Some musings on workers rights and exploitation in Haiti

Sometimes when the day, the week, the month, has been long, I take a stroll to some kind of stress release, to see friends or sneak into one of the expensive hotels to swim. I can saunter into these hotels with little more than a greeting to the guards, because access and wealth are imprinted in my skin. On days like this, when I feel weakened and worn down, I invariably stub my toe on the rubble, which honestly sometimes feels like its augmenting, as people gut their destroyed houses and create new piles in the street.

While walking, I am always kissed at and asked for money. I hate the daily reminder of the continuing imperialism and exploitation that means that finding a sympathetic blan is likely the best chance to get employment, opportunity, or spare change for a meal. Today I bought a Tampico for my noonday trek across the city. As I passed an intersection a nursing mother yelled at me for money, and a kid grabbed my juice. I am ashamed that I said “non ou pa ka pran ju mwen!” (no you can’t have my juice!) and scampered through a break in the traffic. I was feeling defensive and depressed and hot. But I didn’t need that juice, and the kid deserved it. I didn’t respond well to the aggression of the begging, against my defenseless exhaustion.

Of course, I know that begging is hard, an assault on one’s dignity; that my spare change will not make an impact on the fact that everyday people struggle to eat (just as charity and a massive aid community has not); that my spare change means infinitely more to those asking for it than to me; and that whether they buy a meal now, buy their kid a special bon bon, or tuck that 25 gourdes away to pay for school fees, that money won’t be wasted.

But bigger than the age-old question of whether to give money to the homeless, is my daily affirmation over the last months that this nation that was created through the empowered revolt of slaves, is still filled with people living in deeply exploitative work situations.

The lady who works in the apartment next to mine has become a very special friend. We check in every day, she ran out of the house naked from the shower when I stupidly caught my gas valve on fire and screamed “Ede-mwen! Ede-mwen!” (I could remember my Kreyol for “help me!” but not that dumping water on fire would fix the situation), and sometimes we chat about her situation and Haiti. She told me that jesus must be coming soon, because everything is so bad. She is middle aged, and ashamed because she doesn’t have a house of her own. She works 24 hours a day from Sunday night to Friday, cleaning, taking care of her boss’ young daughter “ki fe anpil dezod” (who makes such chaos!), trekking to the Petionville markets then climbing the steep Pacot hills with bags full of vegetables on her head (“nou bouke!” (“we are worn out!”) she sighed to me as I walked with her sweatily up the hill, my own bag awfully heavy with camera and computer and these expensive tools). Every weekend she goes to stay with a son, daughter, or nephew. She is not paid by the hour, and sleeps short nights, waiting by the door to let in her boss who works until ten many nights, then up at five to make breakfast, then clean, scrub launder, and work all day.

Another friend is a driver for an influential political and press figure. He works anytime anything happens anywhere, which is to say all the time. I have been with him on Sundays when he picks me up at 5 am and we don’t get home until midnight. He lives in La Boule, above Petionville, so when he’s done he has to park the car and take a tap tap or moto taxi home, sometimes with change from his boss, and often with what he can scrounge from his pay. He can’t drive the car home, even though he may be working again four hours later, because the other car “could have a problem” and the mister must have access to both his cars if he needs them. He has worked with his boss for eight years, I asked him if he gets a raise each year. He acknowledged that would be normal, but working for a private individual doesn’t get you the same guarantees. “He has so many connections, I thought that could help me, but aside from some side work when foreign colleagues come to town, I’ve seen no real way to advance myself,” he explained. He is an extremely impressive individual; we spoke in French for the early months I was learning Kreyol. I asked him once what he studied, he said he didn’t really have good schooling because his parents died and he came to Port-au-Prince on his own when he was young. He only finished fourth grade, but he tried, and listened, and learned French. We’ve schemed about finding him work with one of the NGOs, but those positions are hard to find, and you never know how long the NGO will be in town. He can’t give up his position, exhausting, strenuous, and low paid as it is, because there’s no guarantee—at all—that he would find something equal or better if he quit, and working eighty plus hour weeks leaves no time for job searches.

