National Strategy for Rebuilding

Haiti: Six Months Later

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

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Six months after Haiti’s 7.0 earthquake … and the majority of Haitian people are still struggling to secure humane living conditions and their basic human needs like potable water, food and sanitation.   This begs the question: “How are the billions of dollars of relief and reconstruction aid being spent?”

HRC member organizations continue to ask this question and monitor the situation on the ground – in the camps.  Based on their research, conversations and observations, they have compiled reports that highlight Haiti’s situation 6 Months Later.

Please see the following reports that were discussed on Tuesday, January 13th, at the Congressional Briefing in Washington, DC:

Haiti Six Months Later: Reports from the Ground – Camps Conditions, Decentralization, Elections

Presenters Include:

Mario Joseph, Bureaux des Avocats Internationaux (BAI)

Manolia Charlotin, Haiti 2015

Nicole C. Lee, Esq,., TransAfrica Forum

Melinda Miles, Haiti Response Coalition & Let Haiti Live

Reports Discussed Include:

The International Community Should Pressure the Haitian Government For Prompt and Fair Elections – Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti / BAI

Haiti Cherie, My Dear Haiti - TransAfrica Forum

Haiti’s Answer for Six Months & Sixty Years - Let Haiti Live, A Project of TransAfrica Forum

Press Briefing from Initiaitive for a New Haiti Meeting in Port au Prince

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

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Press Briefing[1]

After the great and incomparable earthquake hit the country of Haiti, on January 12, 20010, more than three hundred thousand (300,000) people, from all areas and of all ages, died.  State infrastructure and all its institutions have been destroyed.  Many have been wounded or have become handicapped.  Many are hopeless.  People have lost family members, their possessions, money, and work.

When we look at the absence of the state, the inadequate manner in which aid is being distributed, it has diminished our sense of dignity even more as people.  Where only strangers who do not fully share our interests are managing emergency aid, where many Haitians are not confident in the people and the manner in which aid is being distributed, a coalition gathered a group of Haitians from all social aspects and from all organized sectors, who desire to become one, to reconstruct their country.  On February 23 and 24, 2010, at the historic park “Parc Historique de la Canne A Sucre,” these individuals met to come up with good solutions and answers, which will be good for all those in the country for the moment, for the days to come, and the future.

Here are the five (5) objectives we had for this meeting:

*Agree on our needs, priorities, and perspectives in regards to the important sectors in the national life of the country.

*Translate these needs, priorities, and perspective in the language of the international community.

*Identify those who will bring these views to international meetings, where decisions will be made to respond to the disaster.

*Establish an evaluation mechanism to measure the results of international response throughout the land.

*Inform the national and international press regarding this initiative.

In order to reach these objective results, five major working groups met to discuss the following five (5) areas:

We will propose these ideas to the relevant national and international community, such as the working group meeting at OCHA which is an office of the United Nations, which deals with humanitarian issues.  These ideas will also be presented to PDNA, which is a multilateral tool used to evaluate need after disasters for donor conferences, etc.

We, the group, still believe in Haiti, despite its tumultuous times.  This is the reason we hope that all livings Haitians can believe this- as long as there is life, we must work until we reach a day where hope flourishes.  We each must do a good deed to rebuild our minds and our country.

We bow our heads to salute the memory of all Haitians and the memory of those of other nations who perished in the catastrophe of January 12, 2010.

