Updates

Haitian People are the Losers in Haiti's Election

Wednesday, December 1st, 2010

“In the midst of the most desperate humanitarian crisis in our hemisphere, Haiti’s authorities chose to hold an election characterized by fraud and marked by the disenfranchisement of Haitian voters instead of focusing on fighting cholera and addressing the horrific conditions of one and half million homeless earthquake survivors. Despite overarching concerns about the exclusion of political parties from the ballot, the timing of these elections and the process to guarantee that internally displaced earthquake survivors would be able to vote, members of TransAfrica Forum, the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti, the Center for Economic and Policy Research, International Action Ties, the Louisiana Justice Institute and other international and Haitian partners acted as independent monitors of the elections. As we feared, the elections were a costly distraction from more pressing life and death issues, and instead of helping the country move forward have plunged the country into a political crisis on top a humanitarian crisis.” … Follow this link to Let Haiti Live to read the full release and preliminary election observation report.

Haiti's Cholera Outbreak: The Latest

Friday, October 29th, 2010

Visit Let Haiti Live to read the latest update on the Cholera outbreak in Haiti.

The Emergency Haiti Cholera Education Campaign, the grassroots public education campaign aimed at combatting the spread of Cholera in communities in and around Port-au-Prince, is not yet over — even after surpassing distribution of 150,000 flyers! The campaign, which got the word out about the Cholera outbreak and ways to prevent the spread of the illness before other larger international agencies (with far more resources available to them), will commence again tomorrow and continue for at least another five days.

This Campaign, a collaborative effort of Bri Kouri Nouvel Gaye, Let Haiti Live, and International Action Ties, has outreached in the following locations thus far:

• Place St Pierre
• Thomazeau
• Ganthier
• Jimani
• Montrouis
• Croix-de-Bouquet
• Camp Kanaran
• Lafiteau
• Titanyen
• Tabarre
• Corail
• General Hospital in Port-au-Prince
• Petionville
• Leogane

Proactive Response to Cholera Outbreak

Monday, October 25th, 2010

Today, less than one week since the first reports of a Cholera outbreak in regions north of Port-au-Prince, concerns about this health crisis continue as cases of this potentially fatal illness are being reported in numerous other communities.  According to a report HRC members read today, cases of Cholera have been reported in Gonaive, Mirebalais, Arachaie, Carrerfour, and Croix-des-Bouquets, which indicates that the outbreak has not been contained in the rural area where it originated.   In addition to a general sense of anxiety among people about the possibility of contracting Cholera, there appears to be anxiety around being able to access safe water supply and medical attention.

While it is impossible to see into the future and know how widespread this crisis could become, HRC member and supporting organizations: Let Haiti Live (a project of TransAfrica Forum), members of the Haitian alternative media project and LHL partner organization Bri Kouri Nouvèl Gaye, and International Action Ties continue their PROACTIVE PUBLIC EDUCATION RESPONSE in an effort to help decrease the severity of this outbreak.

For the 4th consecutive day, our teams are out in the streets hoping to be one step ahead of additional Cholera cases by distributing Cholera prevention flyers and making announcements via a portable sound-system.  So far, our teams have outreached to the following communities and neighborhoods, distributing more than 100,000 Flyers:

• Camp Kanaran
• Lafiteau
• Titanyen
• Tabarre
• Corail
• General Hospital in Port-au-Prince
• Leogane

Through tweeting, word of mouth and other networking, we now are working with a new group that manages 50 camps who will start distributing our flyers too.  In addition to that, 15,000 informational flyers are being distributed through the li! li! li! team and our Cholera-prevention flyer is also being distributed in Jacmel-Cyvadier via KONPAY.

Support this essential and far-reaching public education campaign by making a donation here to support the Emergency Haiti Cholera Education Fund.

Cholera Outbreak Grips Haiti: HRC Responds

Friday, October 22nd, 2010

Upon hearing reports yesterday about a suspected outbreak of Cholera in communities around the town of St Marc, north of Port-au-Prince (which has since been confirmed), Haiti Response Coalition (HRC) members believed there was good reason to suspect that this outbreak soon would reach the tent camps of Port-au-Prince. HRC member organizations, already working with people in these camps, responded immediately to help protect residents.  Today, October 22nd, The Bureau des Avocats Internationaux organized a sound system on a truck with a small crew of Haitian and International human rights monitors to travel to the camps to inform residents about the Cholera outbreak and to share important prevention education.  Etant Dupain of Bri Kouri Nouvel Gaye,  Mark Snyder of International Action Ties, Melinda Miles of Let Haiti Live & Coordinator of the Haiti Response Coalition, along with others are on the ground there, distributing flyers and trying to inform people about how to avoid contagion.  This immediate action is crucial to help prevent the spread of this outbreak, especially when HRC members observed that the UN and other NGOs did not seem to be moving very quickly on this front.

In the midst of their effort in the camps in Port-au-Prince,  HRC’s team learned that cases of Cholera were confirmed in Lafiteau/Lafito, located only a short distance from Cite Soleil, and camps in Kanaran and Corail. Sadly, at least one team member, Melinda Miles, witnessed a death due to Cholera in Lafiteau/Lafito.

Letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calls for free, fair and inclusive elections in Haiti

Monday, September 27th, 2010

On September 13, 2010, eight months after the earthquake in Haiti, more than 20 civil society organizations from the U.S. and Haiti signed and sent to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, urging the U.S. administration to act quickly to ensure that Haiti’s presidential and legislative elections, scheduled to take place in November 2010, are free, fair and inclusive.  The letter notes that three critical issues threaten to undermine the legitimacy of the elections:

• the limited credibility of Haiti’s electoral authority
• the arbitrary exclusion of over a dozen political parties from the electoral process, including Haiti’s most popular party, Fanmi Lavalas
• the current obstacles to electoral participation for hundreds of thousands of Haitians, in particular the communities displaced by the earthquake.

The letter outlines actions that the US administration needs to take to help resolve these issues and notes that action must be taken promptly in order to guarantee the success of long-term reconstruction efforts in Haiti.  Read the letter’s complete text here.

"We've Been Forgotten"

Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010

The recently released report “We’ve Been Forgotten”: Conditions in Haiti’s Displacement Camps Eight Months After the Earthquake reminds us of the startling realities of daily life in the displacement camps even now … 8 months later.

8 Months Later: Protests Growing as Earthquake Survivors Demand Right to Education & Shelter

Monday, September 13th, 2010

EIGHT MONTHS AFTER QUAKE, STILL NO SCHOOLS AVAILABLE FOR MAJORITY OF DISPLACED CHILDREN

PORT-AU-PRINCE: On Monday September 13^th at 11am EST (10am in Haiti) residents of more than a dozen camps for internally displaced people will demonstrate in front of the National Palace to demand the right to education. They are also calling for decent housing because they are living in fear during this hurricane season.

As children all over the world returned to school this month, the majority of Haitian earthquake survivors are still living under tarps, tents and sheets without access to basic services and have no schools or educational programs for their children to attend. Since food distributions were halted months ago, in many camps the children are beginning to have orange hair, a sign of malnutrition.

Eight months after the earthquake, non-governmental organizations have enormous amounts of money in their accounts and protests are multiplying to demand that funds be used to meet the immediate needs of earthquake victims. Tents distributed months ago have shredded and been destroyed by the searing sun by day and rains that force victims to stand without sleeping under tents, tarps and sheets nearly every night.

Despite the millions of dollars already spent since January 12^th, less than 3% of the population has transitional housing. At the same time, the number of NGOs in earthquake-affected areas has increased. The brand new all-terrain vehicles and heavy security of the foreign humanitarian aid community stand in contrast to the desperate conditions of earthquake survivors. Haitians are demanding to know who the money donated is truly for, as they are suffering the same uncertain future and lack of immediate relief eight months after the quake as they were only eight days after.

As the Haitian government and international community have turned their focus onto elections planned for the end of November, victims living in tent cities are afraid that their situation is being marginalized by an electoral campaign unlikely to challenge the status quo while their biggest needs are being ignored. On Friday, protestors chanted “No Elections Without Housing!” and proclaimed they would not go to elections under tents and tarps.

"We Became Garbage to them"

Wednesday, August 18th, 2010

Read International Action Ties’ (IAT), member organization of Haiti Response Coalition, recently released report entitled: “We Became Garbage to them:” New IAT report on IDP expulsions.

HRC announces: Pwoje Temwen / The Witness Project

Tuesday, August 17th, 2010

Port-au-Prince, Haiti, August, 2010 – The Haiti Response Coalition announces the initiation of its Witness Project /Pwoje Temwen, which aims to provide a network for reporting and accessing resources for vulnerable populations such as women and children who are victimized by rape, assault and other gender-based violence, particularly those residing in camps in Port-au-Prince.  The Witness Project / Pwoje Temwen specifically will address the gap between the affected population and the services available to it in the NGO and UN/OCHA communities. Ultimately, it aims to diminish the number of violent crimes against women, and therefore support an atmosphere of increased security.

During the six-month pilot phase, which is scheduled to begin by the end of July, The Witness Project / Pwoje Temwen will be promoted in two target locations: The Champ de Mars camps and the relocation camps at Tabarre Issa and its surrounding community, thus outreaching to a total population of nearly 55,000 residents.   Many victimized persons who are now concentrated in the camp cities of Port-au-Prince are unaware of their rights and unable to identify when those rights have been violated. The Witness Project / Pwoje Temwen will simultaneously raise the target population’s awareness of their rights while providing them with an outlet to share their concerns and have those concerns receive a response.

The Witness Project / Pwoje Temwen will assist the UN and other organizations by helping them to hear the voices of the most vulnerable Haitians in the earthquake affected communities, and by transferring concerns to the appropriate actors so that Haitians can receive assistance, services and advocacy when appropriate.

This Project will provide a multi-dimensional mechanism for individuals to report their concerns and take the first step in a potential complaint process. A hotline and response center will be established to make the mechanism as accessible as possible. A strategic promotion campaign will inform the population of the Witness Project Hotline.

To learn more and/or offer support for this timely and desperately needed project, contact:

Melinda Miles, Co-Founder and Co-Director of Haiti Response Coalition Melinda@konpay.org

Regine Zamor, Project Director  of Witness Project / Pwoje Temwen regine.zamor@gmail.com

The Reality of Living in Camp Corail

Sunday, August 15th, 2010

Tents shake in the wind as a storm arrives at the Corail relocation camp for internally-displaced people – earthquake survivors – in Haiti

Thanks to Melinda Miles for video footage posted here.