Haiti

[Declan]

Keep us posted John

[Billys Boots]

Good man John, let me know if I can be of assistance.

[020304 Tir Eoghain]

Folks, right now I feel so angry about what is happening in Haiti, and the lack of aid that is getting through to those who need it.
The US have taken over, and colonised it all over again. How is it that they can land 9,000 troops on the ground, and hospitals are performing amputations without any pain killing drugs?
How can field hospitals be refused landing permission?
Why is there no shelter, blankets, food, water etc being air lifted?
Why after 7 days are 2 million+ people without these basic requirments in Haiti today?
How can cruise ships dock, and aid ships can't?

In todays world, this level of in action is just unacceptable.
I have been in contact with 3 of the major charities in Ireland. I have offered to donate tents and sleeping bags for the homeless in Haiti. They have all refused to accept them. They keep insisting on recieving money.
They say they will buy tents and blankets, but will not accept free ones! This, I can't get my head around.

I also offered my time and knowledge to work voluntary for them either in Haiti or in Ireland, and they have refused my offer. What is going on here? Why are they refusing aid for free? Aid they are going to buy anyway?

I know Gaza is different, however, last year millions was raised in emergency relief. One year on, hardly one penny has been spent in Gaza. Trust me, in one year from now, Haiti will not have a whole lot done either. I just hope i'm wrong.

I have been exploring ways into getting tents and blankets together. I have a company in Scotland who are willing to do an incredible offer on tents and sleeping bags for this cause.
I am working on a way for people to be able to buy a tent or sleeping bag through paypal, thus making it easy for people to purchase. I have also been donated a large marque that could be used for a field hospital or other use.

I don't know how many I will sell, however, i'm determined to do something practical for the homeless, and not wait around for others to fail.

So, hopefully in the next 24 hours, I will have details on how people can help the homeless in Haiti.

Hard to keep a percentage of a tent or blanket

[Declan]

Phone firms launch Haiti fundraiser

Thursday, January 21, 2010 - 01:45 PM

The mobile operators O2, Vodafone, Meteor and 3, through the Irish Cellular Industry Association (ICIA), today launched a fundraising initiative to support relief efforts in Haiti.

Customers can donate €5 to UNICEF Ireland or Concern's Haiti Appeals simply by texting either UNICEF or CONCERN to 57500.

The donation will automatically be deducted from the customer's account and directed in full to the customer's chosen charity. Customers will receive two text messages to confirm their donation.

Majella Fitzpatrick, Chair of the ICIA and Head of Corporate Affairs at O2, said: "The devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti has shocked us all. The ICIA felt that by joining forces we could give all mobile phone users a simple and convenient way of giving their support. We hope that it will prove to be successful for UNICEF Ireland, Concern and ultimately the Haitian people."

The text campaign appeal will run until midnight Sunday January 31, 2010 and is facilitated by Púca.

Read more: http://www.examiner.ie/breakingnews/ireland/phone-firms-launch-haiti-fundraiser-442858.html#ixzz0dG1yyfLd

[Declan]

How true it is that last weeks headlines are this weeks fish and chip wrappers

Haiti - Still Starving 23 Days Later

by Bill Quigley
You can walk down many of the streets of Port au Prince and see absolutely no evidence that the world community has helped Haiti.

Twenty-three days after the earthquake jolted Haiti and killed over 200,000 people, as many as a million people have still not received any international food assistance.

On February 4, the UN World Food Program reported they had given at least some food, mostly 55 pound bags of rice, to over a million people. The UN acknowledges that it still needs to reach another one million people. The 55 pounds of rice are expected to provide a two week food ration for a family. Beans and cooking oil are scheduled to come later.

The Associated Press reported that people in Haiti at small protests were holding up banners reading "Help us, we're starving." Over a million people are displaced. About 10,000 families are in tents, the rest are living under sheets, blankets and tarps.

One of the people living under a sheet is a brand new mother with her one-day-old baby. The New York Times reports that Rosalie Antoine, 33, and her one day old baby were living in a neighbor's yard with puppies and chickens under a sheet in the Bel-Air neighborhood of Port au Prince.

Haiti and the United Nations estimate 250,000 children under the age of 7 are living in temporary housing. Most need vaccinations.

Flavia Cherry, of the Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action, this week witnessed a pregnant double amputee give birth on the ground in one of the tent camps without any medical assistance at all. "This poor mother had nothing, no milk, no clothing for the baby, nothing!"

