Thursday, February 9, 2012
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
The Island Lesson, again
From the ongoing postings on the Corbett List
RE Housing contracts in Haiti and reconstruction
I applaud you. Stuart, for being able to slog through those documents and specs and come up with a judgement on whether the development is going to be adequate or not. I certainly could not. But the fact that they are going to be packed in by the hundreds near a factory does not make the project bad in my book. Jobs... now that is a good thing.
As a bit of a meander.. we do have in the DR the ONLY factory in the world which is certified by the Workers Rights Consortium, at Altagracia http://www.agenceglobal.com/Article.asp?Id=2667 .
I am not a huge defender of USAID -.
But here is a video of what they HAVE done
What I LOVE about the project is it was done (ostensibly) with community participation.
Ok it was small - but with all the issues involved - the clearance of rubble, the issues of lost land records.. then the construction and organizing a community which no longer actually exists, deciding who will get the houses-- what a struggle.
Another issue in this project is that CHF was actually a HOUSING NGO,, there seems to be a lot of mission creep inside the NGOs - everyone wants to do everything. Now the Red Cross - wants to get into the business of building permanent housing?
I do wish that USAID would ease up on designing everything down to the last nut and bolt and just give some flexibilty and trust to the people who are on the ground. They know who the honest players are on the ground. But I suspect that the ultimate decision on who gets the contract is made in DC - not PauP.
No let me underline that a bit. THE ONE thing that would really help save money and get the ball rolling would be if USAID would STOP micromanging done to the last jot and tittle. Can someone do a guesstamate on how much it cost the US taxpayer to get those specs done by an American? in America? Hey, I can get you a Dominican who will do it for a THIRD -- AFTER he has seen the land, AFTER he has located the materials here on the Island, and he will IMPORT a CREW of Haitians who are TRAINED here in the DR and speak KREYOLE and Spanish
(Check out how many of the NGOs are getting money for training MASONS????? YE GODS... MASONS are living ALL over Santo Domingo....)
Now saving the biggest rant for last
WHY are they even THINKING about single family houses?
We have Millions of people to house. Never heard of an apartment? University dorms?
Never been to the Dominican Republic?
I would just want them to give a blanket grant to a group like the Lambi Fund which has a long history of working with grass roots groups in Haiti so that THEY could go out and survey their people. A huge percentage of the population from PauP fled to the countryside and are still living with relatives. So wouldn't it be smart to start building some really dense construction in modern architecture
And I want DOMINICANS who have been spending ONE THIRD of their public health budget on free medical care for Haitians here -- to get the CONTRACTS. ALL OF THEM.
back to my initital rant
it is an island
these people here are infinitely qualified
haitians are very experienced builders
ever heard of punta cana?
haitian built
Casa de Campo?
haitians built it
Santo Domingo?
haitians are building it to this very day......
Your foreign money seems to come with so ooooooo many strings... like as in
let us come into your country and build it the way we think it ought to look.....
wanna see what Haitians might want?
anyone ask them?
...end
and here is the orginal post from Stuart Leiderman (I have his blanket permission to repost)
leiderman@mindspring.com
"I remember going back to the States to visit, and observing that everyone there had hot water in BOTH their showers and their kitchen sinks and could actually FLUSH the toilet paper ... and I could not figure out why they were not dancing...." Elizabeth Roebling
- - -
Dear Readers:
Thanks to Elizabeth and Lance for continuing the colloquy. The remarks about hot water and toilet paper are apropos because there are very large foreign aid construction projects such as the two below that are undecided about what level of civilization to offer Haiti's earthquake refugees after two years of living in tents, sleeping on the ground, washing on their knees, defecating who-knows-where...
In the first case, USAID's project, announced November 3, 2011 - 750 at first, expandable to 1500, then to 5000 - offers a kind of masonry version of a tent, i.e. a predictable solar oven with pit toilet, water barrel and no bedrooms. These are to be packed high-density style by the hundreds next to a future Korean textile factory in the north of Haiti. The distinguishing aspect of this bid process is that the obviously poor design is a done deal; builders have to take it or leave it.
