First off – I wanted to thank each of you who’ve continued helping out with the Housing Fund for the St Michel Orphanage, which is our primary ministry in Haiti right now (and which we are the sole supporters of).
Your love and generosity has enabled us to provide safe, comfortable housing for the children there, and none of this ever would have been possible without you! There is always work that needs to be done, and improvements we’re trying to make, so all your contributions are greatly needed, and greatly appreciated.
(Photo above: Two volunteers from the St Michel Church of Christ helping with much needed repairs to the wall that surrounds our orphanage property)
Secondly – and I thought this was very cool – Rolin (the preacher at St Michel) and his son Roberde have started a special Sunday Afternoon Youth Service for all the kids at the St Michel church – Roberde sent me this 1-minute video of the kids singing – especially if you’ve been to Haiti with us before, I’m sure this will bring back some great memories:
Lastly – for you to truly understand the significance and importance of the impact you’re having on the lives of children in Haiti, you have to also understand how horrific the circumstances around them have become – keep in mind, this is the context in which our kids are living, and the context in which you are providing them both food and safe living conditions.
This is a statement released by the UN just a couple days ago:
HAITI’S FREEFALL DEMANDS URGENT GLOBAL ACTION AS MILLIONS FACE HUNGER AND VIOLENCE
Haiti is facing “one of the most severe and rapidly deteriorating humanitarian crises in the Western Hemisphere,” a senior UN aid official warned on Friday, underscoring the need for continued global attention to alleviate suffering there.
Edem Wosurnu of the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, briefed journalists on her recent mission to the Caribbean island nation where violent armed gangs remain in control of large areas of the territory.
The worsening crisis is marked by rising insecurity, deepening protection needs, mass displacement, shocking levels of gender-based violence (GBV) and a challenging operating environment for the UN and partners.
Families, not figures
OCHA is sounding the alarm as over half the Haitian population, 6.4 million people, now need humanitarian assistance.
Some 5.7 million are going hungry, with families skipping meals and children even leaving school to help support their households, while 1.5 million people – 12 per cent of the population – are displaced.
“These are not abstract figures,” she said. “These represent families uprooted, families displaced; separated children – many who’ve lost the homes that they knew.”
Violence and vermin
Ms. Wosurnu, Director of OCHA’s Crisis Response Division, was in Haiti from 16-20 March and “the situation has changed significantly” since her last mission two years ago.
She travelled to the capital Port-au-Prince, which is 90 per cent under gang control, and other locations such as Centre Department, where a recent wave of violence left some 80 people dead and forced 13,000 to flee.
The veteran humanitarian visited crowded displacement sites, including a school that normally holds 400 students but now shelters some 2,800 people.
“They described at night vermin, roaches, coming out; rashes on the skin of children,” she said. “The very ground I was walking on (was) the very place people were sleeping on at night.”
Across Haiti, 1,600 schools remain closed due to insecurity in a country that prizes education.
“School means a lot for the people of Haiti,” she said. “So, 1,600 schools closed, 250,000 children missing education, is a big, huge deal.”
Protect women and girls
The plight of women and girls is “particularly horrendous” and represents a protection crisis.
“Last year, 8,100 survivors of gender-based violence were recorded – a 25 per cent increase from the year before. Half of the reported cases involved rape,” she said.
At one site she met a 16-year-old girl and her three-month-old baby, describing them as “a child holding a child.” The teenager had been displaced, with no idea where her parents and siblings were. A man offered to take care of her but instead abused her.
The girl embodied another harsh statistic, as one in six GBV survivors is under 8. Ms. Wosornu also spoke to women whose “glazed-over eyes” reflect their trauma.
Yet only 30 per cent of survivors receive medical assistance or psychological support within the critical 72 hours after sexual violence due to the lack of humanitarian funding for GBV.
Haiti cannot wait
Ms. Wosornu concluded her remarks by making three requests “because the people of Haiti cannot wait.”
She called for an end to the violence, continued support for humanitarian operations as“aid is collapsing” and political solutions to end the crisis.
“We must be honest. Humanitarian assistance alone cannot change the fate of the people of Haiti and the trajectory of Haiti,” she said.
“Sustained investment in essential services can create solutions for the people. Haiti’s courage, undeniable. Our support, ever so necessary.”
