Washington, DC – Yesterday, the House of Representative passed H.R. 1016, “Assessing Progress in Haiti Act.”  Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) released the following statement: 

“I am grateful to Rep. Barbara Lee for authoring this legislation and being a strong advocate for the recovery efforts in Haiti.  As a Representative of the 2nd largest population of first and second generation Haitian immigrants, I appreciate the importance of this bill.  It is critical that we keep track of all monetary aid sent to Haiti ensuring accountability and transparency.  We must ensure that funds are being properly used to help the Haitian people,” stated Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke.

H.R. 1016, “Assessing Progress in Haiti Act”;

• requires the President to report to Congress, within six months of enactment, on
  the handling of U.S. funds aimed at assisting Haiti following the earthquake that
  struck that country in 2010;

• requires the report to assess the overall progress of relief, recovery and
  reconstruction in Haiti including updates on projects in place to assist displaced 
  residents, women and children, as well as an analysis of the public sewer system,
  medical clinics and sanitation services;

• calls on the  report to review the extent to which U.S. and international efforts
  conform to the Haitian government’s priorities;

• calls for the report to review the coordination of relief efforts among the United
  States, the United Nations, international financial agencies and the Haitian
  government;

• requires the President to examine whether Haiti can handle the responsibility of
  taking back citizens found to have migrated to the United States illegally since the
  earthquake; and

• recognizes the contributions of urban search and rescue crews from Virginia,
  California and Florida that operated in Haiti following the earthquake.

“We, as an international community must adequately help Haiti recover.  As Hurricane season approaches, I am gravely concerned about the large number of people living in the squalid conditions of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps, exposed to infectious diseases, including the spread of cholera, sexual and gender-based violence and other environmental dangers,” added Congresswoman Clarke.  “For this reason, on April 20th, 2011, I joined U.S. Rep. Frederica S. Wilson (D-FL), U.S. Rep. Donald M. Payne (D-NJ), and fifty-two other Members in sending a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressing our concerns surrounding the conditions of the IDP camps.”

“I look forward to the day when we can witness the full recovery of this beautiful Caribbean nation.  It is in our interest to work closely with our international partners, the CARICOM community as well as the Haitian Diaspora  to press forward for a full and holistic recovery for Haiti,” concluded Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke. 

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