I took a ride with one of the NGO chauffeurs one night. We also got to chatting, and I asked him how his work was. Exhausting, and underpaid, he said. He works six days a week, and was excited because his birthday fell on his day off this year, but he thought he might take the next day off so he could actually party—he doesn’t like to work after going out. He works the night shift, meaning until ten or eleven. He says the morning shift is better, because even if you start at five, you get replaced by the night shift at a reasonable hour. The night shifters, though, can be called to come in early if something happens, so he can work from seven or eight in the morning until eleven at night. The pay is not enough, but he also can’t find another job because he’s working all the time and there’s really not much else better. He wants to get his own house, his own life, but he said now people are living with their parents, unemployed into middle age, unable to get a job, to make an independent existence. “Everyone wants to leave, it’s sad, I hate to say it, but it’s true,” he said, “I would too, if I could get a visa I would go. There’s no hope here.”

Artists struggle everywhere, I relate to that, as I etch a living from assignment to assignment, but of course, it’s harder in Haiti. Before the earthquake there were exhibits at galleries, museums and embassies. But many of these institutions were destroyed in the earthquake, along with the state arts university which houses a thriving and beautiful community, that is nonetheless made up of displaced artists, living in tents, with nowhere to go. The university’s issues are bigger though, politics has prohibited new classes from forming for the past two years, and it has stopped hosting exhibits. My artist friends all pull me aside, and ask if I can help them show their work in the states. Over and over I have to explain that I don’t have art connections, that the galleries I know aren’t official enough for a letter, and certainly couldn’t finance their flights, housing, food and transportation in expensive New York. Helping them translate their CV and send applications to artist calls I see has yet to prove fruitful. They all think they could represent Haitian art on the international stage. I agree, their work is fantastic, dynamic, detailed, layered, insightful, unique. Talking about their paintings or sculptures helps me understand Haiti better. But getting out of Haiti requires both extensive documentation from organizations on the other side, and excessive bureaucratic wrangling to get approval from the ministry of culture and to get a passport and visa. The local art business has decayed with the economy, and these artists don’t want to make cheap artisanal paintings to sell to the NGO workers that have replaced tourists as the expat market.

Haiti has an unemployment rate of over sixty percent. Most people work in the informal sector, which has no insurance or guarantee against catastrophe, or legal means to report exploitation or labor rights violations—even if there were a functioning judicial system to follow cases through. New international contracts have lowered the minimum wage in factories[1] to 150 gourdes ($3.70) per day, where lunch typically costs 75 gourdes on the street, and the freest market in the hemisphere means health and education are private industries and families have to buy these essential services. In a recent editorial Nicholas Kristof said '"Sweatshops,” Americans may be thinking. “Jobs,” Haitians are thinking.' Well, in my experience Haitians have more to say (and much more to think, Mr. Kristof, since when are journalists mind readers?) than “I want a job.” Haitians want fair jobs, rights, and wages that reflect their contributions and can support their families.

It feels silly to cry “injustice!” anymore. The world is not fair. But I’m a writer, so I say, this is unjust, and I’m uncomfortable with it. And you can have my juice next time.

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[1] For more on factories and labor rights see Alexis Erkert Depp’s excellent piece here http://blexi.blogspot.com/2010/11/made-in-haiti-good-thing.html

World Bank meets with Haitian Prime Minster

Reporting from Port-au-Prince for Radio Melodie

3 August 2010

La directrice generale de la Banque Mondiale et la Vice Présidente pour l’Amerique Latine et les Caraibes se sont rencontrer avec le Premier Ministre Jean Max Bellerive aujourd’hui pour clarifier le partenariat entre l’institution financiere et le pays.

La Banque Mondiale dirige le Fonds de Reconstruction d’Haiti qui s’est rencontré pour la premiere fois en moi juin. Les premiers deux projets était déjà approve pour soutenir le gouvernement avec 30 million dollars Americaines.

Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Directrice Generale a dit aux journalistes que les prochaines projets peuvent se focaliser sur le probleme du logement, et des decombres. Le FRH va se rencontrer encore le 17 Aout pour clarifier les prochaines etapes. Mais la taille de projet est limité par un manque de fonds. De 500 million dollars promis par des bailleurs seulement 97 million sont disponibles.

Pour les projets Haiti doit payer 2.5% ou un taux fixe a 350,000 dollars pour l’implementation des projets. Ce concernait des officiaux Haitiens avant. mais Pamela Cox , Vice presidente pour l’Amerique Latine et les Caraibes soulignait que ce montant vient de FRH, et qu’il n’y a plus de dette de la Banque Mondiale à Haiti. Les derniers dettes etait annullé depuis le 12 Janvier.

