Papa Doc, Graham Greene, Alan Whicker, and the Tonton Macoute

I recently finished reading Graham Greene's The Comedians and wow, what a book.  Three travellers - a hotelier, a vegetarian idealist, and a confidence man - give us our comedians of the novel, arriving in Port-au-Prince to conduct their various acts of business in the Haitian capital.  It's the mid-60s, and Haiti is in the firm grip of dictator Francois Duvalier - Papa Doc - and his undercover death squad, the Tonton Macoute.  Just two years before the novel was published, Papa Doc had declared himself President-a-vie - that is, President for life - and with the Tontons so pervasive in Haitian life, the impoverished population feared expressing any dissent, even in private.  Enter Graham Greene to do the job for them.

Greene sets the scene of a country in turmoil, spiralling out of control economically and socially.  The population live in fear, daren't go out at night, live hand-to-mouth.  Corruption is rife, with those at the top actively shaping a system that sees them get fat, whilst the rest of the country suffers in silence.  But Papa Doc is a bastion against Communism, and as such his presence is tolerated by the superpower to the north, who really don't want another Cuba on their doorstep.  Having said that, American money has all but dried up, and there is precious little to keep the crumbling infrastructure afloat - this includes the President's flagship new vanity city, Duvalierville.

Greene's portrayal of Haiti and its people is both affectionate and enduring, whilst its condemnation of the Duvalier regime is savage.  As for Papa Doc's reaction to the book?  His Ministry of Foreign Affairs published a brochure entitled Graham Greene Demasque (Graham Greene finally exposed), which described Greene as "a liar, a cretin, a stool-pigeon... unbalanced, sadistic, perverted... a perfect ignoramus… lying to his heart's content... the shame of proud and noble England... a spy... a drug addict... a torturer."  In his fascinating interview with Alan Whicker (an absorbing documentary entitled Papa Doc: The Black Sheep) Duvalier also described Greene as "mentally challenged."  So, a generally negative review then.

The Comedians has shot up to the very top of my favourite books list - it might even be the best book I've ever read - and I recommend it to everybody!