concern about toppling the palace. I think that the much greater concern is the much more humble homes on slippery mountain sides around Port-Au-Prince and much more concern about homes in the south. Haiti is the most mountainous country in the Caribbean and extremely environmentally devastated. So it just means that even a small tropical storm in direct hit can cost thousands of lives. Fortunately, disaster preparedness has improved quite a bit in recent years, so there are lot of shelters that have been setup around the south as well as in Port-Au-Prince. And so many people are connected by cell phones now who weren’t a few years ago. A lot of members of the government in international community are involved in educating people.

Werman: Amy Bracken in Haiti for The World. Thank you so much Amy, good to speak.

Bracken: Thanks so much Marco.

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