Caribbean youth activists emphasize solidarity and empowerment to address HIV

For One Caribbean Radio in Brooklyn, reporting from Vienna.

22 July 2010

Caribbean youth and AIDS advocates gathered at the Vienna AIDS Conference yesterday to talk about the future of the epidemic in the region.

Dr Ernest Massiah, Director of the UNAIDS Caribbean Regional Support Team urged Caribbean youth to keep pressure on international donors to maintain commitment to the region. In the face of the financial crisis, he warned that many funders are tightening their budgets. He also highlighted the noticeable absence of Caribbean voices in the central conference spaces, despite worryingly high HIV rates in the region.

The Pan Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS, with support from the Global Fund, will launch a new program this year to work towards universal access to treatment and prevention. The program will target vulnerable populations including sex workers, men who have sex with men, transgender people, drug users, marginalized youth and prisoners.

Unifying the islands under one central HIV program will allow for the implementation of projects to deal with marginalized groups, which could otherwise be overlooked at the country level.

The youth component will aim to empower marginalized youths to address the stigma and discrimination that impedes access to services. Elias Ramos presented the work of Yur World, a youth organization in the Dominican Republic. He told One Caribbean Radio that their biggest challenge had been unifying diverse marginalized groups.

But John Waters, of COIN (Centro de Orientacion e Investigacion Integral) who works with Yur World, said that once those alliances are made they become a powerful lobbying voice. “There may not that many trans women in Dominica, or that many effeminate gay men,” he said, “but when they come together they start to have an impact”

The central theme of Caribbean organizing here in Vienna is unity and solidarity to make a stronger presence at the 2012 International AIDS Conference, which will take place, as Dr. Massiah said, in the Caribbean’s “back yard”--Washington DC.

Haitians raise their voices at the International AIDS Conference

For One Caribbean Radio (onecaribbeanradio.com)

23 July 2010

Haitian AIDS activists and allies rallied on the main stage ahead of one of the plenary sessions this week at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna to highlight the worrisome plight of Haitians living with HIV. In front of the largest conference hall the activists called for an end to stigma and renewed commitment to care and treatment for Haitians facing vulnerable situations and combating the virus.

Esther Boucicault (pronounced Bu-see-cole) was the first HIV positive person to publicly disclose her status in Haiti in 1998. She has since started a foundation which works to educate Haitians about prevention, and advocates for services for people living with the virus.

She described the situation people living with HIV face in Haiti: “We are still in the streets, under tents, there are some medications—I can’t say there are none—but honestly there are difficulties locating people living in the streets so they can continue treatment.”

In 2004 Haiti had a 5.6 prevalence rate, but with the work of the Ministry of Health and NGOs a treatment scale-up allowed forty percent of those in need access to anti-retroviral treatment, and brought the national prevalence down to 2.2 percent.

Activists, however, worry that with the instability following the earthquake HIV cases could spike. Boucicault said that with unemployment and hopelessness, she sees an upswing is sexual activity, without broad condom use.

Dr. Jean William Pape is the director of GHESKIO, a locally grown research center for HIV dating back to the 1980’s before HIV had even been defined. He emphasized: “The key challenge is to move 1.2 million people who live in tents into definitive homes. And moving them is not just a physical move because it’s not an object that you’re moving from one place to another, it’s a human being that needs all kinds of services.”

Paul Farmer, founder of Partners in Health, one of the largest non governmental medical providers in Haiti, called for coordination of services to strengthen the government and ensure wide spread access to care. He said all NGOs should be required to partner with the state, and should emphasize employing Haitians. Only by unifying the thousands of organizations working in Haiti can the country take control of its public services and ensure long-term health care for the Haitian people.

Vaudou and liberation

My wonderful friend Lily Cerat, a strong, genius, beautiful woman gave an interview to Dominique Batraville, a Haitian journalist, poet, play-write about Vaudou. I think this is an important perspective on this religion that is so often exotisized and misunderstood in international representations. She describes Vaudou as democratic, tolerant and gender equitable.

"Le Vaudou c'est l'acceptation totale"

listen (French) http://drop.io/pdtmkfa

Some thoughts on Iran

I was disturbed to learn last week that Iran was quietly selected to sit on the UN's Commission on the Status of Women, despite protests from Iranian women activists. Iran had recalled its bid to sit on the UN Human Rights Council after international uproar, given the blatant human rights abuses used by Ahmadinejad's regime to suppress opposition voices during and following last year's election. But afterwards, Iran was selected without an open vote for the CSW. Women decried this based on Iran's history of suppressing the rights of women and ethnic and religious minorities.

