I don't know who was responsible for EarthQuake relief in Haiti but I do know where the relief came from: USA.
I like to complain about US foreign policy just as much as the next guy but, here's one case where the Red, White and Blue were right on time. I don't know who made the call. I don't know if it was Obama, Sec of State Clinton, or whoever, but it was the right call. Thank you. This isn't to say that other nations didn't pitch in immediately; Brazil was here, Mexico was here, Italy was here, France was here, the Dominican Republic was here, but some one had to take a leadership position and it was the United States. The US came in strong and on time. The US presence gave a sense of calm to the Haitian people.
I'm not trying to say everything has been perfect in terms of food distribution or shelter distribution or getting to all the right people at the right time but I am saying that a major social catastrophe has been avoided.. so far.
Who was most noticeably absent? You guessed it.. The Government of Haiti. Zero. Nothing. Zilch. Absent. Invisible. That's what the Haitian people in Haiti are saying TO THIS DAY. Who else was noticeably absent? The United Nations. The United Nations was in a difficult position because the local UN leadership died in the Quake. Still... where are they now, two months later? Patrolling Delmas? Everyone complains about the UN (MINUSTAH) including members of the US Military AND the Haitian people.
I'm a jerk; I know it. I say things publicly that most people save for intimate cocktail parties or gatherings with friends. I say things out loud that most people aren't allowed to say: Here's an example. The Haitian Government is corrupt. They had two corrupt elections last year. 1) No one voted, 2) the Haitian Gov't financed preferential candidates and 3) the Haitian Gov't made up voting tallies. That's right, the Haitian Government is corrupt. No one wants to say it. I say it. MAY THE TRUTH SET US FREE. Haitian President Rene Preval is corrupt. That's easy. Here's the sticky part.. The United Nations was complicit in the corruption. That too is correct. The men and women in Baby Blue knew about the corruption and said nothing. That means they're complicit. That's my problem with this whole situation here in Haiti. Haitian history did not begin on January 12, 2010. Life in Haiti did not begin on January 12, 2010. Things were murky before the 12th. Things were wrong before the EarthQuake. No one cared. The press wasn't here. The corruption wasn't news. The international community was going along for the ride. Is the general public aware of this?
A) Eric Farnsworth of the Council of the Americas wants a United Nations mandate to reconstruct Haiti. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-farnsworth/rebuilding-haiti_b_493568.html
My question is, if the United Nations is/was corrupt, then why does someone want to offer them the RECONSTRUCTION PIE?
B) President Obama is doing photo Ops with Haiti's President Preval. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/10/obama-situation-in-haiti-_n_494120.html
The words of the article were very subtle:
Obama: "The situation on the ground remains dire". "Washington will remain partners with Haiti on the long road to recovery and reconstruction."
Nothing specific. That's good diplomacy; points for Obama. Nothing should be specific right now. Watch out for this Haitian government. Their term is over. They're just looking for retirement money. They talk about decentralization in the last couple months of their ten year term; They talk about education in the provinces in the last couple months of their ten year term. When the international community is handing out rice to a displaced population, the Haitian Government says the food distribution hurts our image and hurts local production but in reality the Haitian Government is defending the rice importers. Does anyone know what happened to the $300 million dollars that was supposedly allocated to Haiti after the devastating Hurricanes in 2008? When the hurricanes hit, it was news everywhere. By the time the money came and disappeared the press was gone. Is that going to happen again?
B) The story on mercenaries by investigative journalist Nienaber http://www.huffingtonpost.com/georgianne-nienaber/haiti-reconstruction-merc_b_494650.html
had the Haiti EarthQuake Death toll at 300,000, whereas the piece with Obama and Preval shaking hands had the total at or above 230,000. Last month Dutch radio said not more than 100,000 Haitians died in the EarthQuake. That's a discrepancy of 200,000 dead. Preval has said 300,000 in the past. Interesting how the mercenaries and Preval both go with the 300,000 figure. I think in the end people will settle on or around 230,000 just because it seems to be the compromise figure. In reality no one was counting. No one knows.
Where do I get all this stuff?.. I live here.