ORGANIZATIONAL LIST
Alternative Louverturians; Asosyasyon Edikatè Popilè;  Ans-WoujAssociation de Soutien de Lancartiene et de Christ-Roi; Association des Jeunes Militants Consequents pour le Developpement de Thomonde; Association Nationale des Agro-Professionels Haitiens; Centre d’Appui a la Production Agricole du Sud; Centre Medico-Social de Port-au-Prince (CMSP); Comite pour le Development de Delmas Haiti; Commision Nationale des Ouvriers Haitiens; Fanm Viktim Leve Kanpe; Fédération des Organisations Haitiennes de Developpement; Fondasyon LakayFondation Ecosophyque Canabo; Fondation N’a Sonje; Fondation pour la promotion et la Santé; Foundation Lakay; Fundacion Caribe para el Desarrollo – RD; Haitian Citizen United Taskforce; Horizon de L’Espoir; Jeunesse Pionniere d’Haiti pour le Developpement des Talents; KONPAY; Komisyon Famn Viktim pou Viktim; Mouvman Peyizan Nasyonal Kongre Papay; Orfanization des Paysans Haitiens Pour le Developpment Monesila; Organisation des Amis du Progres, du Developpement; Organization USPE La JeunessePartenariat pour le Developpement Local, American Jewish World Service; Pax Christi Haiti - Mouvman Intènasyonal pou Fè Konbit pou Lapè; Plateforme Nationale des Organisations Paysanne Haitiens; Platfòm pou Pledwaye pou Devlopman Altènatif/Association Nationale des Agro-Professionels Haitiens; Projet PapillonReseau de Defense des Droits de l’Enfant; Staff Hollywood; TransAfrica Forum (US); Terre des Jeunes; Tèt Ansamn pou yon Nouvo Ayiti; Union des Femmes pour un Meilluere Avenir; Union Vision Communautaire; Vision Pour Enfants Démunis

[1] This document was translated from Haitian Creole to English by Régine Mondé

Notes from Initiative for a New Haiti (Feb 23 & 24 Meeting)

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

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A first draft of notes and information from the Feb 23 & 24 Initiative for a New Haiti meeting in Port-au-Prince are available in Creole in the Rebuilding Haiti/Kreyol section of this site.  As additional notes and other information are transcribed and/or translated, they too will be posted.  Visit often for updates!

Initial Report from Djaloki Dessables on Initiative for a New Haiti

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

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INITIAL REPORT ON INITIATIVE FOR A NEW HAITI, FEB 23 & 24 MEETING IN PORT AU PRINCE

(The following summary was compiled by Sarah Cool and Amy Fotta during the March 3rd HRC Conference Call with Djaloki Dessables).

The forum last week was positive. Unfortunately, many key people were not able to attend simply due to the fact that the meetings was planned and scheduled quickly – due to the sense of urgency that HRC felt about the need for Haitian leadership- at all levels and from all departments and sectors of the country- to gather and work together on a Haitian response to the earthquake.  There were 60 in attendance the 1st day, over 100 on the 2nd day. They invited people from all walks to participate in the forum, even from the government. However, only one representative from the Ministry of Justice attended on the first day, and there was no government representation on the 2nd day. Donor agencies were invited as well.

Objectives of the Meeting:

Objective 1: They want to be able to voice – on behalf of the Haitian leadership and community – how they believe the humanitarian relief operation is going so far.  There is rampant disappointment with the way relief efforts are being handled overall.

Objective 2: To identify key sectors in which they want to make the Haitian voice heard in terms of short and long term relief and redevelopment.  The participants identified five (5) Main Sectors that they felt they (a) had knowledge and expertise (b) could start working on programs or projects in these areas immediately.  These are the 5 Sectors that the final report from the meeting will discuss and provide statements for redevelopment plans.  Work Sessions took place with approx 20-30 people working on each of the 5 Sectors:

  1. Agriculture - environment, sustainable development, decentralization, rural development
  2. Health – water, sanitation, nutrition,
  3. Human Rights – protection of children and all vulnerable groups
  4. Education – all issues related o education
  5. Emergency Recovery – supplies, food, shelter, etc

Priorities and perspectives were established. Some group discussions were very creative, and Djaloki found that HRC’s vision for Haiti is in line with that of the Haitian national community, but, unfortunately, that is not what is happening on the ground with relief efforts right now – I.e. distribution system that is in place, the ‘no-tent’ distribution policy, etc.

Djaloki mentioned that even though the Haitian people are in need, they still have the right to dignity even when in distress. He also commented that emergency relief is not disconnected to or opposite from long term development, but that they are intertwined. He said that development requirements are now more urgent.