Given my viewpoint on Iran's human rights abuses, and on the illegitimacy of Ahmadinejad's regime more generally, I was surprised to find that I agreed with much of the president's opening remarks at the Nuclear Non Proliferation and Disarmament Conference taking place this month at the UN. He said that for disarmament to actually occur, those with nuclear weapons should not be at the forefront of the debate. He also questioned the fear tactics people are using by framing the current nuclear threat in terms of the possibility of terrorist groups getting weapons. He emphasized that access to nuclear technology for energy and medical purposes are one of the key tenets of the treaty.

I agree that it is problematic for the United States to be a front runner in the quest for disarmament, given the US' irresponsible history of stockpiling weapons and using nuclear threats. While I find the calls for "no nukes now" (promoted most recently by the documentary "Countdown to Zero") somewhat uninformed of the complicated and slow process of disarmament and the delicate balance of competing national interests. I also find it problematic that the US maintains its iron grip on its super-power status. The US is floundering financially, and not benefiting economically in the way it used to from wars, weakening its negotiating power. Furthermore the rhetoric of promoting security and democracy is weakening in the face of widespread destruction in the countries where the US is intervening, or occupying.

I think my perspective on the US' role deeply informs my receptivity to competing ideologies. I don't think the Iranian regime's actions this year are acceptable, and I certainly don't think Iran should have power in international Human Rights or Women's Rights bodies. But I do think it is important to acknowledge Ahmadinejad's critiques of the US and the non-proliferation and disarmament process. His stance would be greatly strengthened, however, if he would fully open his nuclear facilities to inspections to placate international fears of Iran's capability of restarting the development of nuclear weapons. If Iran truly believes in peaceful use of nuclear technology, they should verify this to the international community by opting for full transparency of its nuclear programs, verifying that its nuclear capabilities remain small enough for peaceful uses and unable to develop weapons.

Women's movement in Iraq grows despite lack of international support (full text)

My article: "women's movement in Iraq grows despite lack of international support" had to be cut for publication, as I got slightly overzealous in my inspiration of this huge, under-reported story. So I'm putting my full text up here. The end of the article explores how the Iraqi High Tribunal is making massive inroads for women's rights in international law.


29 April 2010: Iraq is still in the grips of fierce political negotiations to form a government following parliamentary elections in March. But as votes are recounted and parties struggle to form coalitions to choose the prime minister, women are pushing under the radar to assert their rights across all sectors of society.

Basma Fakri, President of the Women’s Alliance for a Democratic Iraq (WAFDI), a women’s empowerment organization uniting women across political, ethnic, and religious lines, told MediaGlobal: “Unfortunately, women's rights is not one of the main factors on the negotiation table between the main political parties, but that won't stop Iraqi women from keep on fighting for their rights.”

Women in parliament fought for open electoral lists so voters can choose both parties and individuals. They contributed to the implementation of a quota system; women are constitutionally mandated to fill 25 percent of seats in parliament, and even with the continuing negotiations women have already secured 82 seats (25.23 percent) in the March elections. (The United States, by comparison has only 16.8 percent women in the House of Representatives.) Iraqi women parliamentarians were also instrumental in defeating resolution 137 in 2004, which would have replaced Iraq’s family code with Shari’a law.

Women in government come from diverse backgrounds, with varying levels of experience in politics and civil society. Some are considered seat holders, put in place by their party to fulfill the quota requirement. But once in parliament, even those less active in politics previously have begun to take on their roles and fight for causes they believe in. Janet Benshoof, CEO of the Global Justice Center, an international NGO that works with women to implement international equality laws into national legal structures, told MediaGlobal “Even if some of them were just put in by the religious party to occupy the woman’s slot, those women don’t all change, but a lot of them change when they get in office.”

Women in parliament have unified across party lines with the support of WAFDI. They have worked for women’s rights, but have also expanded their priorities. Women were influential in passing a law that allows NGOs to incorporate without the support of a political party, a shift from earlier standards that had politicized civil society.

