CRS Warns of Potential Humanitarian Crisis in Haiti

Catholic Relief Services
Wednesday, 18 February 2004

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) today warned of the potential for a humanitarian crisis in Haiti if commercial and aid supply lines continue to be affected. Armed insurgents, Haitian police and gangs supporting the government are battling for control of key cities in the northern and central parts of the country. Roadblocks, manned by gunmen, have made it difficult for supplies and humanitarian assistance to reach these areas.

Persistent insecurity and lack of communication have left ordinary people at the mercy of each day's events, with hospitals and schools closed and the cost of bare essentials—like food, medicine and cooking fuel—skyrocketing. In Gonaïves, the country's fourth largest city, with a population of 200,000, all commercial deliveries have been discontinued.

"The situation is critical," said Dula James, CRS Country Representative for Haiti. Due to delays in clearing food containers from the port, supplies at hundreds of centers supported by CRS are running low. With supplies recently released from customs, CRS is beginning a nonstop two-week delivery plan today. However, the volatile environment—including spontaneous street protests, roadblocks and general social unrest—could threaten the delivery's implementation, in turn affecting hundreds of thousands who depend solely on CRS food aid for survival.

Staff have been in contact with communities and partners in the north, and report that rural villages lack food, household items, clothing and materials for shelter—a result of ongoing violence and looting. CRS is organizing support for the parish of Dondon and other local parishes to distribute basic necessities. Staff from the CRS/Dominican Republic program are assessing the tense situation along the northern border with Haiti, exploring ways to provide needed assistance.

CRS and Caritas partners continue to work in the areas that are still accessible and are pressing for the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to alleviate the suffering of the north.

The agency has nearly 200 staff members working in Port-au-Prince, Les Cayes and throughout the southern peninsula. CRS has worked in Haiti for 50 years, providing assistance in the areas of food security, HIV/AIDS care, safety net programs, civil society, health, water and sanitation, education and agriculture.

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic community. The agency provides assistance to people in 94 countries and territories on the basis of need, not race, creed or nationality.

For more information, or to contact Catholic Relief Services, see their website at: www.catholicrelief.org