Clarke Calls on Accountability for the Management of IDP Camps

On Thursday, a Washington based advocacy group, Refugee International(RI), released a report stating that 70 percent of Haitian camps lack proper management, ten months after the January 20th earthquake hit Haiti. Rep. Clarke released the following statement:

“Unfortunately, this report highlights the squalid conditions that still remain in many of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps where over 1.3 million people are still living. It also highlights the lack of organization and structure that needs to be put in place to properly manage these facilities,” stated Rep. Clarke. “This is unacceptable.”

According to Refugees International, “…the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is still struggling to manage some 1,300 camps where over one million displaced people live in fear of hunger, rape, intimidation and forced eviction…” The report also points out that “…the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a mainly U.S. funded organization, is responsible for coordination and management of the camps in Haiti, and RI found on a recent field visit that less than 30 percent of the camps have managers.”

“I am calling on President Obama, the Department of State, USAID, the UN, the U.S. Congress, the Haitian Diaspora and the Government of Haiti to hold the IOM accountable for the management of these camps. We must also hold each other accountable. We must ensure the quick implementation of a comprehensive plan that will help the Haitian people transition from the deplorable conditions of the IDP camps to permanent housing. We can no longer suffer from compassion fatigue. Now is the time to get rid of the bottlenecks and start making real progress.” stated Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke.

“We as a Global community need to renew our commitment in helping Haiti fully recover, placing it at the forefront of our global humanitarian efforts. As the Representative of the second largest Haitian population in the country, I will work diligently with my colleagues in Congress to ensure that Haiti is not forgotten, and that we continue to step up recovery efforts in that nation,” concluded Rep. Yvette D. Clarke.

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