Women also play an essential role in fighting corruption. Carole Basri is an Iraqi-American lawyer who has worked extensively on anti-corruption measures internationally and in Iraq. She cited studies saying that internationally women are less likely than men to be corrupted, and explained her experience of women fighting corruption: “What I have found is that women in most societies are outsiders, and because of their outsider status, they are more able to spot something that looks strange that is probably not part of the process, that’s corruption. They’re also more likely not to take bribes.” She also emphasized the solidarity of women’s anti-corruption work across party lines: “I was surprised at how this became a rallying call for religious and secular women, that this is one area that there was a commonality.”

To be active citizens and legislators Iraqi women must be empowered through economic advancement and education, according to Tamara Quinn, an Iraqi-American business-woman. Quinn is the CEO of AIX Global, a medical supply company started in 2006 that sells equipment to Iraq’s ministry of health and the private sector. They will open a plant in Kurdistan this year that will employ widows to give them business skills and financial independence.

Quinn had been hoping to work with women entrepreneurs through the non-profit sector, but when she was unable to secure funding for the program she created a private business. She told MediaGlobal “A woman cannot really be a leader or think about democracy until she puts food on the table, and so far I have not been very successful in changing how the grants are directed. But that’s why we’re doing it from the business standpoint, because I really believe that is essential for the future for any woman.”

Widows are an extremely vulnerable group in Iraq, according to Judge Zakkia Hakki, Iraq’s first woman judge who was appointed in 1959 and is now a member of parliament. She told MediaGlobal that there are 2 million widows in Iraq following the deadly violence under Saddam Hussein. Widows without vocational skills are often forced into marriage as a second, third, or fourth wife. Hakki said, “A job is the only way to ensure independence and dignity for these women.”

Quinn’s work to provide vulnerable women and widows with job skills is not meant to deter women from remarrying if they choose to. Quinn specified: “I think it is important to help them stand on their feet. Now at that time, if they want to make a decision and go get married, and be a third or fourth wife, I’m not against it at all; it’s their own decision. It just does not need to be where they are forced into something just because they have no alternatives.”

The Iraqi High Tribunal (IHT), the court appointed to prosecute crimes committed under Saddam Hussein’s rule from 1968 to 2003 has made enormous strides in defining gender-based crimes as war crimes and crimes against humanity. While only 2 of 55 IHT judges are women, GJC has been working with all the IHT judges to implement international laws concerning women.

The IHT defined rape as genocide in the Anfal case concerning Saddam Hussein’s genocide against the Kurds in 1986-89. This week the Global Justice Center is presenting evidence of gender-based crimes in the Halabja trial concerning the poison gas massacre against the Kurds in 1988. Because the gas destroyed women’s reproductive organs, GJC is arguing that the attack was a gender crime, the first time gender-based violence is moving beyond sexual assault.

GJC has encouraged the IHT to prosecute for rape even when other heinous crimes are present. Benshoof explained to MediaGlobal the reasons for their advocacy: “If somebody has murdered and tortured a million people, to have to then add rape, the question is why? And so we answered that question by saying that this is part of history, women want accountability, women want reparations.”

The decisions of the IHT can have widespread impact, as they bring gender-based crimes to the highest levels of international laws. Benshoof described: “they are using a definition of rape and a gender sensitive way of prosecuting rape that is the most progressive in the world.” Furthermore, the IHT is bringing rape to the forefront of international legal decisions, as the International Criminal Court has yet to hear a rape case.

Given the security threats women can face when they testify on rape (the UN Special Rapporteur for violence against women reported more than 4,000 women had been victim to honor killings between 1991 and 2002) the courts use high levels of witness protection. Women can choose to testify anonymously, and stand behind a curtain in court.

The IHT decisions have yet to be implemented at the local level and Benshoof spoke of a “dichotomy” between what is occurring at the IHT and what is occurring in domestic courts down the street. But the judges participating in the tribunal are the highest level judges in Iraq, and many may sit on the Supreme Court after the tribunals are completed, bringing with them their training and understanding of international laws. Legislators and local judges will also be able to study the decisions made in the IHT and implement legal changes.

Women are advocating across Iraqi society for their rights, and standing against violence, stigma, and discrimination in their struggle. So far they are doing so without significant tangible support from the international community. Benshoof told MediaGlobal: “People talk about supporting development in the Mideast, they talk about supporting women’s development…but nobody does things like explicitly try to support the women judges now to be sitting judges, [or] explicitly try to support the women legislators…nobody is focusing on what everybody identifies as key to peace.”

