Haiti: One Month After the Earthquake: Where to Live
NEWS STORY: Chris Herlinger UPDATED: February 12, 2010
PHOTO: Nils Carstensen/ACT Alliance
PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI — Just outside of Port-au-Prince, community leader Altenor Ronald expressed a mixture of frustration, anger and disorientation as he tried to coordinate the relocation of the displaced into a roadside displacement site. “We have no food, no stoves, people are hungry. I’m in charge and I don’t know what to do,” he said. One of those he was assisting, Elimeme Jean, said she and others could stay on the land for two months and not a day more. “We don’t know what’s going to happen,” she shrugged.
In Jacmel, on Haiti’s southern coast, members of one of many “solidarity groups” of friends and neighbors that have opted not to move to displacement camps and instead to stay together on borrowed land, said they do not know how long they will remain in and around the grounds of Jacmel’s Wesleyan Methodist Church. It could be months, even longer, they said. “How long will it be? I don’t know,” said community leader Francilaire Jeudi. “Nobody knows.”
Anger
Nobody knows – it’s a refrain heard often as Haitians mark the first month since the devastating 12 January earthquake in an altered and unwelcome world. As they traverse the unknown, not even the immediate future – a day, a week – can be guessed at. The dimensions of what happened are now accepted as matters of course. The fear of staying in a house or building for fear it will collapse; traversing around piles of rubble; the embarrassment of conducting private acts in public – these are now all accepted parts of daily life. Such indignities have also caused anger and upset; some of the many impromptu signs seeking help read are now not only declaring, “We’re hungry,” but also “We’re angry.” Some Haitians believe trauma will be felt by many in later months, possibly creating violence. For women, the threat of violence is already a reality: reports of rape at displacement sites are becoming increasingly common.
Getting better
If many signs are grim, others are less so. Despite logistical challenges and many pre-existing social problems in Haiti, Tommy Bouchiba, acting country director for ACT/Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe, noted that humanitarian aid is getting to those who need it; aid pipelines are opening up; and rehabilitation programs are already beginning. “It is getting better,” Bouchiba said of the overall humanitarian situation. One reason for the improvement is due to the presence of such groups as members of the ACT Alliance. Since 12 January, the ACT Alliance has assisted more than 150,000 people, with the majority being assisted with ongoing support such as water, sanitation, shelter or regular food supplies or meals. Others have received relief items such as cash or hygiene or baby kits. Others have benefited from medical assistance and supplies to health clinics.
The ACT Alliance, working with numerous local organizations, is assisting some of the most vulnerable among the survivors of the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, nearby Gressier and in Jacmel and Bainet in the south.
In addition, churches and other civil society networks in Haiti and in the neighboring Dominican Republic are working with members of the ACT Alliance, particularly in locales not reached by international humanitarian actors. In many areas, local community networks and self- help groups are often the sole providers of assistance.
Prospery Raymond, ACT/Christian Aid country manager, said that the resilience of Haitians and the acts of solidarity and kindness between them have been striking. That, he said, is the foundation on which any international humanitarian support in Haiti – such as that being provided by the ACT Alliance -- should be built.
“I’m optimistic,” he said. “Yes, this happened but it has to be seen as an opportunity to rebuild the country.”
