Haiti quake bribery: 'You want food? Give us money'

Desperate: UN aid handouts are the safest way for Haitians to get food
12 April 2012

Hundreds of protesters marched through the streets of Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince accusing officials of demanding bribes for donated food.

Aid workers joined the crowds of hungry demonstrators claiming desperately needed supplies were still not reaching them.
Many jogged along a main street in the capital's suburb of Petionville waving branches and chanting: "They stole the rice! They stole the rice!"

Danka Tanzil, 17, said a local official was demanding a bribe in return for coupons that entitle people to bags of food from the UN World Food Program. She said: "To get the coupon, we must give 50 Haitian dollars (£4.50) so we can get the rice."

People at small protests elsewhere had a simpler message, holding banners reading: "Help us, We're starving."

Foreign aid workers say adequate aid is arriving in Haiti but poor transport, corruption and bureaucracy are hampering distribution.
The World Food Program began distributing the coupons to bring order to the aid distribution and prevent strong young men from forcing themselves to the front of food lines. Aid officials say it has largely worked, despite scattered reports of abuses.

The UN agency said it "is aware of reports that our coupons have been resold, and we've also heard allegations of forgeries."

A group of Baptist missionaries, mainly from Idaho, who were arrested last week accused of trying to take Haitian children across the border into the Dominican Republic, will appear before a Haitian prosecutor today. He will file charges or release them.

"I am living in a tent with a friend," said Laurentius Lelly, a 27-year-old computer technician who gave up his two children, aged four and six, because the Baptist leader had previously visited the area and earned people's trust.
"My main concern is that if the kids come back I'm not going to be able to feed them."

In Britain, the Disasters Emergency Committee has collected £70 million in public donations since the earthquake hit on 12 January.

Haiti emergency appeal

Merlin is a member of the Disasters Emergency Committee. You can donate to the DEC Haiti appeal online at www.dec.org.uk or by calling 0370 60 60 900.

For more information about Merlin's Haiti response please go to: www.merlin.org.uk or call 020 7014 1714.

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