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Richard Morse
Port au Prince Haiti
Follow Richard Morse on Twitter: www.twitter.com/RAMhaiti
http://globalhealth.change.org/blog/view/international_ngos_keep_haitis_health_ministry_in_the_dark:
" It's not hard to see why Haiti's Ministry of Health would feel frustrated. Take, for example, a March 8 spreadsheet shared by Haiti's health cluster, currently being led by the Pan American Health Organization and the WHO. Titled 'Who, What, Where,' the document chronicles organizations' attempts to assist in Haiti's health sector -- or tries to, anyway. Out of fully 315 organizations -- from Texas Baptist Men to Helping Hand USA -- the majority of details listed for each group (including partnerships, future plans and exit dates) are simply blank.
Hard to take a lead in building up Haiti's health services, when you don't even know who's behind you, where they're located -- or how long they'll stick around. (Or, for that matter in other cases, when you're dismissed outright from where decisions are being made.) "
However, this is the type of "development model", the international community have been promoting since they launched their new destabilization phase of Haiti in 2000.
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/2/22/peter_hallward_on_damming_the_flood
Less than 1 penny of the aid money had gone to the government. Even though there might be some in the current political leadership willing to help out in the face of such horrific disaster, they do not actually possess the resources to do so.
The policies of the International community have been and continue to be to bypass the government because of corruption. There is corruption by the NGOs as well as the UN.
http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/relief-and-reconstruction-watch/undp-haiti-country-director-previously-retaliated-against-whistleblower-who-exposed-fraud/
Yet, the international community have not bypassed the UN and NGOs
Bypassing the government is not a way to fight corruption, it is only a way to weaken it.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/paul-collier-the-crisis-in-haiti-shows-we-need-a-new-approach-to-ngos-1917822.html
Now, how can we stand there and point fingers at this realization. We can be critical of the government, historically, and perhaps in the near future - but surely they have a pass, Yes?
As was reported by CEPR
http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/relief-and-reconstruction-watch/haitian-government-must-not-be-bypassed-in-relief-and-reconstruction-efforts/ :
" As a percent of GDP, government revenue in Haiti (excluding grants) is lower than most African countries. In order to build a legitimate and functioning government... "
There has been a very systematic and concerted effort by the international community(US, France, Canada to name a few) and the international financial organizations (IMF, World Bank, IDB) they controlled to weaken, sabotage, and finally destroy the Haitian state, then use this as a pretext to put the country and its natural resources(oil, gas, gold, copper, cheap labor force(10 cents/hr) ) into a UN receivership.
Thank you for this very insightful analysis based on solid facts, you have given much helpful links to verify. Now, I find myself asking why is it that the government of Haiti playing along when they are being disempowered to help their people, they are pretending that they have the control and the resources to help instead of coming out and speak the truth. Is it pride or is it that by acknowledging the "soft occupation" that they fear of giving it legitimacy or make it real in the mind of people who are in denial or lack the understanding. the group 184 and their friends and supporters can be proud of their accomplisments including weakening the health care system of Haiti to the point where people legs are amputated without anaesthesia, I am sure they do not have difficulties at night, not seeing the suffering children at the General Hospital that used to be run by the government of Haiti, it is now a totally broken hospital where the misery is like hell on earth. Well these men have a lot to answer for. I wonder if they have a soul.
http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/relief-and-reconstruction-watch/haitian-pm-aid-bypassing-government-better-coordination-needed/
Reuters reports:
" "We don't know who has given money to NGO's (nongovernmental organizations) and how much money have they given. ... At the moment, we can't do any coordination or have any coherent policies for giving to the population," Bellerive told a news conference. "
I do not know why they have not been up front regarding the situation with the Haitian people.
When the group 184 was formed, many in Haiti unknowingly went along and some knowingly went along for the reasons mentioned in my previous posts. Many in Haiti may not be politically sophisticated enough to see thru the propaganda. Part of the 3 millions dollars that was spent by USAID went to media outlets. So one can only imagine the amount of misinformation that went on. Haiti is also a place where rumors circulate very quickly and become facts very quickly. Student's loyalty to the group 184 was bought thru scholarships to further their studies.
In a country with such a vast wealth inequality anything can be bought.
The public health system has been in dire state for a very very long time. The rich and super rich pay little to no taxes. This is why they never wanted a government in the first place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngK_2MEjJpM&feature=related
The money was pledged but never disbursed or materialized. Listen carefully to the testimony provided by Dr. Farmer.
Listen carefully to the testimony provided by Dr. Paul Farmer during the US Senate foreign relationship committee that was televised on C-span, in January 2010.
