On January 12th, an earthquake rocked the core of Haiti; an event that is now being deemed one of the worst catastrophes in recorded history. The world’s leading nations quickly rallied unlike ever before, pouring record quantities of aid and money into the tiny Caribbean country that now lay in total ruins. And in the aftermath, the unthinkable began to unfold.
Local government response to the disaster was non-existent (President Preval went into hiding for the first week and police were nowhere to be seen for days). Riots broke out everywhere over food and water shortages, armed gangs looted at will, and an unrivaled army of humanitarians gallantly marched into the midst of it all without any co-ordination or unity amongst themselves. Thousands of corpses littered the streets for over a week until they were eventually transported to a mass grave dumping site just outside the capital. All the while thousands of more corpses were left, and still remain, buried in the rubble, the smell of death blanketing all corners of the city that stands as a precarious skeleton compared to what it once was. US troops landed on the streets en force to establish order, and the UN, contending with the collapse of its headquarters in Port-Au-Prince and the death of 101 staff, gradually began to appear, after days of silence, spreading like a ubiquitous wave of hope across the land, filling in the gaps as the US forces began their withdrawal in the weeks that followed.
Now into the twelfth week after the earthquake, and with approximately 10000 NGOs (non government organizations) active in the region, the relief effort has been a crucial and urgent inundation that has been seriously hampered by unfathomable conditions. Vital distribution of food, water and medical supplies is yet to reach the majority of people who remain utterly destitute, helpless, and totally disillusioned by the limited progress of the many who have come to save them. The reality of the destitution is ever present throughout the country, particularly from Port Au Prince to the epicenter of the quake 30 miles away. Anti UN graffiti is written on walls, as well are pleas for help to the outside world. And behind closed doors, tireless meetings continue in the UN and its subdivisions (ie World Food Program and World Health Organization) with NGOs and media packing the rooms in attendance.
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Bradley Rae Freelance photographer / writer. For asignments:
