Latin America
From the Ground Up How Haiti Should Recover
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magnitude 7.0 earthquake rumbled for about 35 seconds at 4:53 p.m. on Tuesday, January 12, 15 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital. Fifty-two aftershocks, 217,000 casualties, and seven weeks after the earthquake that devastated Haiti, the Haitian people are slipping from the world’s attention. After the earthquake, the international community supported Haiti with over $2.4 billion dollars and continues to supply countless aid and rescue workers. Unfortunately, Haiti’s lack of political and physical infrastructure makes this disaster one of the most complex challenges many aid organizations have ever confronted. To prevent such logistical problems in the future, Haiti must develop a long-term strategy that includes a more centralized aid administration, a strong security force, and a government willing to tackle urban decay with significant infrastructure improvements. Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with a GDP per capita of only $1,291. Less than half of the country’s citizens have access to clean drinking water and malnutrition is endemic. From its founding by former slaves in 1791, the country has had more than its share of misrule; a UN peacekeeping mission has been stationed in the country ever since then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide was forced into exile in 2004. Despite its difficult history, Haiti had just begun to improve, politically and economically, before the earthquake. The government had created a national developmental strategy in 2009, and the international community forgave much of Haiti’s debt. President Obama commented that the earthquake striking in Haiti’s rare period of optimism made it
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Natalie Kim ‘12 particularly “cruel and incomprehensible.” In the immediate aftermath of the quake, the international community reacted promptly and generously. The US sent navy and coast guard ships to Haiti within hours and placed up to 2,000 marines on reserve, ready to be dispatched to the country if necessary. The United Nations, which had lost
“Many experts suggest the government create programs to support the movement of already existing populations out of the overpopulated capital and into towns in order to counter negative effects of urbanization.”
more than 40 personnel in the quake, including its mission chief Hedi Annabi, offered $10 million in immediate emergency relief, as well as former President Bill Clinton as a special envoy. Total long-term aid pledges total over $2.4 billion worldwide. Despite the influx of aid pledges, Haiti’s ruined roads, seaports and airports, and political structure prevent ample aid from reaching those who
American Foreign Policy
need it. Supplies were initially shipped into Haiti through the neighboring Dominican Republic; later, officials had to turn away humanitarian aid as Haitian airports lacked landing capacity. On January 31, flights transporting critically injured Haitians into the US were suspended. Finally, aid officials were unable to bring in heavy-duty machinery to clear the rubble and rescue survivors until a day after the earthquake, time being of the utmost essence in rescue operations. Although Haitians have shown surprising resilience and goodwill towards each other, sustained delays of supplies are spurring growing violence and unrest. Gangs have assumed authority in some of Port-au-Prince’s poorest neighborhoods, rendering some roads impassable and cutting off aid to some of the people most in need. The national penitentiary was damaged enough that some inmates could escape, adding to the chaos. Urgent measures are needed in order to ensure that basic needs are met in the country. A more centralized aid administration should take over from the over 10,000 NGOs and variegated lot of UN peacekeepers—a combination of NGO delegations and US troops who are working out of sync—in Haiti. The UN should harmonize its mission by focusing on maintaining law and order, establishing security over unstable regions, and regulating the distribution of supplies that are necessary. In order for these goals to be realized, the internationally community should help provide a military presence as well as further economic and humanitarian aid. President Obama has already committed 7,500 additional troops to contribute to recovery efforts, and according to Vice President Joe Biden, “[The American response wasn’t just] a humanitarian mission with the life cycle of a month … This is going to be a long slog.” There are debates over how long this commitment should last. While some, such as the French minister in charge of humanitarian aid, accused the US of “occupying” Haiti, others such as the US Navy’s Rear Admiral Ted Branch claim that as long as there is a clear knowledge and consensus that the US is there to restore Haiti, there should be no problems.