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Haitian Premier Says Loss of Support Led Him to Quit - New York Times

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 04:56:55 -0800

New York Times - Feb. 26 - BBC NewsHaitian Premier Says Loss of Support Led Him to QuitNew York TimesThe prime minister of Haiti, whose abrupt resignation on Friday threw the country into political turmoil once again, said he knew his job was finished when he called cabinet ministers to a meeting a day earlier: None showed up.Setback for HaitiMiamiHerald.comHaiti Without a Prime Minister Again: Is This Reconstruction or 'Deconstruction'?TIME (blog)Haitian president Michel Martelly promises to act quickly after prime minister ...Boston HeraldBusinessWeek -The Associated Pressall 450 news articles »

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WHO report finds rich and poor nations now battle all kinds of diseases

Tue, 17 May 2011 00:00:00 -0700

The Guardian - May. 17 - Progress has been made on key MDG health targets, but non-infectious diseases have spread to developing countriesThe world is experiencing a change in the geographic distribution of diseases. Traditionally, infectious diseases, which claim the lives of so many children, have affected poor countries and non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes, cardiac ailments and cancer, have plagued rich countries.But the latest statistics released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday show that the income level of nations is no longer so important, and that all countries now face the burden of both kinds of diseases.Up to now, non-communicable diseases tended to be identified as the ills of opulence, limited to high-income countries, WHO's director of health statistics and informatics, Ties Boerma, told IPS.However, due to changes caused by the ageing population, improvements brought about by the global effort to meet the millennium development goals (MDGs), changes in birthrates and other factors, developing countries are now also fighting non-infectious diseases, he said.Boerma noted that the phenomenon began in urban areas of developing nations, among the most highly educated population groups, but it is now expanding rapidly. That was one of the central conclusions reached by WHO experts on the basis of the World Health Statistics 2011 report published on Friday.The study confirms that important progress has been made in improving the main health indicators, fighting poverty, bolstering gender equality and education, and moving towards the other goals outlined in the eight MDGs, which were agreed by the international community in the 2000 UN general assembly and have a 2015 deadline, Boerma said.Over the past 10 years, the rate of improvement of infant and maternal mortality rates – key MDG targets – has been twice as fast as progress made in the 1990s.Many countries are still lagging, some of them considerably, which means a huge effort is needed over the next five years to meet the MDGs, Boerma said. Nevertheless, the rate of progress is speeding up overall, he added.In the case of child mortality, the world is only halfway to the MDG target, while in the case of maternal mortality, the world is only one-third of the way there, the WHO expert said.The question of infant mortality will be evaluated again in September, when WHO and Unicef, the UN children's fund, release new statistics. For now, "we are still standing at 8.1 million" children under five who died in 2009, Boerma said, compared with 12.4 million in 1990.With respect to the situation in the Americas, he said the statistics show that "very good progress" has been made in many countries.In Brazil, Argentina and Chile, for example, "there have been steady but relatively fast declines in child mortality, and coverage intervention is high. And they also reduced the inequity between the poorest and the richest. Brazil has been a very good case study of where the poorest have benefited," he said, adding that Mexico has also progressed.At the other extreme, of course, is Haiti, he said, adding that the health indicators are still worrying in countries like Bolivia and Peru, which have made some advances but "still have a much longer way to go".Boerma cited the case of Cuba, pointing out that although it is not a rich country, it "spends quite a lot on health" and does so "in a very equitable way."Everybody has (free) access to health services," he said. "So in terms of life expectancy it ranks quite high and it has low child mortality and high coverage of intervention. So it is very successful in reaching the whole population and getting good value" for its investment, he added.The expert noted that the US "is not at the top" in terms of health statistics in the Americas. He said: "They are at the top when it comes to the amount of money they spend on health. But they are not at the top in terms of getting good results for their investments in health services."One reason," he said, "may be that coverage of the whole population is not so good. So much of the expenditure goes to relatively expensive curative interventions or interventions that benefit a smaller proportion of the population."The WHO study reported that average global life expectancy rose from 64 years in 1990 to 68 in 2009. In poor countries, the average is 56 years, while it has climbed to 80 years in wealthy countries.Life expectancy for women is five years longer on average than for men. That difference has held fairly steady, between four and five years, over the past two decades.The WHO figures show there is still a huge gap in health spending between low and high-income countries, averaging an annual $32 per capita in the former and $400 per capita in the latter.The study reports that high-income countries have, per capita, 10 times more doctors, 12 times more nurses and midwives and 30 times more dentists, on average, than low-income countries.HealthWorld Health OrganisationAids and HIVMillennium development goalsInfant mortalityMaternal healthMaternal mortalityUnited StatesBrazilArgentinaCubaBoliviaPeruHaitiUnited Nationsguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