As Iraqi women continue to self-advocate there is ample opportunity for the international community to support their efforts through funding, training and capacity building.

More information about some organizations working for women's rights in Iraq can be found at:

http://www.generationiraq.org/
http://www.globaljusticecenter.net/
http://wafdionline.org/AboutWAFDI.html

Bill Clinton speaks to NGOs ahead of Haiti Donor Conference next week

Bill Clinton, United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti spoke to a gathering of NGOs in New York on Thursday March 25 in preparation for the Haiti Donor Conference to be held at the UN on March 31. You can listen to my (low-tech) recording of the event at http://drop.io/ClintonHaiti

Clinton made some important points about his priorities and the directions he thinks NGOs working in Haiti should take as the reconstruction and development processes move forward. And I, of course, had some critiques and reactions.

(very poor quality pic of Mr. Clinton from my phone)

He emphasized a need to strengthen the government, and to allocate donor funds to government capacity building. This is absolutely true, a state needs leadership to coherently function and develop (See Beaudelaine Pierre and Jude Piquant's NGO, INHAL). Yet I also see why donors hesitate to invest in the state, following anecdotal/personal examples of high-level officials opting to drink or shop over discussing development plans; lack of communication between government sectors; and lack of commitment to do the daily grind that hypothetically accompanies government titles. Clinton, however remains optimistic, saying that following the Tsunami the corruption situation was even worse, and donors still were able to effectively monitor their contributions. Clinton is proposing an open website where all aid money coming into Haiti will be accounted for, and anyone can see how the money is spent.

He spoke also of the need for cooperation and coordination. I hear this call from most actors, but so far it seems that everyone is competing to be the coordinator, instead of submitting to an umbrella organization. He hopes that aid money will not overlap but that necessary programs will cover all the zones of the country through coordinated piecemeal NGO and government projects.

He also emphasized that the reconstruction and development process must be decentralized. 70% of Haitians live outside of Port-au-Prince, yet previously everything was centered in the capital, leading to overcrowding in PAP and brain/resource/labor drain in the rest of the country. Decentralization will allow for diversification of income generating activities throughout the country, and will ensure that any future natural disasters will not have such a massive economic toll on GDP.

Clinton echoed the need for self-sustainability and empowering Haitians locally and in the diaspora. The role of the diaspora is a continuing debate, and an interesting forum on this topic is on Katleen Felix's (Diaspora Liason for Fonkoze the largest alternative bank in Haiti) facebook page. The Haitian diaspora funds 30% of GDP through remittances, yet many diaspora members have expressed frustration at the lack of input they have on Haiti's internal affairs.

Finally, looking ahead at the rainy season, Clinton called urgently for the relocation of several camps that are vulnerable to flooding, saying that 20,000-30,000 people could die if they stay where they are. He recognized that the alternative locations may not be entirely ready to host them, but that leaving people next to hillsides and in valleys could lead to massive destruction from wind, land slides, or waterborne diseases. People are vulnerable to contracting cholera and diarrhea as flooding spreads water contaminated by waste in many cases (as the sanitation system is very weak). In some places bodies still trapped under rubble could poison water affecting people directly through drinking and bathing, and indirectly through permeating agricultural fields.

Haiti still has huge hurdles to overcome. Please continue to support organizations you TRUST as they engage with the long-term reconstruction and development efforts (look at the background of places such as the Red Cross before opting to support the organizations you see in commercials). I reccommend Haitian Women for Haitian Refugees!! Fonkoze, and INHAL (disclaimer: I work with INHAL). Zafen is an exciting new website similar to Kiva where individuals can contribute to small-scale loans for Haitian entrepreneurs. Grassroots organizations I respect, though know little about their financial regulatory mechanisms include: Friends of Petit Goave, and the Association of Peasants of Fondwa.

Experts who have ideas about how things ought to be organized, managed and carried out should contact the Clinton Foundation (if you can actually get through). Clinton has his hand on plenty of money and it was amazing to see how if he decides that something is the right idea, he immediately funds it (such as buying 30,000 tee-shirts for local security teams to wear to identify themselves as they organize in the IDU camps and then a second batch just for kicks in case the plan works--he also has much bigger investments, but the flippant way he spoke of picking up the tee-shirt plan emphasized to me his financial power). Amazing to have that level of confidence, power and access! This is why it is essential that top leaders such as Bill Clinton and Paul Farmer (who introduced Clinton at the event) stay in constant contact with the local community, local community leaders, the government, grassroots organizations and the diaspora. They have the power to make whatever decisions they want and it is an active, daily process to maintain solidarity and not take over.

