According to Pat Robertson, the Haitians won their freedom from the French by swearing "a pact to the Devil." Again according to Robertson, their history of poverty is due to this unholy bargain.

There are a couple of problems with this explanation, though. First, it doesn't account for Haiti's prosperity relative to other countries that, as far as I know, haven't made any bargains with Satan or their pre-quake growth.

Second, a few minutes with the Google turned up a three-part series of articles by Jean R. Gelin in which he argues that the "Haitian deal with the Devil" claim is a myth (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3).

Here's Tyler Cowen on Haitian poverty.

HT: Charles McKinney for the Robertson link.