Own all US news!

Two weeks after the earthquake that devastated Haiti, its people are confronted with a human rights crisis. Amnesty International has identified some of the country’s biggest human rights challenges and outlined a plan that puts protection of human rights at the core of relief and reconstruction efforts.

Exploitation of children
With families separated and schools destroyed, thousands of children in Haiti have been left without protection. The most vulnerable could become prey to the traffickers.

There is also a risk that children could be caught in irregular adoption processes – a risk increased by the interest of families abroad who would like to adopt Haitian children orphaned by the earthquake. Haitian institutions also have a lack of capacity to determine the status of children and ensure their rights are protected Separated and unaccompanied children might wrongly be considered orphans.

International adoption should be a last resort, used only after domestic alternatives have been exhausted. The Haitian authorities must ensure children are not taken out of the country without the completion of formal legal proceedings for international adoption.

Family tracing should be a priority for the international community, the Haitian authorities and international aid agencies.

Security and law enforcement
The Haitian government’s ability to ensure the rule of law has been severely undermined by the earthquake. Establishing a functional justice system to deal with the most serious crimes should be a top priority.

There is a growing concern that prisoners convicted of violent crimes who escaped from Port-au-Prince’s National Penitentiary are trying to regain control of the most deprived and vulnerable communities.

In response to this threat, community members have organized themselves to prevent gangs from taking over communities. However, this could put community members at risk of spiralling violence. Amnesty International has received reports of lynchings and incidents of mob justice where alleged looters have been killed.

There are also reports of alleged looters being shot by police. Haitian authorities must ensure that firearms are only to be used by police in self-defence and as a last resort. The Haitian authorities must also set up a provisional detention centre, as the country’s main prison has been destroyed and other detention centres are overcrowded.

Rights of the displaced
Hundreds of thousands of people have been left homeless by the earthquake and many have fled the devastated areas.

Displaced people must be supported to make voluntary and informed decisions about their future. Any relocation of internally displaced persons from camps or disaster areas must be voluntary, unless the safety and health of those affected requires evacuation. They should not be coerced in any way, including through the suspension of assistance. All displaced persons have the right to return to their former homes unless safety issues prevent it.

Violence against women
In post-disaster situations, women and girls are often particularly at risk from sexual violence, exploitation by traffickers and reduced access to sexual, reproductive and maternal health services. Their disadvantage in accessing aid is well documented.  
Those involved in the relief and reconstruction efforts must ensure that the prevention of all gender-based violence, in particular sexual violence, is integrated into their work.

Accountability of international forces
More than 10,000 US troops, 150 military personnel from the Dominican Republic and 800 Canadian soldiers have been deployed in Haiti to provide security for the distribution of aid.

The terms of deployment and rules of engagement must be clarified from the onset and respected by all international forces The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) personnel must also be governed by strict rules of accountability. In the past, leaving accountability for violations solely to the discretion of troop-contributing countries to UN peacekeeping missions has lead to impunity for serious human rights abuses.

Haiti’s foreign debt
In 2009, international financial institutions and other creditors cancelled US$ 1.2 billion of Haiti’s foreign debt. Despite this, Haiti still owes hundreds of millions of dollars to its creditors.

The repayment of this debt now represents an unacceptable burden on Haiti’s population and national economy. Amnesty International has called on all creditors to cancel Haiti’s debt. Insistence on repayment would hinder Haiti’s ability to meet its human rights obligations.

All financial resources available to Haiti in the years to come must be channelled to reconstruction programmes that ensure Haitians’ welfare and access to basic services, and equitable and sustainable development.

Image caption: Men fight over a bag of rice during UN food distribution, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, © AP GraphicsBank

img src=http://www.amnesty.org/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/imagecache/previewsize/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/PUBLIC/Regions/AMR/haiti-quake-100.jpg alt= title= /br/US authorities and UN agencies in Haiti must urgently resolve the lack of access to emergency aid for those in desperate need following last week’s earthquake, Amnesty International warned on Friday. br /
br /
According to reports from official sources and relief organizations in Haiti, food, water, sanitation and vital medical supplies have arrived in the country but are still not reaching those in most need in many parts of the capital Port-au-Prince and in outlying areas equally severely affected. br /
br /
There are reports from some areas, for example the town of Gressier, that distribution of essential supplies has still not started. br /
br /
Amnesty International has also urged the US authorities and UN agencies to ensure protection of the most vulnerable in Haiti, especially unaccompanied children, which must be a top priority along with the distribution of food and water. br /
br /
quot;Haitian children are at risk of being seized by people-trafficking networks, of being abused and used as child slaves, as well as suffering pervasive sexual violence. Special measures need to be taken quickly to protect those at risk,quot; said Kerrie Howard, Americas Deputy Director at Amnesty International. br /
br /
Special measures need also to be urgently established to receive thousands of displaced peoples fleeing the crisis to other parts of Haiti in need of water, sanitation, food and shelter. br /
br /
More than 100,000 Haitians are feared dead after a 7.1 earthquake struck on Tuesday 12 January. Thousands of people are still unaccounted for and survivors await relief efforts from international donors to provide them with access to drinkable water, food and medical care.nbsp;nbsp;

Edwidge Danticat is a Haitian-American writer and 2009 recipient of a MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Grant.

Michele Wucker is executive director of the World Policy Institute and author of the book Why the Cocks Fight: Dominicans, Haitians and the Struggle for Hispaniola.

