“Hope for Anchorage Now”

The devastation in Haiti is a sad and unfortunate thing to happen in a country that sees natural disasters almost on a regular basis.  Every few years the seasonal hurricanes ramble through the Caribbean doing damage to anything in its path.

Two days after the devastating earthquake in Haiti a story caught my eye in the newspaper.  Apparently some Haitians were so angry that the world was taking its time rushing to their aid that they were going to build roadblocks with the corpses of earthquake victims as a sign of protest.  How very intelligent of these people I thought expecting help from strangers and then possibly being ready for those who bring aid.  Not only will the stench and sight of a pile of rotting bodies make the rescuers feel really welcome but it would delay the convoy’s progress.  Clearly intelligence is not a commodity much in evidence in Haiti.

What has Haiti done for itself?  Not a great deal by the look of things.  The country’s infrastructure was pretty dreadful even before the earthquake and a long line of corrupt politicians have made sure that the country is starved of money to maintain essential services.  The condition of the roads was pretty dreadful before the ground started shaking and they are obviously worse now.  The main airport was unable to cope soon after the quake and the port was unusable due to the damage of roads around the docks.  Access by land from the neighboring Dominican Republic is difficult so just getting into Haiti is a challenge in itself.

Much like New Orleans after Katrina there has been no official government activity or spokesman to come forward to “lead” the rescue and aid efforts.  It’s a pretty sad situation to be sure but one not completely unexpected given the past of this country in dealing with their problems and infrastructure. 

This is the price a country pays for failing to maintain basic infrastructure. More important though was the complete absence on our TV screens of any Haitian emergency services.  I’ve been following the development of this story pretty closely and all I have seen is desperate civilians scrabbling through the rubble in a desperate attempt to find live bodies.  There has been no evidence of local emergency services, whether they are police, army or ambulance personnel.  I can’t believe that the world’s TV cameras have been deliberately ignoring them to show Haiti in a bad light.  Far more likely is that they either don’t exist or have no plan for such an emergency.

I took the time to check some statistics about this country that I have only visited on a cruise where the compound was leased by the cruise line and developed giving locals a way to make money off the tourists who come off the ship for the afternoon.  We enjoyed the white beaches and the long zip line ride.  A nice place to be sure but not like anything found past the walls of Labadee.  It employs 300 people and allows another 200 to set up flea markets to sell their local crafts.  The cruise line continues to moor in this port also taking relief supplies and promising to pay Haiti one million dollars and also all proceeds from the concessions while there.

Many people know that Haiti is one of the poorest places on earth with a per capita income of around $500.  It’s the home of voodoo & zombies and the country’s political history makes some of the nastiest African injustices seem pleasant by comparison.  Around 60% of the population has no formal education and the country has been so ecologically raped that there is virtually nothing left to farm and export.  Unemployment is probably running at around 60% of the workforce and life expectancy for both sexes is in the very early fifties.  All in all, a veritable hell on earth in normal times but made more so by the frightening aftermath of what the United Nations describes as the worst disaster it has ever had to face.

Where has the Haitian government been during these days since the earthquake occurred?  The chaos of getting an emergency response and relief effort is a natural event with almost any disaster.  Whether it comes from within the country or from nations outside it is a massive undertaking.  Reacting effectively to a disaster of this magnitude takes some planning, particularly when you are flying in equipment, provisions and people from the other side of the world.  So it was inevitable that it would take a couple of days for developed nations to put together and co-ordinate an effective rescue operation.  It’s also a costly exercise and no country has a rescue operation standing by just in case Haiti has an earthquake.  Thousands of people, touched by what they have seen on their television screens, have donated large sums of money towards the rescue effort and governments have pledged further millions to help Haiti.

Hope for Haiti Now

Celebrity George Clooney along with MTV quickly organized a fund raising telethon that was seen on many television stations around the world.  It was the biggest of its kind raising millions and millions of dollars around the world.  A noble effort indeed but playing the devils advocate is it a worthwhile endeavor?

Which makes one wonder whether there is any point in rebuilding Haiti?  It doesn’t have oil or any minerals that are cheaply accessible.  It’s not an ideal holiday destination because it gets hit by hurricanes fairly regularly and it is an ecological disgrace.  Worse though, it has a population that seems incapable of sustaining itself without having to beg for aid from other nations.  It is another African disaster story transposed to the Caribbean.

In the animal kingdom Haiti would have been a weakling killed off long ago. But we as compassionate humans are above the animal kingdom.  Which is why we rush to help the weak and the poor in places like Haiti, even though we know that no amount of our money can bring a better life to people who are simply not equipped to survive in the 21st century?

Alaska and Anchorage is also an area that has the possibility of major earthquakes as it has seen the second largest known so far, a 9.2 magnitude that left the City of Anchorage in ruin in 1964.  We are probably poised for another major one and my thoughts run along the lines of what ‘hope’ lies in store for us as we sort through the ruble and attempt to restore what once was. 

Will there be a big telethon and the government giving Alaska 100 million dollars to rebuild?  Will the stars come out to support our relief effort?  One would hope so but sadly we may have spent all our extra money on Haiti or other places in the world that seem to be getting funds to support whatever ‘cause’ is in fashion at the time.

MTV is reporting that 58 million has been raised so far with more coming in over the next few days . . . now if we could just find a way to put our hard earned money to solving some of our own homeless and starvation problems here in the good ole’ USA.

Hope for Anchorage Now . . . let’s hope not anytime soon but at times there is a whole lotta shaking going on.

Ice