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Catastrophe on camera: Why media coverage of natural disasters is flawed

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:00:00 -0800

The Independent - By Patrick Cockburn - Jan. 20 (Comment) - The media generally assume that news of war, crime and natural disasters will always win an audience. "If it bleeds, it leads," is a well-tried adage of American journalism. Of the three categories, coverage of war has attracted criticism for its lies,

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O'Brien: What Haiti tells us about the promise and limitations of digital media - San Jose Mercury News

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 20:34:47 -0800

San Jose Mercury News - Jan. 11 - MediaShiftO'Brien: What Haiti tells us about the promise and limitations of digital mediaSan Jose Mercury News"Digital media was used in Haiti in an unprecedented way for a humanitarian effort," said Mayur Patel, Knight's director of strategic assessment, ...Haiti quake yielded tech lessons for disaster reliefSan Francisco Chronicle (blog)New Technologies Helped in Novel Ways with Haiti Earthquake ReliefVancouver Sunall 22 news articles »

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Thank God It's Over: The Top 25 Moments of 2010

Tue, 28 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Foreign Policy - Dec. 28 (Editorial) - With earthquakes in Haiti and western China, floods in Pakistan, a volcanic eruption in Iceland, and wildfires in Russia, the Earth was intent on releasing a lot of pent-up anger in 2010. Tremors and eruptions -- along with the more basic elements of fire and water -- seemed to shape the past year's events even more than traditional foreign policy actors. Meanwhile, Europe struggled to regain its economic footing, China continued to rapidly grow its GDP, Middle East peace talks crumbled, and world leaders misbehaved (we're looking at you, Vladmir Putin and Silvio Berlusconi). But there were bright spots, too: A group of Chilean miners escaped after enduring two months trapped underground and long-suffering Burmese democratic activist Aung San Suu Kyi was released after spending nearly two decades in detention and under house arrest. Here are a few glimpses of 2010's international high- and lowlights.

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Cuban medics in Haiti put the world to shame

Sat, 25 Dec 2010 16:30:32 -0800

The Independent - Dec. 25 - They are the real heroes of the Haitian earthquake disaster, the human catastrophe on America's doorstep which Barack Obama pledged a monumental US humanitarian mission to alleviate. Except these heroes are from America's arch-enemy Cuba, whose doctors and nurses have put US efforts to shame.

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Haiti, Nearly a Year Later

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0800

New York Times - By Nicholas D. Kristof - Dec. 01 (Opinion) - Already, more than 1,700 people have died of cholera in less than a month, and the Pan American Health Organization estimates that 400,000 Haitians may get cholera over the next year.

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In Rough Rio de Janeiro Slum, Police Units Try a Softer Touch

Mon, 11 Oct 2010 00:00:00 -0700

New York Times - By Alexei Barrionuevo - Oct. 11 - Years of hate and mistrust are thawing in some of Rio de Janeiro’s most violent slums, or favelas, as officials have embarked on an ambitious plan to wrest control of them from ruthless drug gangs.

