Report on Haiti Earthquake and Its GovernmentEssay Preview: Report on Haiti Earthquake and Its GovernmentReport this essayReport on Haiti Earthquake and its GovernmentThis report was requested as a requirement of the TPC unit “Apply Language and Learning skills.” It examines the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.The massive earthquake that struck Haitis capital Port-au Prince in January 2010 left approximately 222 750 people dead and 300 572 injured. 105 000 homes were completely destroyed and 208 000 seriously damaged. About 3 million Haitians were affected out of a population of 10 million. The cost of the damage is thought to be US$7.8 billion. In the year since the earthquake the international community has responded by pledging 70 percent of the US$1.5 billion humanitarian appeal, as well as $5.3 billion for reconstruction. A further $4.6billion has been pledged for longer term reconstruction.
- New York-based American International Group was the first to issue an order on July 30 requesting that the UN Security Council suspend the Haitian government, after the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) reported that there was no evidence the Haiti government has been directly responsible for a deadly earthquake.
- An international coalition for clean cutting of Haiti launched a coordinated investigation of the disaster in December 2010, with the primary focus on the health of Haitians.
- I believe that the Haitian government has a role to play. The country has been on a course of increasing aid efforts for years, which is important, because the government is still understaffed and has to deal with multiple groups in a country as small as Haiti. But, in the past decade, Haiti’s international relations and national security have changed so rapidly that a foreign policy of military intervention is necessary to keep up the momentum. By engaging in a broad policy shift, and providing financial support and other assistance to help the Haiti government keep the country’s balance, the United States has the potential to help the international environment and to protect Haiti’s people, and to restore international confidence in its functioning. It is right here that we will make the most of this opportunity and I would like to thank each and every one of you for your support.
- I did research for the story I was publishing.
- I was also involved in writing on all areas of Haiti and Haiti was my first assignment on the ground in Haiti. I have written extensively on the political reform and community health campaigns in Haiti and, for the past six or seven years, I have written extensively on public policy, government services, educational initiatives, and humanitarian efforts throughout the country. I have contributed to a number of organizations, including the Committee for Public Safety, the Institute for Haitian Studies at the University of Michigan, the Global Program of the U.N., the American Civil Liberties Union, the African Campaign for Human Rights, the Haitian Freedom Network, the Haiti Development Program,
Major challenges plague the reconstruction effort. 1 050 000 people are still living in temporary camps, sleeping in refugee shelters where they are vulnerable to weather and security threats. Cholera has claimed over 2 350 lives, most earthquake affected people are still without employment or a steady source of income. in the 1 199 camps that still dot the capital safety is a major problem, especially for women and children. Only two percent of the rubble has been cleared. Shortage of building materials, as well as complex challenges relating to land tenure, is preventing new permanent homes being built.
Vulnerability and PovertyHaiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, with most of the population illiterate and food scarcity. In the 20 years prior to the January 2010 earthquake, urbanization and repeated natural disasters led to 7 550 deaths and 3.5 million people being affected. A lack of planning and the failure of building regulations in Port au Prince have resulted in highly populated slums with hovels perched on steep slopes, and poor quality building through the city.
Response of the Haitian peopleThe first response to the earthquake was led by the Haitian people, with the help of national NGOs and neighbourhood provided assistance and mobilized resources.
International humanitarian aidWith so many international organizations, coordination of the international response effort and the interaction with national actors was a major challenge in the weeks and months following the earthquake. UN led groups were officially activated within a few days, but many were ineffective for several weeks as they struggled to coordinate the vast network of NGO actors involved in the humanitarian response. National NGOs were largely excluded as many meetings took place in English in the limited access Logistics Base of the UN Stabilization mission. Interface with the national government was also limited despite the fact that the government had produced six working groups with government and civil society representation to cover food aid, health, water, energy, reconstruction and shelter. Inner coordination was weak and groups operated within themselves hampering any cross-group cooperation. The UN itself faced huge difficulties with almost one hundred UN staff killed in the earthquake, including the Special Representative of the Secretary
In the weeks and months since the earthquake the UN has been working with Haitian authorities, who have not yet provided the necessary information, to find the identity of the affected officials, as well as, where the victims were taken from and what they knew and how they were treated.
This study on Haiti will be published on April 14.
What is this report about?The report has a great deal of data and information, that includes information on the government’s role in the health care system, but it also gives a glimpse into a major problem facing Haiti. It provides some insight into the way in which the Haitian government has played a very important role in putting Haitians, who are still largely Haitian, in a position where their chances of survival could be threatened. It also provides some idea on what measures the government could take if and how the victims were transferred. A critical component of the study is how this information will help the Haitian government and aid groups in providing help to affected Haitian families – and its actions are needed at all levels.
I spent time on Haiti in the last three years in the United States in a capacity as a writer, a journalist, consultant, professor, publicist, journalist, public affairs, and a political organizer. I traveled with Haitians, and I gave interviews and worked on Haiti’s most pressing challenges and has been active in the Haitian government’s social reform efforts.