"The opportunity for technology advancement in Haiti from Mathias Pierre of the Haitian Association for ICT Development." Photo and caption by @inveneo.
Six months ago today, a 7.0 earthquake leveled much of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, along with nearby cities. Untold thousands died -- 230,000, the government says. Another 1.5 million people remain homeless, jammed into camps at every margin. The rubble itself remains a major obstacle to the recovery, just the sheer task of finding someplace to put it.
I searched Flickr for all images taken this month and tagged "Haiti." Up came pictures of a ruined country, a recovering country, the people trying to help each and themselves, people in a situation that seems so awful it defies helping. The slideshow's after the jump.
"A child victim of Haiti's earthquake." Photo by Daniel Desmarais, IOM, posted and captioned by @haitilenses.
Leave a Comment:
Laura, we in New Orleans have learned that until you are dead nothing is ever "so awful it defies helpiing." There is always something else you can do, beyond and including just another dollar in a box, or dime in a collection jar. Even if it was just kids picking up trash and removing it from their own flooded houses after Katrina, they helped, and that made them heroes. There were so many non-profits created right here in New Orleans, because of Katrina, and many more will, or have been created, because of the Oil Spill. Several were created just for Haiti, right here in New Orleans because we understood something about what they were going through. This was just one of many legitimate charities created after Katrina:
www.ompublications.org
The Huffington Post has a great article about Haiti and the fact that only 2% of all donations have actually made it to the country so far.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/isabel-macdonald/wheres-haitis-bailout_b_643102.html
"...the influx of foreign food aid has meant that many Haitians can now get rice for free. As a result, the price of rice in Haiti has plummeted. Mirana Honorable, a rice farmer, has to choose between selling enough rice to pay for her children to go to school, and having enough rice for her family to eat."
http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2010/06/10/127750586/how-foreign-aid-is-hurting-haitian-farmers
The Huffington Post article does not appear to offer any insight or analysis regarding why so little pledged / donated money has made it to Haiti. Without some analysis it is just a list of numbers - awful numbers, to be sure, but the article is a bit thin without the insight regarding why.
Personally, I would research and choose a participating favorite nonprofit organization rather than a general fund. Some even allow you to select which allocated account your donation goes to, and its easier to track progress with newsletters, etc.
The funds that haven't made it to Haiti aren't from the nonprofits, this is the money that foreign governments, including the US, promised for relief. CNN did a good expose on this story last night. It just goes to show that government is quick to promise financial support, but slow to make good on their promises.
Thanks, Laura. I was going to write to suggest taking a look at this, since Haiti seems to have dropped off the news-cycle map, and the situation there is still horrible. THAT would be a useful place for Rachel to go!
The problems in Haiti existed before the earthquake - as in most poor nations they are racked with corrupt governments who take US aid and enrich themselves. The other problem is the lack of birth control that not only puts women's health at risk, but produces children no one can feed. Until the countries giving aid step in and demand accountability, even take over the pitiful excuse for a government, we are wasting our time and money.