t took just 36 seconds to
turn Haiti into a disaster
I
zone on 12 January.
Already classed as the
poorest country in the
Western Hemisphere, it didn’t stand a
chance against the 7.0 earthquake which
killed over 220,000 people and left
millions homeless. The world rallied
round, providing aid to the hundreds
of thousands suffering.
A fortnight ago, Chile suffered the
same awful fate. This time a colossal
8.8 magnitude earthquake rumbled
across the country and at the time
we went to press the death toll
had reached 800.
Both countries need support but as
time goes on it’s easy to forget the
troubles in Haiti. And as Angelina Jolie’s
recent visit there highlighted, there is
still a lot more to do. “Organisations are
providing more people with protection,
food, water, shelter and healthcare, yet
the needs are still enormous and the
displacement [of people from their
homes] could last a decade,” she warns.
As a premature hurricane season
threatens to add to the chaos, her visit
helps to remind us why Haiti is still
desperately vulnerable.
STRENGTH AND SPIRIT
Left UN Goodwill Ambassador, Angelina
Jolie visited the capital, Port-Au-Prince,
where dead bodies can still be found on
the road. Jolie met with many vulnerable
children in a hospital made of tents (all
the buildings were badly damaged in the
quake). “Children as young as nine months
old were coping with amputations with
extraordinary resilience. I even met
a 10-year-old boy who’d had his leg
amputated, who was giggling to himself
about a silly book as he sat on the floor.”
RESTORING HOPE
Top right Jolie visited a cash-for-work
programme run by the United Nations’
Development Programme (UNDP) which is
enabling Haitians to earn an income as
they help their country to recover. “To give
people the ability to work toward their
own future is so important. It helps
restore their hope and respects their
dignity,” said Jolie. “Right now, providing
shelter to the displaced is paramount,
especially as the upcoming rainy season
threatens to add to the devastation.”
PROTECTING THE CHILDREN
Above Child trafficking has become
a real problem for the estimated one
million children who’ve been left without
ANGELINA IN HAITI
“HELP REBUILD HAITI”
SAYS ANGELINA
The United Nations Goodwill Ambassador reports from her mission
to the devastated country and reminds us not to turn our backs
JOLIE MEETS MEMBERS OF A
CASH-FOR-WORK PROGRAMME
RUN BY THE UNITED NATIONS
AN ESTIMATED ONE MILLION
CHILDREN HAVE BEEN LEFT
WITHOUT ONE OR BOTH PARENTS
one or both parents. The result has
been the SOS Children’s Villages,
a programme which encourages raising
children inside their own countries.
They’re working around the clock to
reunite children with their families. Jolie
applauded their work, saying, “New
adoptions should definitely not be
encouraged as a response. Haiti had
many trafficking problems before
the earthquake and must now keep
a very close watch on the children.”
To donate to SOS Children’s Villages
visit soschildrensvillages.org.uk
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