Haiti: Little Rain But Troubles Remain

By Giordano Cossu & Elodie Vialle
August 16, 2011

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti—In early August, several western media turned to storm Emily and its threatening arrival to Haiti. Eventually it lost power and did not cause the expected damage. As a result, Haiti disappeared once again from the headings, pushed away by other news.

Yet living conditions are still deplorable in the country: living under tarps surrounded by rubble since the earthquake, no access to proper health care, employment or education, and plagued by insecurity. Whether the storm came or not, Haiti is devastated and far from any acceptable level of reconstruction.

A Haitian joke says that when a storm approaches Haiti, it looks at the country from the sky. Seeing its terrible conditions it says, “Ah, I must have already been here,” and it steers away. This is what storm Emily may have thought when it reached the coasts of Haiti last week: in Port-au-Prince, only a light rain was recorded.

"The international opinion only turns its eyes to Haiti when a disaster is looming over us," says Maryse, a woman living in Pacot, to the east of Port-au-Prince, adding that several Haitians grin ironically at this attention as their day-to-day struggles are forgotten.

Cholera

The authorities and international organizations also fear a surge in cholera cases as a consequence of rising water levels and the lack of drinkable water for over 600,000 people who are still living in makeshift camps, 18 months after the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake. Cholera has already resulted in nearly 6,000 victims in Haiti since its arrival last October.

Gabriel Thimothé, general director of the Health Ministry, insisted on the priorities to be tackled in partnership with the World Health Organization: providing free drinkable water to the population; and preventing water contamination as well as the overflow of latrines. This might ease the further spread of the disease in a country where hygienic conditions are appalling, and waste treatment is virtually nonexistent.

Security

Just as the latest news about storm Emily was announced at the National Center of Emergency Operations to Haitian and international organizations and the media, repeated gunshots were heard a few meters from the compound. The emergency center is located near Parc Jean Marie Vincent, one of the largest tent camps in Port-au-Prince with tens of thousands of disaster victims living there. The number has gradually decreased over time from the original 48,000, specifically because of security issues.

In June 2010, the camp had been subject to a clean-up mission by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and Haitian police evicted criminal gangs who used it as their base. Yet in spite of those efforts, violent incidents remain frequent, as larger and smaller gangs use the camp as a base for criminal activities. In a survey taken last December, 68 percent of people said that they did not feel safe in the camp.

At the sound of the gunshots, some 20 inhabitants of the area quickly found refuge inside the compound while other passersby scattered in all directions. “It’s only sporadic, roughly three days per week,” explained the police guard at the gate, without stress.

“Some gangs shoot around to intimidate the people. Wait 10 minutes before leaving, and then drive as fast as you can, without stopping” he advises the journalists who came here for the press conference on storm Emily. Bullets are part of the day on this side of Port-au-Prince.

Among those who have found refuge in the compound, Augustine, a young mother carrying her infant in her arms, looked scared as she did not want to go back to her tent for fear of the thugs who spread terror within the population. The risk of rain and flooding, for them, is clearly their last worry now.

Unemployment

Even in quieter areas, those living in camps find it difficult to meet their basic needs. Most have no job and struggle to feed their families. The world thinks that plastic sheets and tarps were donated to those in need, but in fact the great majority of those in the camps had to buy them. Second-hand of course, often already ripped apart and offering only minimal shelter from sun, wind, and rain.

Joseph, 49 years old, living in the camp at Canapé Vert, paid 500 gourdes (US$12) for each of the five sheets that give shelter to him and his family. He makes flower arrangements for funerals, but he sells very little since the earthquake. He spent the whole day in Carrefour (about one hour from Port-au-Prince) unsuccessfully looking for clients.

“No way I can be ready for the storm. I have no means. We just tightened the ropes around the tent,” he says, adding complaints about “the absence of the authorities who left us alone.”

Political deadlock

Haitian President Michel Martelly did send warnings to the homeless in the camps. He encouraged people living in the lower-ground of the city to move up to the hills. Martelly was recently inaugurated as president but is still struggling to form a new government due to harsh contrasts with the Inite opposition party who has majority in the Senate. This political deadlock contributes to creating tensions amid the feeling that the state is not in control, hence no strong actions or reforms are being employed despite election promises.

Lack of Resources

All those living in the camps would certainly like to move out to a safer area; where to go is their dilemma.

“We don’t know where to go, and we are afraid that we will not find our tents and things again when we come back,” confides 27-year-old Anouza, mother of two girls aged 13 and 11 and a young boy aged 4, pointing to the small tent, ripped on the side, where they all live. The school year re-opens in September, but she has no money to send her two girls to school, just like the majority of families in the camps. In a country in desperate need for the younger generations to take the lead for a better future, the lack of free education accessible to the poor represents a handicap for decades to come.

If Emily closely missed Haiti, what if the next hurricane does take a toll on the country? According to OCHA, the U.N. humanitarian agency, between 200 and 300 emergency sites (for 30,000 to 50,000 people) were available to host earthquake victims if a forced evacuation by the Haitian Civil Protection became necessary. However, the list is still not consolidated as inspections at these sites are still ongoing, which raises concerns about the effectiveness of emergency evacuation procedures.

When compared with the 600,000 still living under tents and tarps, these figures appear largely insufficient. The Haitian population can still pray “Bondye” (the Good Lord) that the next hurricane, too, will take compassion on them and stay away from their country. Because nobody else seems to have the will and strength to seriously address the structural issues of post-earthquake Haiti.

Source: The Epoch Times.
Link: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/world/haiti-little-rain-but-troubles-remain-60442-all.html.