Their Suffering is Unheard of in Human History. Your Support Can Give Them Hope

No other country on earth has ever suffered such a disaster in the past. “Most destructive,”---that is how the media reports describe the extent of loss of human lives in Haiti, as a proportion of the country`s population. Haiti is one of the poorest countries on earth and is ranked 149 out of 182 countries by the 2009 Human Development Index. The Haitians who live on less than US $2 per day have been estimated at 76 percent of the total population, and 56 percent of them live on less than US $1 per day.

The latest reports on the prevailing human conditions in Haiti highlight that, very little re-construction work has taken place in Port-au-Prince since the earthquake. Houses and properties are still to be re-built. Months have passed since, yet the rubble and the debris could not be cleared in many places due to unavailability of earth-moving equipment. People are still using their hands to remove the broken parts of tumbledown homestead buildings and the property wreckages much to their peril.

Although public utilities like the markets and schools are open, the number of people living under tents and tarpaulins without proper sanitation has been estimated at 1.2 million. It is said that disputes over the ownership of broken properties have created a lot of mess to obstruct the reconstruction work. The situation has been more dismal due to weather forecast that a wet storm season followed by a devastating hurricane might be in the offing in the coming few days. Meanwhile, incessant rain for days on end in the beginning of July has made thing worse.

The British Red Cross organization informed that the aide agencies that supply water and sanitation material are now saying that they are facing shortages in relief materials and it may not be possible for them to go on for an indefinite period of time. The reason for the slow pace of relief and reconstruction work was attributed to Haitian government`s lack of action and the massive nature of the earthquake. The relief materials are now ruefully inadequate in that, in spite of the commitment to contribute of 3.5 billion pound in short-tern international aide, only 2% of that amount has reached Haiti so far. The Haitian prime Minister has remarked that, after the earthquake, it was “total chaos”, and what is happening now is “organized chaos.”

Nevertheless, we can take a look at the positive aspect in an otherwise “chaotic” situation in Haiti. The people on the streets in Cite’ Soleil and many other poor localities in Port-au-Prince have taken up the task of transforming their lives themselves. Instead of waiting for help and support from outside organizations, they have joined hands together in the great work of re-building the nation themselves. They are not sitting idle and brooding over their misfortune.

They have embarked on the exemplary work of constructing local schools and new shelters. The men and women who have been worst affected by recent disaster are now engaged in rotating cement churners and bringing barrels of water to the mixers on the construction sites. This is real work without the expectation of any reward or prize, and its sole purpose is to restore the country to its normal life and functioning.

Interestingly, school children are now returning to schools, and they are getting the day`s meal, a place to live and, of course, the right kind of care; thanks to the great humanitarian work that started in Haiti with the initiative of non-profit organizations. The Ministries of Aides International, as a humanitarian charitable non-profit, is in the forefront of re-building the lives of the children of the disaster.

The amount of encouragement and support that our organization has received from you in our endeavor to give back normal and healthy life to children is unforgettable. We are grateful to all our patrons for their unflinching support to our cause and, as we are continuing our efforts to open up new schools and orphanages for homeless and parentless children, we are appealing again to your magnanimous self to come forward with a helping hand to make our mission successful.