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Is live-tweeting about rape in Haiti a wake-up call, or a mistake? I say the former

Fri, 24 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0700

San Francisco Chronicle - By Steve_Katz (Steve Katz) - Sep. 24 (Opinion) -

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Rwanda's laptop revolution

Sun, 28 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0700

The Guardian - By Peter Beaumont - Mar. 28 - Rwanda has a plan to prevent any return to the genocide of 1994: connect 100,000 children to the outside world with their own laptops Two small boys are standing hunched outside the window of the Groupe Scholaire Kagugu school in Rwanda?s capital, Kigali, a cluster of low, shed-like buildings set around a central yard. A sudden tropical downpour is rattling the frame. Heavy droplets stick to the pane, distorting the faces pressed against the glass. The taller of the boys pulls a tan jacket over his head. But the drenching does not discourage them. Their eyes don?t shift. What they want to see, so desperately, is inside the classroom. It?s an object 10 inches square, green, white and rubberised, inscribed with the logo of an X and a ...

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Milton Friedman did not save Chile

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

The Guardian - By Naomi Klein - Mar. 04 (Opinion) - To say the late economist deserves credit for the country?s building codes shows a lack of knowledge of pre-coup Chile Ever since deregulation caused a worldwide economic meltdown in September ?08 and everyone became a Keynesian again, it hasn?t been easy to be a fanatical follower of the late economist Milton Friedman. So widely discredited is his brand of free-market fundamentalism that his admirers have become increasingly desperate to claim ideological victories, however far fetched. A particularly distasteful case in point. Just two days after Chile was struck by a devastating earthquake, Wall Street Journal columnist Bret Stephens informed his readers that Milton Friedman?s "spirit was surely hovering protectively over Chile" because, ...

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Editorial Observer: Haiti’s Futile Race Against the Rain

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

New York Times - By Lawrence Downes - Mar. 01 (Opinion) - Haiti’s government and relief agencies must decide how to shelter more than a million people in a country with no good place to put them before the rainy season.

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Rebuilding Haiti transparently

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Washington Post - By Post - Feb. 03 (Editorial) - THE MASSIVE international response to Haiti's earthquake has brought more than $2 billion in aid to the stricken Caribbean nation, by the United Nations' reckoning. That's a stunning figure, but it comes with a giant asterisk: So far, the vast majority of the aid, more than 85 percent, has been earmarked or promised but not yet delivered or disbursed.

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Where Haiti Disaster Assistance Is Bottlenecked, Frustration and Protests Erupt

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:14:54 -0800

Associated Press - Feb. 03 - PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti | Hunger turned to anger in Haiti's capital on Wednesday as hundreds of protesters marched through the streets accusing local officials of demanding bribes for donated food.

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In high court ruling on Haiti, Swiss make an awkward break with neutrality - Washington Post

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:14:03 -0800

Washington Post - Feb. 03 - The GuardianIn high court ruling on Haiti, Swiss make an awkward break with neutralityWashington Post12, just hours before the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti, killing as many as 150000 people. The amount of money being contested could feed more ...Haiti, Swiss gov't losers in Duvalier cash rulingNewsday (subscription)Switzerland Freezes Freed Duvalier AssetsWall Street JournalBaby Doc could get £3m meant for aid agencies in HaitiDaily MailMontreal Gazette?-JURIST?-Swissinfoall 231 news articles??

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Rescue run for Haiti earthquake 'orphans' raises evangelism concerns - Faith & Reason

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 16:21:05 -0800

USA Today - Jan. 31 - The GuardianRescue run for Haiti earthquake 'orphans' raises evangelism concernsUSA TodayOn Monday, 10 US Baptists who tried to ferry 33 Haitian children -- who may or may not be orphans -- out of their shattered country to the Dominican ...Haiti Kids Taken by Americans Reportedly Have FamiliesFOXNewsUS Citizens Arrested in Haiti for Alleged Child TraffickingVoice of AmericaAmericans detained in Haiti were 'trying to rescue children'The GuardianABC News?-Bloomberg?-Aljazeera.netall 1,450 news articles??

