UN leader pledges help for homeless Haitians in camps
Source: Agencies |
March 16, 2010, Tuesday
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UNITED Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon promised Haitians that the world has not forgotten the quake-torn nation as it suffers from a shortage of shelter and growing violence in teeming camps for the homeless.
Security issues and the risk of flooding and disease in the squalid tent cities are pressing concerns for governments and international aid groups struggling to help hundreds of thousands of victims of the January 12 disaster, which killed a government-estimated 230,000 people and left 1.3 million homeless.
Making his second visit to Haiti since the quake, the UN leader met President Rene Preval on Sunday and discussed plans for a UN donors conference in New York on March 31 to fund Haiti's reconstruction.
Ban's message to Haiti's government and people is that "even if time passes, the world has not forgotten. The world is always at their side."
Haiti needs money for schools, infrastructure, roads, ports and electricity, Ban said at a news conference.
And "for the foreseeable future, the government will need international assistance simply to cover its payroll," he said. A government statement said the tax department expects to collect only a third of its expected annual take of US$330 million. Duties on imports are the government's main source of income.
UN humanitarian chief John Holmes said last week that the United Nations is struggling to raise the US$1.44 billion needed to help earthquake victims this year. Ban said only 49 percent has been raised.
Preval raised concerns that Haiti's farmers would be hurt by continuing imports of food aid. Already, rice farmers have told The Associated Press they cannot sell their harvest because of rice handouts.
"It was absolutely necessary that international aid arrived" after the earthquake, Preval said, but "we are now in a new reality."
Ban later toured a makeshift camp where more than 45,000 people are living under a tapestry of colorful tents pitched across a golf course.
With no electricity or security, the camps are growing increasingly dangerous at night, particularly for women and girls. Aid workers said a seven-year-old girl was raped in the camp at the weekend.
"We will make every effort to ensure that camps remain safe and secure, most especially for women and children," Ban said.
Security issues and the risk of flooding and disease in the squalid tent cities are pressing concerns for governments and international aid groups struggling to help hundreds of thousands of victims of the January 12 disaster, which killed a government-estimated 230,000 people and left 1.3 million homeless.
Making his second visit to Haiti since the quake, the UN leader met President Rene Preval on Sunday and discussed plans for a UN donors conference in New York on March 31 to fund Haiti's reconstruction.
Ban's message to Haiti's government and people is that "even if time passes, the world has not forgotten. The world is always at their side."
Haiti needs money for schools, infrastructure, roads, ports and electricity, Ban said at a news conference.
And "for the foreseeable future, the government will need international assistance simply to cover its payroll," he said. A government statement said the tax department expects to collect only a third of its expected annual take of US$330 million. Duties on imports are the government's main source of income.
UN humanitarian chief John Holmes said last week that the United Nations is struggling to raise the US$1.44 billion needed to help earthquake victims this year. Ban said only 49 percent has been raised.
Preval raised concerns that Haiti's farmers would be hurt by continuing imports of food aid. Already, rice farmers have told The Associated Press they cannot sell their harvest because of rice handouts.
"It was absolutely necessary that international aid arrived" after the earthquake, Preval said, but "we are now in a new reality."
Ban later toured a makeshift camp where more than 45,000 people are living under a tapestry of colorful tents pitched across a golf course.
With no electricity or security, the camps are growing increasingly dangerous at night, particularly for women and girls. Aid workers said a seven-year-old girl was raped in the camp at the weekend.
"We will make every effort to ensure that camps remain safe and secure, most especially for women and children," Ban said.
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