?The following message was sent by Norman Girvan, Professorial Research Fellow at the UWI Graduate Institute of International Relations at the UWI in St Augustine and former secretary general of the Association of Caribbean States, to former Jamaica Prime Minister PJ Patterson, in preparation for yesterday's Conference of Foreign Ministers on Haitian relief in Montreal. Patterson was the Caricom representative to the talks:
Your experience with Haiti while being Prime Minister will be an invaluable asset in bringing a much-needed perspective that respects the Haitian people's own capabilities, leadership and initiative and the sovereignty of Haiti in the relief and rebuilding efforts. I have been following events closely and wish to share the following observations with you. While we must commend the speed and generosity of the international response to the Haitian disaster, we should also recognise that the international community, as a donor to Haiti over more than two decades, also bears responsibility for ill-conceived and poorly-conducted development, political interference, and unfulfilled promises in Haiti. I support the view that on this occasion the reconstruction of the country should be carried out in a way that is effective and accountable to all Haitians and assigns to Haitians themselves the responsibility for identifying their immediate and long-term needs and for creating and strengthening the structures required.
I would argue strongly against an approach that is "security-centred;" that militarises the relief and rehabilitation effort; and that undermines Haitian ownership, initiative, responsibility and sovereignty. Rather, it should be based on the principles of solidarity, respect for their rights and respect for their country's sover-eignty. Here are some specific recommendations developed by the Canadian Council for International Co-operation, Oxfam Canada and Oxfam Qu�bec which I fully endorse as being consistent with the above principles.
International assistance should:
1) Prioritise the delivery of humanitarian assistance by civilian agencies.
2) Protect the rights of vulnerable populations.
3) Ensure Haitian leadership, ownership and decision-making.
4) Focus on ending poverty.
1) Prioritise the delivery of humanitarian assistance by civilian agencies:
The challenges posed by the current operating environment in Haiti are huge, but reports indicate that aid efforts have been impeded by lack of access to airports and the slow delivery of supplies into the disaster site. The delivery and distribution of humanitarian assistance by civilian agencies should be considered the highest priority. There needs to be:
a) A clear delineation of roles between civilian aid workers and military personnel involved in the relief effort. Military forces currently on the ground are providing crucial logistical and operational support, while civilian agencies have the experience and expertise needed to deliver assistance. Assistance currently being provided by military personnel should be handed over to civilian agencies as soon as possible, leaving the military to focus on providing logistical and operational sup-port.
b) Highest priority assigned to civilian humanitarian supplies for the arrival, off-loading and dispatching of cargo at Haiti's airports, ports and land borders.
c) Co-ordination of relief operations should be the responsibility of the UN and the Haitian authorities, and should be carried out in a way that rebuilds and strengthens the capacity of Haitian institutions�
2) Ensure Haitian leadership, ownership and decision-making:
Haitians themselves were first responders to the earthquake. Although local organisations have been affected by the earthquake, the considerable capacity and skills of Haitians themselves must be respected and included in relief efforts. Accordingly, foreign countries and international agencies should:
a) Work to ensure Haitians themselves, wherever possible, are leading relief and reconstruction efforts.
b) Fund Haitian organisations, particularly women's groups, in relief, recovery, and reconstruction.
c) Seek opportunities for including the Haitian diaspora in relief and recovery efforts, particu- larly those with French and Creole language skills.
d) Prioritise the rebuilding of Haitian government ministries and departments that are responsible for providing basic services.
e) Support Haitian community-driven efforts to improve the educational, food security and liveli- hood status of Haitian citizens.�
3) Protect the rights of vulnerable civilians:
Haiti's vulnerable populations will require special protection measures. Thirty-six per cent of Haiti's population is under 15. People with disabilities, including those newly disabled by the earthquake, will find it difficult to access food, water and shelter. Women and girls are at an increased risk of sexual and gender based violence. Donors, international agencies and civil society should:
a) Ensure the principles of impartiality, neutrality, independence, and humanity guide the ongoing relief effort and that humanitarian and development activities are consistent with inter- national humanitarian and human rights law.
b) Prioritise the delivery of humanitarian assistance to vulnerable groups such as unaccompa- nied minors, the disabled, elderly, and women/girls, and ensure that their needs and priorities are addressed in the planning for Haiti's recovery, reconstruction, and longer-term development. To this end:
c) Ensure shelter and emergency camps are planned and built with disability access in mind.
d) Include people with disabilities and organisations focused on disability rights in all initiatives and stages of relief, recovery, reconstruction, and longer-term development planning.
e) Establish rapid response mechanisms and measures to ensure the rights of all Haitian children are protected with priorities on preventing child trafficking and a moratorium on new international adoptions.
f) Encourage all countries contributing to MINUSTAH to train their personnel on preventing, protecting, and responding to sexual and gender-based violence prior to their deployment.
4) Ending poverty:
Poverty and fragility in Haiti is multi-faceted and includes significant tensions between a wealthier elite and poorer Creole-speaking parts of the population. Much of Haiti's GDP is allocated to annual debt service payments amounting to some $60-$80 million a year, limiting Haiti's capacity to invest in its own develop- ment. Real and sustained recovery and reconstruction will not be possible without addressing Haiti's longer-term development, environmental, and governance issues. We should press for:
a) The immediate cancellation of all bilateral and multilateral debt owed by Haiti.
b) The IMF to immediately convert the US$100 million emergency loan to Haiti into a grant provided without any conditions.
c) Ensuring that longer-term assistance addresses both the immediate and structural causes of poverty in Haiti while working to provide relief and reconstruction to areas directly affected by the earthquake.
d) Continuing to provide development aid to parts of the coun-try not impacted by the earth- quake, but still vulnerable to poverty.
e) Supporting environmental programmes spanning the recovery to development spectrum aimed at agriculture and reforestation.�
In conclusion, I strongly support the view that Haiti needs to be rebuilt "from the bottom up." International donors and the Group of Friends of Haiti must ensure the voices and the perspectives of Haiti's poor are heard and their rights respected. Haitian ownership and leadership, through the Government, civil society, the diaspora, and the majority–women and men, girls and boys living in poverty–must be central in all efforts.