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Massive food distribution to begin Sunday in Port-au-Prince - CNN.com

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 20:11:05 -0800

CNN - Jan. 30 - Globe and MailMassive food distribution to begin Sunday in Port-au-PrinceCNN InternationalWorkers unload food in a German government distribution program to help those displaced in earthquake in Haiti. Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) -- Massive food ...US to help Haiti resume normal airport operationsWashington PostUS Troops More Than Welcome in Haiti _ for NowABC NewsAmericans arrested taking children out of HaitiReutersVoice of America?-Fort Worth Star Telegram?-BBC Newsall 2,807 news articles??

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Haiti quake orphans trapped by red tape

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 20:10:57 -0800

BBC News - Jan. 30 - The BBC's Rajesh Mirchandani follows the story of a Haitian orphan called Lovely as her prospective adoptive parents fight to take her to the US.

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A glance at Haiti developments 18 days after quake

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 18:12:41 -0800

Washington Post - Jan. 30 - A glance at Haiti developments 18 days after quakeWashington PostThe US military is assessing Haitian airports to which it can divert military traffic to allow Port-au-Prince's congested international airport to return to ...and more??

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Uncertain future for Haiti's amputees

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 06:08:24 -0800

BBC News - Jan. 30 - Uncertain future for Haiti's 2,000 quake amputees

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Amanpour: Blog Archive - Haiti PM: Traffickers targeting Haiti's children, human organs « - Blogs from CNN.com

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 16:25:27 -0800

CNN - By KatyLostInCambo (Katy Molloy) - Jan. 27 -

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A true Marshall plan for Haiti

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Financial Times - By Glenn Hubbard - Jan. 26 (Opinion) - "The tragedy in Haiti has attracted an outpouring of aid from governments and non-governmental organisations in the developed world. That is only for the good. But what happens after, when the immediate crisis is past and Haiti moves from relief to recovery? Perhaps the most striking precedent is Europe after the second world war. Like Haiti today, Europe lay in ruins. First came the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration, which provided food, clothing, medicine and shelter to those in need. That ended in 1947. Next came the Marshall plan, 1948-52, which revived local business in Europe. Loans went to local European businesses and were repaid into a national fund, which then paid for commercial infrastructure such as ports and roads. To this day, the Marshall plan is recognised as the most successful programme of economic aid the world has known. Why not the same for Haiti?"

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Formal Camps Aren't Easy Solution For Haiti Survivors

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:01:59 -0800

NPR - Jan. 26 - The Haitian government says it hopes to go ahead with plans to move hundreds of thousands of earthquake survivors from makeshift settlements in Port-au-Prince to camps in outlying areas where they can receive food, shelter and medical aid. Many people

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Why did U.S. aid focus on securing Haiti rather than helping Haitians?

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Slate - By Ben Ehrenreich - Jan. 21 (Opinion) - Air-traffic control in the Haitian capital was outsourced to an Air Force base in Florida, which, not surprisingly, gave priority to its own pilots. While the military flew in troops and equipment, planes bearing supplies for the Red Cross, the World Food Program, and Doctors Without Borders were rerouted to Santo Domingo in neighboring Dominican Republic. Aid flights from Mexico, Russia, and France were refused permission to land. On Monday, the British Daily Telegraph reported, the French minister in charge of humanitarian aid admitted he had been involved in a "scuffle" with a U.S. commander in the airport's control tower. According to the Telegraph, it took the intervention of the United Nations for the United States to agree to prioritize humanitarian flights over military deliveries.

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Our Haiti hypocrisy

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

The Guardian - By Jeremy Seabrook - Jan. 19 (Opinion) - The international community has many aliases. This week in Haiti it swung into slow-motion urgent action in the guise of the "humanitarian community", configured for quite different purposes from when it becomes a "coalition of the willing" or "world opinion". Perhaps its most powerful symbol was Ban Ki Moon urging those who have lost everything to exercise patience.

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