Even people who can afford to purchase food are having a difficult time. A 55-pound bag of rice costs 40 percent more today than it did before the earthquake. Dr. Louise Ivers, a Partners in Health physician in Port au Prince, reports a 25 kg (55 pounds) bag of rice that sold for $30 US dollars (1,207 Haitian Gourdes) before the quake, now costs $42 US dollars (1,690 Haitian Gourdes).

The World Food Program reports prices are still rising and people outside the earthquake zone are having difficulty meeting their basic food needs.

Twenty-three days after the quake.

[oakleafgael]

Boylesports put up some charity bets at the National Coursing Meeting in Clonmel this week which raised a good few quid. The charity selected was GOAL to help towards their work in Haiti. The donation was not accepted as GOAL after being pressurised from ICABS did not want to be seen to support coursing. A kick up the hole needed for the ICABS, for trying to interfere in a charitable donation and a bigger one required for GOAL.

[Hardy]

Miserable bastards.

[Captain Scarlet]

Lads I know Haiti has been screwed every which way but lose for hundreds of years but there is one thing that really troubled me over the recent weeks.
It was kinda triggered again today by Kevin Myers' column in the Indo, which by the way I don't agree with.
A few days after the quake CNN had a 'feel good' story on how the UN had helped to re-open a bakery. Oh great they are getting their life back together the report said. People lined up with whatever money they had to buy the bread and the owners were cleaning up.
Now this week government workers were demonstrating as they were missing out on pay after the govt buildings were destroyed.
To be honest that pi88ed me off.
The bakery was profitting as people starved. Black marketeers were also selling food at crazy money. Then the World Food Programme gets an earful over not feeding everyone.
Meanwhile surely the govt workers could show some solidarity and help their fellow countrymen.
Before everyone starts bashing my opinion it is just something that has troubled me and I had to get it off my chest. I still fully agree that the international response has been a joke in terms of logistics and actually helping people on the ground level. I'd just like to think that in such a time of crisis there would be more solidarity between the Haitian people.

[Arthur_Friend]

The people of Haiti are long suffering, this is heartbreaking in the extreme yet all we can muster is 9 posts on the subject and feckin very few of them have got to do with the abject misery the haitian people are living under right now.

If this had happened in Palestine there would be sixty pages on the subject matter right now, is it colour or Religion or anti semitism that fuels our apathy on this thread?

Sickening.

Thats amazing......are you really saying apathy amongst board members to the situation in Haiti is caused by anti-semitism?

[stew]

The people of Haiti are long suffering, this is heartbreaking in the extreme yet all we can muster is 9 posts on the subject and feckin very few of them have got to do with the abject misery the haitian people are living under right now.

If this had happened in Palestine there would be sixty pages on the subject matter right now, is it colour or Religion or anti semitism that fuels our apathy on this thread?

Sickening.

Thats amazing......are you really saying apathy amongst board members to the situation in Haiti is caused by anti-semitism?

No, I was asking a question.

At the time there were 9 posts after the Haitian disaster happened, I thought there would have been a lot more given the severity of the disaster.

[mouview]

The Comedians by Graham Greene is set in Haiti - one of his best novels IMHO. Ton Ton Macoute were despicable.

[Puckoon]

The scammers dont miss a beat do they.... I think I might mess with this one for a while.


Dear friend,

I am a widow by name Mrs. Melissa Gilbert and I hail from HAITA without any child before the death of my husband who died on his way to his office by some unknown gun men who shot him to death on the 10th May 2002 about 8 years ago, one of the memorable days of my live.  According to the police investigation the report states robbery attack but later after some years I found out that it was assassins and a deliberate act by some of his friends that were envious of his level of success and want to take over his job.  The major reason why I am doing this is more pathetic because I am one of surviving Haiti Earthquake victim without a hope of living, lying helpless in the hospital, and I am in critical condition as the doctors report state that my chances of survival is 50 -50 considering my recent situation of incapability. Since his death I decided not to re-marry, I sold all my inheritance belongings and deposited all the sum of US$5.6million dollars with a Security Finance Company in Spain.  I have decide to donate my husbands fund to the needy and I need None Governmental Organization (NGD), if possible a well known clergy person that can reach out to those who needs help to enable them benefit from my widows donation. I want you God fearing person, to use this money to help churches, orphanages and widows; I took this decision before I rest in peace because my time will soon be up. As soon as I receive your reply I shall give you the contact of the Security Finance Company.I will also issue you a letter of authority that will prove you as the new beneficiary of my fund. Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I stated here in. Thank you and God bless Mrs. Melissa GilbertPlease contact me in my private email: malisagilbert@gmail.com