The money was only pledged. There was little to no follow-up to that pledge.
The idea of a receivership was floated around in January 2010 immediately after the earthquake during the Senate foreign relations committee hearings on Haiti.
The link to that hearings is provided on my post below and in another post I wrote on Jan 30, 2010 in response to David Sirota's blogs called "Our addiction to disaster porn"
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-sirota/our-addiction-to-disaster_b_441745.html
Eric Farnsworth is not saying anything new.
This idea of a receivership was discussed during the US senate foreign committee hearings on Haiti in January 2010, immediately after the earthquake. It was proposed by the Republican Senator from Tennessee, Bob Corker.
A link to that hearings is provided in my previous post (the one at 2:01 pm today). Listen to it carefully.
http://www.cspan.org/Watch/Media/2010/01/28/HP/A/28965/Senate+Foreign+Relations+Cmte+Hearing+on+Haiti+Relief.aspx
Remember Naomi Klein's shock doctrine.
Anyway, US, France, Canada and the group 184 had already laid down the foundation for such an eventual outcome with MINUTSHA.
Haiti was placed under a soft occupation and its government further weakened with MINUTSHA
The earthquake provides an opportunity to extend the occupation that was already in place
The group 184 was made up of rich, super rich and wannabe rich in Haiti who did not think that the vast majority of the Haitian people deserved democracy.
http://articles.latimes.com/1994-10-03/news/mn-45919_1_rich-families?pg=2 :
"They aren't ready for democracy. Aristide has told them they have a right to what I have, that they have the right to eat off my plate."
Moreover, for the rich and super rich also known as the subcontracted "Haitians" Haiti is a place to get rich by exploiting the country natural resources including its labour force and a place where wealth should be free to do as it pleases.
Like the subcontracted "Haitians", exploitation of the country's labour force via slave wages and exploitation of its natural resources are what constitutes US, France, Canada interests in Haiti and it is what guide their foreign policies.
The current government of Haiti is doing what it was created to do which is to ignore the needs of the vast majority of the Haitian people.
From Thomas Jefferson to GW Bush, US foreign and trade policies towards Haiti has remained the same. It would be very naive of anyone to think that these policies that have been in place for more than 200 years will change in 2 months or 4 years.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/CHO402D.html :
" The "Democratic Convergence" (DC) together with "The Group of 184 Civil Society Organizations" (G-184) has formed a so-called "Democratic Platform of Civil Society Organizations and Opposition Political Parties". "
"The Democratic Platform is supported by the International Republican Institute (IRI) , which is an arm of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). Senator John McCain is Chairman of IRI's Board of Directors. "
http://haitisupport.gn.apc.org/184%20EC.htm :
" The European Commission is co-financing a Human Rights / Democracy project with Haiti's Initiative de la Societe Civile (ISC) group. The European Commission's contribution is 773,000 Euros (US$890,374 at today's exchange rate). The duration of the contract is from 21/12/2001 to 21/12/2003.
Regarding funding for the Group of 184:
It is known that Rosny Desroches is head of the Fondation Haitienne de l'Enseignement Prive (FONHEP), and that the FNH is run by M. Andre Apaid Jnr. Both FONHEP and FNH are members of the ISC. All members of the ISC are also members of the Group of 184. Indeed, Andre Apaid Jnr. is the Group of 184's main spokesperson.
While on the subject of foreign funding for organisations in Haiti, we also note that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) allocated US$3,050,000 (just over three million dollars) to "civil society, the media, human rights organisations and political parties" "
http://www.refugeesinternational.org/policy/field-report/haiti-ground
"Missing Links: The International Community and Civil Society
The first step to improving humanitarian programs in Haiti is for the UN and international agencies to link into Haiti’s civil society network. There is a strong, organized civil society comprised of grassroots community-based organizations under umbrella networks, as well as larger, established development non-governmental organizations (NGOs). "
The policies of the International community has been and continue to be to bypass the government because of corruption.
Bypassing the government is not a way to fight corruption, it is only a way to weaken it.
There is corruption everywhere not just in Haiti and the way to fight it is thru transparency, accountability, realignment of incentives to promote ethical behavior, putting in place structures to facilitate monitoring and advocacy by Haitian civil society, reducing the vast wealth inequality in Haiti, empowering women to be politicians, managers, and leaders.
This is not rocket science. It has been tried successfully in other places including American and European society.