In the second case, the American Red Cross, announced January 5, 2012, seeks consultants to frame bids for "owner-driven reconstruction." It is written in relatively plain-English and the concept seems to be echoed by other humanitarian organizations such as CordAid and CARE that believe the homeless should be involved in rebuilding. In contrast to USAID's tight but flawed technical requirements, these are relatively loose, without reference to minimum amenities:
"Must follow the MTPTC [Ministere des Travaux Publics Transports et Communications] guide for confined masonry [ http://www.scribd.com/doc/47431164/GUIDE-PRATIQUE-DE-PREPARATION-DE-PETITS-BATIMENTS-EN-HAITI-MTPTC-18JAN11 ]; Must develop other standards for other building types (wood structure, concrete frame, etc). Choice will ensure beneficiary satisfaction; It should designate a minimum floor area (18sm or other as agreed) and minimum footprint (10sm or other as agreed) [note: sm = square meters, but I'll have to check how a footprint can be smaller than floor area]; The standards should allow for upwards expansion in high density areas; Housing models should be available to guide homeowners. (single and multistory); The standards must include a sanitation component, and allow for safe cooking facilities..."
These two are worth reading both for their strengths, weaknesses and startling differences in language, process and probable outcome. A question is, should all foreign-assisted and -funded replacement housing in Haiti share minimum features, facilities, stress resistance, durability, performance and habitation criteria? And should this extend beyond the walls to the neighborhood and village context? These are hundred-million dollar questions waiting for answers.
Thank you,
Stuart Leiderman
leiderman@mindspring.com
Reference: "A Pattern Language" by Christopher Alexander et al.
http://www.patternlanguage.com/
http://www.patternlanguage.com/leveltwo/ca.htm
- - -
Construction of permanent shelters Solicitation Number: SOL-521-12-000003
Agency: Agency for International Development Office: Overseas Missions
Location: Haiti USAID-Port Au Prince
https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=42c409a1c8943f4753b5cd000165f7d1&tab=core&_cview=1
Haiti Assistance Program ? Integrated Neighborhood Approach Program ? Neighborhood Upgrading
http://www.redcross.org/Haiti/
http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/International%20Services/Haiti/HaitiHousingRFP.zip
http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/pdf/international/ARCAnswersRFP.pdf
- - -
leiderman@mindspring.com
RE Housing contracts in Haiti and reconstruction
I applaud you. Stuart, for being able to slog through those documents and specs and come up with a judgement on whether the development is going to be adequate or not. I certainly could not. But the fact that they are going to be packed in by the hundreds near a factory does not make the project bad in my book. Jobs... now that is a good thing.
As a bit of a meander.. we do have in the DR the ONLY factory in the world which is certified by the Workers Rights Consortium, at Altagracia http://www.agenceglobal.com/Article.asp?Id=2667 .
I am not a huge defender of USAID -.
But here is a video of what they HAVE done
What I LOVE about the project is it was done (ostensibly) with community participation.
Ok it was small - but with all the issues involved - the clearance of rubble, the issues of lost land records.. then the construction and organizing a community which no longer actually exists, deciding who will get the houses-- what a struggle.
Another issue in this project is that CHF was actually a HOUSING NGO,, there seems to be a lot of mission creep inside the NGOs - everyone wants to do everything. Now the Red Cross - wants to get into the business of building permanent housing?
I do wish that USAID would ease up on designing everything down to the last nut and bolt and just give some flexibilty and trust to the people who are on the ground. They know who the honest players are on the ground. But I suspect that the ultimate decision on who gets the contract is made in DC - not PauP.
No let me underline that a bit. THE ONE thing that would really help save money and get the ball rolling would be if USAID would STOP micromanging done to the last jot and tittle. Can someone do a guesstamate on how much it cost the US taxpayer to get those specs done by an American? in America? Hey, I can get you a Dominican who will do it for a THIRD -- AFTER he has seen the land, AFTER he has located the materials here on the Island, and he will IMPORT a CREW of Haitians who are TRAINED here in the DR and speak KREYOLE and Spanish
(Check out how many of the NGOs are getting money for training MASONS????? YE GODS... MASONS are living ALL over Santo Domingo....)