Current Status of Initiative for a New Haiti Meeting results:

OTHER POINTS /AREASOF CONCERN:

Haitian people are concerned about several things:

  1. The decision of Haitian government and other large international humanitarian aid organizations to concentrate their distribution operations in 16 huge camps in PAP. This means that people in acute need will not get it, and those who don’t really need will move to one of those camps causing overcrowding.
  1. The ‘No Tent’ Policy. This was a joint decision made by the Haitian government and UN/OCHA for the UN not to distribute tents to those who are in need of emergency shelter. Haitians have taken offense to this.  Djaloki does note that while tents still would only be a temporary response to the critical need for shelter, he does see that tents are essential for the health, safety and dignity of the Haitian people.
  1. Relief efforts are still concentrated on PAP, still excluding the provinces and rural communities that now are trying to absorb large numbers of IDPs.  These rural communities already had difficulty with access to needed resources, and now the need is even greater.  It would seem to make sense to try to support these communities and assist them in their own redevelopment so that people from PAP who returned there will not feel forced to have to return to PAP because they don’t have an alternative.
  1. Presence of international military personnel, especially US military, is something that is difficult for the Haitian people because although they are not aggressive in a violent way, they are not really seen as supportive of humanitarian relief efforts.

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

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Public Briefing on Haiti – TransAfrica Forum Report Back on NGO Meeting in Haiti

When: Thursday, March 4, 2010; 6:30PM-8:30PM
Where: Josephine Butler Parks Center, 2437 Fifteenth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009 (across from Malcolm X Park)

If you are in the Washington DC area, join Imani Countess from TransAfrica Forum and Melinda Miles of Konpay as they report on the Initiative for a New Haiti Meeting that took place in Port au Prince last week.

Initiative for a New Haiti

Friday, February 19th, 2010

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Note: Reports developed at next week’s meeting (described below) will be posted to the HRC website as soon as they become available.

Initiative for a New Haiti

A National Strategy Planning Meeting

February 23 & 24

Port–au-Prince, Haiti

Background

Since the earthquake many experts have been talking about how Haiti should rebuild. However, Haiti Response Coalition (HRC) recognizes the necessity for the Haitian people to create and coordinate a strategy to rebuild Haiti; their leadership will create a new Haiti.  HRC realizes that we must act now to support and empower our Haitian partners to help strategize for the future of Haiti, a country standing at a monumental crossroads.

At this moment, decisions are being made by the international community about how Haiti will rebuild, and much of it begins with the emergency spending that is being allocated as we speak.  We need immediate, concerted action that will result not just in the development of the strategy for development, but that will also provide access to the resources and funds that are being funneled into Haiti by the emergency response actors.  What direction will bring a sustainable development accompanied by dignity and human rights for all Haitians? Who can create and immediately begin executing a plan for a new Haiti?

Initiative for a New Haiti

A planning committee of HRC member organization representatives continues to work diligently to organize and prepare for bringing together nearly 60 Haitian community leaders — representatives from each sector (see sector listed below) and geographical department in Haiti, as well as representatives of the Haitian government –- that have been invited to discuss the history and future of Haiti and to create a strategy to build a new Haiti [note: due to space limitation at the meeting's venue, the list of invited participants is limited]. Participant observers from NGOs and agencies representing the international community also will be present to support the meeting process.   This meeting is the beginning of a long-term process.

This National Meeting will:

Central Themes in the Strategy to Rebuild Haiti

1.     Food security and National Production

2.     Decentralization of the Country

3.     Independence for Haiti

4.     Haitian Leadership for Rebuilding Haiti

Sectors for Working Groups during the National Meeting

·       Food Security and the Environment

·       Public Health/Health System

·       Water/Sanitation and Waste Management

·       Social and Economic Rights

·       Education and Development of human resources

·       Children and Youth

·       Women

·       Legal Reform

·       Immigration/Migration

·       Business creation and Credit Programs

The Haiti Response Coalition / Tèt Ansanm pou Yon Nouvo Ayiti Planning Committee for the Feb 23 & 24 National Strategy Planning Meeting