DBR stands for Daniel…

The border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic has a complicated history. (Flickr photo by inside disaster)

In 1804, Haiti declared its independence after a series of battles between French troops and slave armies. By 1809, some 10,000 former Saint Dominique…

United Nations Special Envoy Bill Clinton (background) leads a delegation at a hospital in Port-o-Prince. (UN Photo/Logan Abassi.)

Haiti’s troubled history means the country has often been blamed for its own fate. But Haitians themselves, with a strong sense of historical…

img src=http://www.amnesty.org/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/imagecache/previewsize/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/PUBLIC/Regions/AMR/haiti-quake-100.jpg alt= title= /br/Amnesty International called on the United Nations to put in place measures for the protection of human rights and the most vulnerable among the survivors of Tuesday’s devastating earthquake. br /
br /
Amnesty International saluted the speedy and courageous efforts of UN, relief and development workers in Haiti and around the world assisting with humanitarian efforts to save lives, clear the devastation and restore basic services and the country’s crumbling infrastructure. br /
br /
The organization also asked for particular attention to be provided to ensuring respect for human rights and protection of children and those left orphans as a consequence of the earthquake. Girls in particular are at higher risk of sexual abuse and attack. br /
br /
ldquo;The current situation of lawlessness in Haiti and the increased vulnerability of women and children creates the perfect environment for human rights abuses and crimes such as rape and sexual abuse to take place undetected and go unpunished,rdquo; said Gerardo Ducos, Haiti researcher at Amnesty International. br /
br /
ldquo;Protecting vulnerable groups from sexual violence is as important as providing them with relief.rdquo;nbsp; nbsp;br /
br /
Amnesty International made the call as thousands of Haitians are feared dead after a 7.1 earthquake struck the country on Tuesday. Thousands of people are still unaccounted for and survivors await relief efforts from international donors to provide them with access to drinkable water, food and medical care.nbsp; nbsp;br /
br /
In the wake of the disaster, the law enforcement capacity of the Haitian National Police and the justice system are severely compromised as most of its infrastructure has collapsed and many officials remain unaccounted for.nbsp; nbsp;br /
br /
Amnesty International has previously documented shocking levels of sexual violence against women and girls across the country. br /
br /
ldquo;Before the devastating earthquake, Haiti was unable to effectively protect human rights and in particular, women and girls from sexual violence. Unless action is taken now while relief efforts are ongoing, the situation is only likely to deteriorate,rdquo; said Gerardo Ducos.nbsp; nbsp;br /
br /
Amnesty International conveys its deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the victims and a message of solidarity to the Haitian people.nbsp;nbsp;

img src=http://www.amnesty.org/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/imagecache/previewsize/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/PUBLIC/Regions/AMR/haiti-schoolgirl-100×100.jpg alt= title= /br/p
Authorities in Haiti must enact legislation to protect children working as domestic help in conditions that amount to slavery, said Amnesty International ahead of Universal Childrenrsquo;s Day. br /
br /
Amnesty International launched a campaign on Wednesday to press the government in Haiti to enact measures to protect child domestic workers from abuse, ill-treatment and exploitation. br /
br /
Many Haitian families, too poor to support their children, are forced to send them to work as domestic help. The children — most of them girls — end up working long hours cleaning, cooking, fetching water for the whole household and looking after other children in the family. br /
br /
ldquo;Most child domestic workers in Haiti live as virtual slaves,rdquo; said Gerardo Ducos, Haiti researcher at Amnesty International. ldquo;They work in inhuman conditions, suffering violence and abuse by their hosts, only for a plate of food.rdquo; br /
br /
UNICEF estimated that there were as many as 100,000 girl domestic workers in Haiti in 2007. br /
br /
Trapped in a situation of total dependence, many girls are compelled to put up with violence and sexual abuse. Some flee the employer or host family and live on the streets where they may have no option but to sell their bodies for sex in order to survive. br /
br /
15-year-old Reacute;gina told Amnesty International that when she was 10, she was sent to work as a domestic servant, but she ran away because the beatings became unbearable. She spent the next four years at Foyer Maurice Sixto, a shelter for children who have been domestic workers. During that time she was able to go to school. When she turned 14, Reacute;gina went back home, were she suffered further abuse. br /
br /
ldquo;Girls in Haiti are trapped in a spiral of poverty and violence,rdquo; said Gerardo Ducos. rdquo;The eradication of this modern form of slavery is the only way to protect the rights of thousands of children.quot; br /
br /
Haitian laws do not provide a protective framework for children. br /
br /
In 2003, the Law for the prohibition and elimination of all kind of abuses, violence and inhuman treatment of children came into force. This law removed a chapter of the Labor Code that regulated the work of children in domestic service but failed to ban the practice of children in domestic service. br /
br /
The Code had prohibited the ldquo;employmentrdquo; of children under 12 as domestic workers and had provided guarantees that those aged over 15 would receive a salary for their work. The Code required foster families, among other things, to request authorization from the Institute of Social Welfare and Research if they wished to employ a child as domestic worker. br /
br /
ldquo;Ahead of Universal Childrenrsquo;s Day, Haiti should step up its commitment to the protection of girl domestic workers and take concrete steps to improve their situation,rdquo; said Gerardo Ducos. br /
/p
div align=left
img src=http://www.amnesty.org/sites/impact.amnesty.org/files/PUBLIC/AI/action-button-en.gif title=Take Action alt=Take Action height=73 width=114 class=asset-align-right/ustrong/strong/u
/div
div align=left
ua href=http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/protect-girls-domestic-labour-haiti-181109strongAppeal for action/strong/abr /
/u
/div
Protect girls in domestic labour in Haitibr /
p
nbsp;
/p
p
nbsp;
/p