President Thabo Mbeki was in Haiti today. He went there to commemorate the 200th aniversary of independence of the country. He was full of praise for the island state because he said it was the first Black republic in the world.

Instructions came from senior levels within the SABC to take a two hour live feed of the celebrations in in Haiti. What we never counted on was rebel activity against the local government and strong objections to Mbeki's association with the event.

One of the TV stations that the SABC had made provisional arrangements to send the TV feed was apparently taken over by the rebels. A second station was still in the hands of government.

Mbeki made a point of singling out Haiti because it was the first "Black" republic - in so doing he effectively ignored some of the republics set up by black runaway slaves in Brazil presumably because their hidden states were not given official recognition by the European status quo nations.

He also brushed asside the many African countries who had been independent long before Europeans claimed African terriotry for themselves. It is true that the independent African countries were not traditional republics in accordance with standard western definitions - but then again, is Mbeki relying on European yardsticks to determine where he should celebrate the new year?

In holding up Haiti as a model of Black achievement, Mbeki is as misguided as he was when he suggested that South Africans can learn from Zimbabwe. Haiti might have declared its independence from France two hundred years ago, but it has done just about everything wrong since then.

Haiti has been ravaged by a perpetual low-level civil war between citizens who are Black and those who are of mixed race. Its political history is known for a series of coup de etats and cruel dictators in the mold of Papa Doc Duvalier and his son Baby Doc.

Pehaps Mbeki should have found out more about the notorious Tonton Macoutes before he began lecturing critics on the importance of celebrating 200 years of turmoil in Haiti.