Now saving the biggest rant for last
WHY are they even THINKING about single family houses?
We have Millions of people to house. Never heard of an apartment? University dorms?
Never been to the Dominican Republic?
I would just want them to give a blanket grant to a group like the Lambi Fund which has a long history of working with grass roots groups in Haiti so that THEY could go out and survey their people. A huge percentage of the population from PauP fled to the countryside and are still living with relatives. So wouldn't it be smart to start building some really dense construction in modern architecture
And I want DOMINICANS who have been spending ONE THIRD of their public health budget on free medical care for Haitians here -- to get the CONTRACTS. ALL OF THEM.
back to my initital rant
it is an island
these people here are infinitely qualified
haitians are very experienced builders
ever heard of punta cana?
haitian built
Casa de Campo?
haitians built it
Santo Domingo?
haitians are building it to this very day......
Your foreign money seems to come with so ooooooo many strings... like as in
let us come into your country and build it the way we think it ought to look.....
wanna see what Haitians might want?
anyone ask them?
...end
and here is the orginal post from Stuart Leiderman (I have his blanket permission to repost)
leiderman@mindspring.com
"I remember going back to the States to visit, and observing that everyone there had hot water in BOTH their showers and their kitchen sinks and could actually FLUSH the toilet paper ... and I could not figure out why they were not dancing...." Elizabeth Roebling
- - -
Dear Readers:
Thanks to Elizabeth and Lance for continuing the colloquy. The remarks about hot water and toilet paper are apropos because there are very large foreign aid construction projects such as the two below that are undecided about what level of civilization to offer Haiti's earthquake refugees after two years of living in tents, sleeping on the ground, washing on their knees, defecating who-knows-where...
In the first case, USAID's project, announced November 3, 2011 - 750 at first, expandable to 1500, then to 5000 - offers a kind of masonry version of a tent, i.e. a predictable solar oven with pit toilet, water barrel and no bedrooms. These are to be packed high-density style by the hundreds next to a future Korean textile factory in the north of Haiti. The distinguishing aspect of this bid process is that the obviously poor design is a done deal; builders have to take it or leave it.
In the second case, the American Red Cross, announced January 5, 2012, seeks consultants to frame bids for "owner-driven reconstruction." It is written in relatively plain-English and the concept seems to be echoed by other humanitarian organizations such as CordAid and CARE that believe the homeless should be involved in rebuilding. In contrast to USAID's tight but flawed technical requirements, these are relatively loose, without reference to minimum amenities:
"Must follow the MTPTC [Ministere des Travaux Publics Transports et Communications] guide for confined masonry [ http://www.scribd.com/doc/47431164/GUIDE-PRATIQUE-DE-PREPARATION-DE-PETITS-BATIMENTS-EN-HAITI-MTPTC-18JAN11 ]; Must develop other standards for other building types (wood structure, concrete frame, etc). Choice will ensure beneficiary satisfaction; It should designate a minimum floor area (18sm or other as agreed) and minimum footprint (10sm or other as agreed) [note: sm = square meters, but I'll have to check how a footprint can be smaller than floor area]; The standards should allow for upwards expansion in high density areas; Housing models should be available to guide homeowners. (single and multistory); The standards must include a sanitation component, and allow for safe cooking facilities..."
These two are worth reading both for their strengths, weaknesses and startling differences in language, process and probable outcome. A question is, should all foreign-assisted and -funded replacement housing in Haiti share minimum features, facilities, stress resistance, durability, performance and habitation criteria? And should this extend beyond the walls to the neighborhood and village context? These are hundred-million dollar questions waiting for answers.
