Senior International Programmes Officer – Ian McInnes – talks about his role administering TEAR Fund’s aid effort in Haiti and the situation there.

TEAR Fund NZ’s senior Programme Officer is currently in the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince. He is there serving our partner, Tearfund UK, and will be acting as the Director of their Disaster Response Team as they go about establishing their work in the area over the next few months. Ian has kindly agreed to share his experience through regular blog updates. All the images and writing are contributed solely by Ian. I’m finding it hard [...]

TEAR Fund NZ’s senior Programme Officer is currently in the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince. He is there serving our partner, Tearfund UK, and will be acting as the Director of their Disaster Response Team as they go about establishing their work in the area over the next few months. Ian has kindly agreed to share his experience through regular blog updates. All the images and writing are contributed solely by Ian. All was quiet last [...]

The following is reprinted with permission from the author, Saundra Schimmelpfennig. The original can be found here on Saundra’s excellent blog Good Intentions Are Not Enough. Imagine that you’re at work when whatever natural disaster is most probable in your state strikes. For me it would be an earthquake, for you it might be a flood, volcanic eruption, or hurricane. The natural disaster has toppled telephone poles and cell phone towers, damaged roads, and collapsed [...]

Disasters like the Haiti earthquake provide fertile ground for scammers to work their black magic. Such disasters and the ensuing media frenzy tug at people’s heartstrings and compel many towards wanting to help. With modern technology it’s not too hard to manipulate and take advantage of that desire only to use it for anything but helping. A perfect example is a Facebook application I have seen floating around called “Haiti Click donations” that seems to [...]

With the major rescue efforts being called off in Haiti and those resources being diverted to the continuing provision of emergency relief and care, alongside efforts to stabilise the country another pressing problem is becoming of increasing concern, child trafficking. Child trafficking in Haiti was already a problem with several NGO’s noting a sharp increase in the number of children being trafficked out of the country into the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas in 2008. [...]

It’s time to enter the discussion about Pat Robertson’s comments relating to Haiti. The comment from the infamous televangelist that has caused much furor in the media and around the internet can be viewed over on Youtube. In the clip, Pat Robertson makes a connection between Haiti’s poverty and suffering and a “pact with the devil” that was supposed to have taken place during the Haitian slave revolt in the 1790’s that removed them from under [...]

Forget the arguments and cynicism about aid.  The need in Haiti is massive and urgent.  Haiti is one of the poorest nations in the world.  Its infrastructure is completely inadequate to cope with the effect of a 7.0 magnitude quake so close to its capital.  Rapid, effective foreign aid is vital. It’s hard to get an accurate picture of what’s happening.  Communications are disrupted, reports sketchy and varying considerably but it’s likely the death toll [...]