Was indepence worth 21.6 billion dollars?

The history of Haiti is interesting and a fact I discovered today is 
mind blowing when you consider the disaster and the costs of sending 
aid.

Haiti, a French colony, was only granted independence as long as the 
new country recompensed their colonial masters for the loss of 
plantations and slaves.

It took them over a hundred years to achieve and the value of what 
they repaid (which included the interest, natch) was, at 2004 prices, 
$21,685,135,571.

And for the record - the cruise ships >>should<< have operated 
normally (as per their contract) and arrived at the island. Haiti has 
suffered a terrible tragedy - don't wish their economy away as well 
out of some petty left-wing sense of envy-politics.

SH