This Sunday marks four years since Haiti suffered a devastating earthquake that killed over 200,000 people. MCC Haiti has since worked with Haitian partners engaging in relief and development to stabilize communities. Additionally they have advocated for just policies in Haiti in collaboration with the MCC advocacy offices in Washington D.C., Ottawa and New York. To mark the fourth anniversary of the earthquake, Wawa and Kristen Chege have written up press releases on two critical policy issues: the cholera epidemic and housing. Find ways to get involved with each issue below.
End forced evictions of internally displaced persons and address the long-term housing crisis
Four years after the earthquake, Haitians continue to face a housing crisis. In 2009, even before the earthquake, there was an estimated shortage of 300,000 homes. After the earthquake, that number increased to almost 500,000, leaving more than 1.5 million people homeless. Today, the number of people still living in tent camps is estimated at over 171,974, with an increasing number of Haitians moving back into substandard shelter, deemed unsafe by public authorities. Of the existing 306 internal displacement camps, only two are benefiting from official camp management services.
International assistance for housing has barely scratched the surface of the need. Of the $1.34 billion United States Government post-earthquake Reconstruction and Development efforts, only 9.2% has been spent to provide shelter to those left homeless.
Meanwhile, forced evictions by private land-owners continue to occur on a regular basis, with support from the police and local officials. In many cases, no legal authorization or access to an appeals process has been given. Few and scattered efforts have been made to provide appropriate housing alternatives for the evicted populations, violating international human rights law and Article 22 of the Haitian Constitution.
The Haitian Right to Housing Collective, an advocacy platform of human rights organizations that includes a coalition of twenty-six grassroots groups and displacement camp committees, is calling on the Haitian government to:
- Designate land for housing construction
- Create one centralized government housing institution to coordinate and implement a social housing plan
- Solicit and allocate funding to realize this plan
In addition to supporting the Haitian Right to Housing Collective in their call, Mennonite Central Committee urges the U.S. government to publicly denounce all forced evictions in Haiti emphasizing rule of law and human rights, and to prioritize safe and affordable housing efforts in the remaining earthquake reconstruction funds
To get involved sign the petition on housing
Fund the cholera elimination plan and implement the panel of experts’ recommendations
Haiti is experiencing the worst cholera epidemic the world has seen in recent history. The cause of the epidemic has been traced to insufficient waste management procedures at a Nepalese MINUSTAH base in Mirebalais, Haiti. It is commonly believed the Nepalese strain of the virus leaked into the Artibonite River used for drinking water, washing, cooking and other household chores in many parts of the country.
On December 11, 2011, the UN Secretary General endorsed a $2.27 billion, 10-year plan, the National Plan for the Elimination of Cholera in Hispaniola. Supporting the plan are a consortium of international agencies and NGOs, led by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The plan details short, medium, and long term steps in three phases, each with specific targets, to move the country beyond the current crisis and dramatically improve Haiti’s water and sanitation infrastructure to prevent future catastrophes. Two years on, only 9.5% of these funds have been committed or pledged.
During the first two years of response to the cholera epidemic, only 2.5% of the emergency funds for cholera went through Haiti’s National Water and Sanitation Agency (DINEPA).
With inadequate funding available to DINEPA, the Haitian Ministry of Population and Public Health (MSPP) and others, the cholera epidemic continues to claim the lives of vulnerable Haitians. By December 2013, over 695,700 Haitians have contracted cholera.
Mennonite Central Committee urges the U.S. mission to the UN to:
- Mobilize member states, non-traditional donors, and other international actors to fully fund the National Plan for the Elimination of Cholera’s 10-year, three-phase, and $2.27 billion program.
- Ensure the U.N. implements the recommendations made by the Independent Panel of Experts, to:
- Require sensitive medical cholera screening for U.N. personnel and emergency responders originating from cholera endemic areas
- Mandate the compulsory use of prophylactic antibiotics and/or cholera vaccines for U.N. personnel being assigned to emergencies
- Institute on-site treatment of all human waste at U.N. installations worldwide to neutralize dangerous pathogens such as vibrio cholerae before transport and disposal
To get involved sign this petition on cholera
Also, see the letter from U.S. Rep. John Conyers and 64 other Representatives urging the United Nations to take responsibility for the cholera outbreak.