All of this is to lead up to saying that it was a great idea for Clinton to address NGOs before the donor conference. But perhaps instead of talking at them he should have had a discussion? Furthermore only THREE Haitian NGOs made it to the event (according to the fabulous journalist Amy Lieberman in her article on IRINNEWS) emphasizing the lack of coordination and communication that people continue to discuss without resolution...

Transatlantic Slave Rememberance Week at the United Nations

There is currently a cool exhibit called "400 Years of Struggle: for Freedom and Culture" in the UN visitors lobby commemorating the Transatlantic Slave Trade, organized by the Caribbean Community and the African Group.

I went to the opening last week, and took a phone picture of my favorite piece "The Crossing" by Vidho Lorville, a Haitian artist. It is part of the "Haitian Inspiration" section of the exhibit which also included work by Patricia Brintle. The paintings in this section all focused on Haiti's empowered history of revolution and self-determination. Numerous events during the week of remembrance centered on Haiti this year as people came together to celebrate Haiti's strength and history of inspiring liberation and to encourage those continuing to struggle after the January 12 earthquake.

The exhibition also featured historical pieces in the "Amistad-a True Story of Freedom" and "African Resistance" sections. But my favorites were the paintings. So lively, expressive metaphorical, with lots of allusions that place them in context but do not overpower their energy.

The exhibition is open to the public through April 25, so stop through.

Photos of Groupements de Promotion Feminine (women's groups) in Senegal courtesy of Fatou Diop Sall to go with my article "Individual land control linked to women's empowerment"


GPF dans le bassin arachidier (Women's group in the peanut growing basin)

GPF à Ndombo Nana dans la Zone de la Vallée du Fleuve Sénégal (women's group in Ndombo Nana in the Valley of the River region of Senegal


Focus group avec un groupement de femmes dans la Zone du Sénégal Oriental (focus group with a women's group Oriental region of Senegal)

Women's perspectives on peace in Palestine/Israel

March 8 is International Women's Day, so this week there are hundreds of events at the UN about women. I went to a beautiful breakfast meeting this morning (beauty for content, for the women and for the 29th floor full length windows) organized by UNIFEM, presenting members of the International Women's Commission for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace (IWC). The meeting was on How Security Council Resolution 1325 Supports Women’s Leadership in Resolving the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Resolution 1325 calls for women's participation in all peace processes, specifies war crimes against women, and calls for extra-protection of women in conflict zones. This meeting focused on including women in the peace negotiations for Palestine and Israel.

The women leaders included Palestinian Wafa’ Abdel-Rahman and Israeli Shlomit Lir, as well as their international allies (including an outspoken Italian peace activist, Luisa Morgantini). The organization has presented numerous position papers and Lir outlined IWC's four main points:

1) IWC wants to see women around the negotiating table--feminist women, and women from all walks of life.
2) IWC sees the need for a gendered approach to end the violence. Lir emphasized that regardless of the social context and background influencing this phenomenon, men carry out the vast majority of violence in the world, so women must be engaged in the shift from violence to peace.
3) IWC calls for a two-state solution with 1967 borders. The Abdel-Rahman expanded on this point. She recognized the excessive presence of settlements (she said the West Bank is like "swiss cheese") as a current blockage toward peace. But she said the one-state solution is not a viable option, she expects it will lead to "more blood, more discrimination and more violence". (The social and political role of Palestinian citizens of Israel "Israeli Arabs" elucidates her point)
4) IWC promotes dialogue between decision makers and opponents. They see that many male leaders believe that you must be stronger than your enemies. But women bring a different perspective; as Abdel-Rahman said, "There is no military solution to our conflict"

Lir explained that their position came through lengthy and intense discussions. "It came with very hard discussion, with emotions, screaming, crying and extensive analysis." I think this is an important explanation of the process. Yes, women are emotional, but they are also analytical. Furthermore these are intensely emotional questions for both sides of homeland, right to life and security, right to self-determination, etc. I think it is valuable to work through the feelings first to get to a point of honest communication from which agreements can grow. Furthermore, seeing the diplomatic, clear, precise and analytical view these women presented gave no indication of the emotional process they underwent to come to their positions. Women have a pivotal perspective to bring to the peace process and they deserve respect both for their ability to participate as equals to men and the asset they bring with their uniquely feminine manner.