Thank you,
Stuart Leiderman
leiderman@mindspring.com
Reference: "A Pattern Language" by Christopher Alexander et al.
http://www.patternlanguage.com/
http://www.patternlanguage.com/leveltwo/ca.htm
- - -
Construction of permanent shelters Solicitation Number: SOL-521-12-000003
Agency: Agency for International Development Office: Overseas Missions
Location: Haiti USAID-Port Au Prince
https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=42c409a1c8943f4753b5cd000165f7d1&tab=core&_cview=1
Haiti Assistance Program ? Integrated Neighborhood Approach Program ? Neighborhood Upgrading
http://www.redcross.org/Haiti/
http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/International%20Services/Haiti/HaitiHousingRFP.zip
http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/pdf/international/ARCAnswersRFP.pdf
- - -
leiderman@mindspring.com
Monday, February 6, 2012
Pity
I had the honor of getting a personal note from Bob Corbett this morning. Now of ALL the foreigners who have intervened in Haiti over the years, I think that Bob Corbett has performed the greatest service. That may just be my prejudice as a writer since he has made such an effort throughout his life to keep up a peaceful forum for communication on Haiti.
Through his efforts, he has created a virtual community of people - mostly us blans, us gringos.. but with the GREAT aid of some very advanced Haitians who pop in to whop us upside the head when we get it wrong-- who struggle to find the way to best be of service to Haiti .. to restore her to the jewel that we all know she is and was.
And for 20 years he did service projects in Haiti on the ground as well. I doubt there is anyone who does not hold him in the highest regard.
So it was an honor that he took the time to write me.
About my latest rantings
about.. so "what is wrong with pity"
and here is what I answered.
Dear Bob,
Thanks for the query and I certainly have the same bag of motivations. But there is some thing about the "pity" thing - and it may be just semantics but I think it is deeper. Pity is not just "sharing sorrow".
I am still working on this one as I transit from one world to the this one.
For a while, I worked with a small African American newspaper in North Carolina. I was the only white person.I was also the top ad sales person and top writer (a small business) .. I was always trying to help out by buying lunch,,,etc. My friend Beverly, a very tough bright Chicago black who had NEVER been to school or work with any whites before said to me
"You make us ashamed to be poor". I stopped buying lunch.
I keep a print on my wall from the Dalai Lama which reads
" Compassion-
Usually our concept of compassion or love refers to the closeness we have with our friends and loved ones, sometimes compassion also carries a sense of pity. This is wrong. Any love or compassion which entails looking down on the other is not genuine compassion. To be genuine, compassion must be based on respect for the other, and on the realization that others have the right to to be happy and overcome suffering just as much as you. On this basism since you can see that others are suffering, you develop a genuine sense of concern for them."
Here in the DR we have a pretty advanced industry of "volunteers" who pay about $1000 a week to come down here and live in the rural areas and help build schools and churchs and what not. How odd to watch the Episcopalians with the gold crosses in their ears, painting the walls in the church hall -- a job that Dominicans would definitely have HIRED Haitians- to do.
I am sure that all the lives of these people who come here are transformed.. perhaps if only that they have experienced a taste of poverty and feel relieved not to be living in it. But does it help the locals? Well, sure, perhaps it gets a school built. But that is the responsibility of the State and locals, no? Here in the DR, they really do have the money to build the schools, it is a political decision whether or not to educate the people.
The volunteers are not working in their fields - they are working construction.Haven volunteers have to raise 5000 Euros in order to come. And the first project that they built, they gave the houses to the very poorest- and bypassed the ones in town who had struggled up to some sort of comfort. This is sort of an inverse reward system, no?
They had not, at first, even gotten enough cooperation with the local authorities to have a road built to the project.
But money does not buy happiness - you and I know that. Haitians know that as well, At times, I think that there is an inverse relationship!
The mere fact that I get triggered by this stuff means that I have it in me - because I have found that I really do not get so triggered if it is not in my shadow.I got blasted in comments on my blog, which I published, even though they were posted anonymously, since they kept underlying my own arrogance.
But I also know that we do not have it right yet. I do not know what "right" is. But whatever is required of those of us who genuinely wish to help Haiti, we seem to still be lacking it. I get these backlash comments on my blog and postings over on DR1.com calling me a hero.... so I am pretty sure that I have not got it right.
But we make assumptions about people who are poor, people who are uneducated. I think that we hold them in contempt - or at least Americans do.We do not approach them as if they had any wisdom or knowledge to impart to us. We assume they live in misery. See, it trips off the tounge doesn't it, misery, squalor, poverty... OMG they cannot READ,,,,
\
But I have found that Haitians I know are telepathic, like the Masai.
