Pat Robertson released a statement on his CBN website regarding the comments were taken out of context. The first comment began at 2:56 and the comments regarding Haiti’s pact with the devil begins at 6:29.

The statement released on the website said that Pat Robertson was speaking about Haiti’s history and the 1791 slave rebellion led by Dutty Boukman at Bois Caiman. According to the video, Pat Robertson believes that Haiti has been cursed due to the Dutty Boukman treaty that sparked the Haitian Revolution and that is evidenced by the nation’s abject poverty.

Similar comments were made by some in the Christian Right movement following Hurricane Katrina. Former president George Bush’s wife, Barbara was called to task for comments that she made in a similar vein, stating that those who survived Katrina would be better off after the storm.