Addressing a question about the role of peace-allies in the United States and abroad, Abdel-Rahman said the struggle in the US is against the current climate of mainstream politics, mainstream Jewish politics, and the politics of industrialization. Activists must work to break the mainstream slogans and ideologies that justify the ongoing brutal acts.

More UNIFEM events in NY this week: http://www.unifem.org/campaigns/csw/events/
More on IWC: http://www.iwc-peace.org/

Substandard antimalarial medicines widely present in markets in Senegal, Madagascar, Uganda

Expanding on my story for MediaGlobal, "Substandard antimalarial medicines highlight the need for health care reform in African countries" http://mediaglobal.org/article/2010-02-25/substandard-antimalarial-medicines-highlight-the-need-for-health-care-reform-in-african-countries

My interview with Patrick Lukulay, Ph.D., Director, Promoting the Quality of Medicines (PQM) program at United States Pharmacopeia (USP) (a non-governmental organization dedicated to monitoring standards and quality of medicines and food around the world) touched on some of the political issues affecting the monitoring of quality of medicines in these countries. Excerpts follow.

He touched on the urban/rural divide and the neglect of rural populations by the centralized governments:

"That’s why people go there [the informal market] to buy, price is an incentive, also access is the next incentive. People in remote parts of the world, in these countries cannot travel to the capital city where you have the fancy pharmacies and you have the government depots. They will buy from the nearest vendor in their communities. Especially for malaria. If your child has a high fever, you’re not going to travel an hour to go to the capital city. You’re just going to get what’s nearest to your home. So access is one thing that has contributed to people buying from these remote or illicit markets as well as price."

He also commented on the Affordable Medicines Facility for Malaria program currently underway and supported by the Global Fund. This program reduces the price of malaria medicine for all distributors from the private, public and NGO sectors.

""There is a campaign now, launched by the global fund, know as AMFM, affordable medicines facility for malaria. This is a program that the global fund is launching to basically make ACTs available at very reduced price to both the public and the private sector. It’s an initiative I am aware of and the idea behind it is that when you make good quality products available nationwide and the price is low, then you crowd out the illicit markets and you crowd out the poor quality products because you don’t have the products all around. There are some people not quite in favor of the idea, but this is being done to increase access at the global fund level.

There have been arguments against this approach. The biggest argument is that by making these good quality medicines available or prolific around the countries that there is going to be irrational use of them so people are going to get them even without prescriptions and they may not be used in accordance with the directions for use of this product, that is one argument against it, and there is also the possibility that some of these might be pilfered from one country where it is introduced and sent to another country where it’s not yet introduced and sold at higher prices. So those are things that could happen, but the global fund is saying that we already have people buying poor quality products anyway and they are using them irrationally, so let’s try this scheme and see if more people get exposed to high quality medicines.

My personal opinion on it is that I can understand the pressure to do this but I am concerned that the efficacy of the medicines is more important than trying to do a quick fix approach now and be left with an ineffective therapy down the road. You know, so while you are clearly trying to reduce mortality if those products are not properly controlled, in the long run you end up losing the battle. Because this type has never really go away completely, you always need a therapy that you can introduce so by going on with this program and not ensuring that the efficacy of these medicines is going to be controlled properly there is a fear down the road that you could develop ineffective therapy for the malaria parasite."

Finally he talked about the political favoratism that complicates the ability of governments to take substandard medicines off of the market.

"Once a product is known to be substandard, the country has to have the political willingness to basically take action on this, irrespective of other factors. And so there is that dimension that has to be taken also into account. It’s not as straight forward as in the US where these type of actions are almost automatic. In these countries there are several considerations that they have to deal with to basically have the political willingness to go ahead and do the right thing.

In several countries there are political factors, I will put it that way, where businesses involved in this trade might have links in high places and the fact that these could influence whether actions are taken against these folks or not. The other one is the remoteness of several places in the country. So even access, rural access to several parts of the countries is not as challenging, so you almost have isolated provinces or villages where there is very little link or access between those places and the big cities so just getting around to going to these places also poses a problem so it all complicates matters."