Members of Montreal’s Haitian community are trying to send food to their families in the country, which is experiencing one of the worst humanitarian crises, but their donations almost never reach the recipients.
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“We want to help, but we can’t! We buy all year round [des produits] “We want to send them to Haiti, but our families won’t take them in,” despairs Marie, a 74-year-old member of the Haitian community in Montreal. She asked not to give her last name for fear of reprisals.
Like many Haitians, Marie tries to send food to her two sisters, who have 13 children to support.
“We found out what we sent [via un intermédiaire], it never quite happened to the family. “People serve themselves and distribute to their loved ones instead of to ours, even though we have paid,” she complains.
Frantz André, spokesman for Solidarité Québec-Haïti, agrees.
“It is chaotic and if people manage to get food from their families, they risk being harassed by street gangs [qui veulent les voler]”, he explains.
Frantz André, spokesman for Solidarité Québec-Haïti. Joël Lemay / QMI Agency
44%
According to the World Food Program (WFP), a UN agency, 44% of the population currently does not have enough to eat.
“We are not in a small crisis, we are in the worst crisis that Haiti has experienced since the earthquake in 2010 and we must mobilize.” Given the lack of resources, we are worried about the future of our operations” says Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP Director for Haiti.
Given the lack of funding and extreme violence, the challenges are enormous.
“There is acute food insecurity, we have high rates of malnutrition among children. “We must not forget Haiti,” emphasizes Bauer.
impoverishment
But for Frantz André the reality is actually much worse.
“Many people only eat once a day. Middle-class people beg and cannot eat for two or three days because they no longer have the means to pay for basic food items,” he denounces.
And if people prefer to turn to an intermediary rather than an NGO, it is because the organizations are far from fulfilling their mission, Mr. André claims.
“There is a complete lack of trust because we don’t see where the money is going,” he complains.
For his part, Jean-Martin Bauer from PAM assures that something has changed since 2010.
“The response to the crisis is not the same today,” he assures.
Jean-Martin Bauer, director of the World Food Program (WFP) for Haiti, a UN agency. Photo provided by the World Food Program
More than 60% of distributions are made through Haitian organizations and the WFP purchases nearly $1 million in food from Haitian producers, he says.
But the situation in Haiti is becoming increasingly complicated and painful for the Haitian diaspora in Montreal, who are watching what is happening there from afar.
“We live here, but our head is still over there. We fear for our loved ones who cannot feed themselves or hydrate themselves,” admits Marie.