That might be something that we could learn.
Anyway.. I am really struggling on how to be effective. What do they need that I have to give? What do I need that they have to give? And mostly I have found that I have some technical skills -- marketing, promotion, language.. and they seem to have wisdom. I love meeting with them because all I have to do is send out a spark - like putting the ball into play.. and watch them bat it around. They are MASTERS of the consensus process,
But most of the WORK in Haiti, by that I mean full top salary work, is with the FOREIGN NGOS,, which are .. for the most part.. heirarchical, patriarchal... non cooperative... and materially oriented.
So perhaps this is just the cowboys and the indians again.
I somehow always wanted to be with the indians..
betcha you did too!
Thanks so much for the chat.
I get very lonely here.
hugs
e
Through his efforts, he has created a virtual community of people - mostly us blans, us gringos.. but with the GREAT aid of some very advanced Haitians who pop in to whop us upside the head when we get it wrong-- who struggle to find the way to best be of service to Haiti .. to restore her to the jewel that we all know she is and was.
And for 20 years he did service projects in Haiti on the ground as well. I doubt there is anyone who does not hold him in the highest regard.
So it was an honor that he took the time to write me.
About my latest rantings
about.. so "what is wrong with pity"
and here is what I answered.
Dear Bob,
Thanks for the query and I certainly have the same bag of motivations. But there is some thing about the "pity" thing - and it may be just semantics but I think it is deeper. Pity is not just "sharing sorrow".
I am still working on this one as I transit from one world to the this one.
For a while, I worked with a small African American newspaper in North Carolina. I was the only white person.I was also the top ad sales person and top writer (a small business) .. I was always trying to help out by buying lunch,,,etc. My friend Beverly, a very tough bright Chicago black who had NEVER been to school or work with any whites before said to me
"You make us ashamed to be poor". I stopped buying lunch.
I keep a print on my wall from the Dalai Lama which reads
" Compassion-
Usually our concept of compassion or love refers to the closeness we have with our friends and loved ones, sometimes compassion also carries a sense of pity. This is wrong. Any love or compassion which entails looking down on the other is not genuine compassion. To be genuine, compassion must be based on respect for the other, and on the realization that others have the right to to be happy and overcome suffering just as much as you. On this basism since you can see that others are suffering, you develop a genuine sense of concern for them."
Here in the DR we have a pretty advanced industry of "volunteers" who pay about $1000 a week to come down here and live in the rural areas and help build schools and churchs and what not. How odd to watch the Episcopalians with the gold crosses in their ears, painting the walls in the church hall -- a job that Dominicans would definitely have HIRED Haitians- to do.
I am sure that all the lives of these people who come here are transformed.. perhaps if only that they have experienced a taste of poverty and feel relieved not to be living in it. But does it help the locals? Well, sure, perhaps it gets a school built. But that is the responsibility of the State and locals, no? Here in the DR, they really do have the money to build the schools, it is a political decision whether or not to educate the people.
The volunteers are not working in their fields - they are working construction.Haven volunteers have to raise 5000 Euros in order to come. And the first project that they built, they gave the houses to the very poorest- and bypassed the ones in town who had struggled up to some sort of comfort. This is sort of an inverse reward system, no?
They had not, at first, even gotten enough cooperation with the local authorities to have a road built to the project.
But money does not buy happiness - you and I know that. Haitians know that as well, At times, I think that there is an inverse relationship!
The mere fact that I get triggered by this stuff means that I have it in me - because I have found that I really do not get so triggered if it is not in my shadow.I got blasted in comments on my blog, which I published, even though they were posted anonymously, since they kept underlying my own arrogance.
But I also know that we do not have it right yet. I do not know what "right" is. But whatever is required of those of us who genuinely wish to help Haiti, we seem to still be lacking it. I get these backlash comments on my blog and postings over on DR1.com calling me a hero.... so I am pretty sure that I have not got it right.
But we make assumptions about people who are poor, people who are uneducated. I think that we hold them in contempt - or at least Americans do.We do not approach them as if they had any wisdom or knowledge to impart to us. We assume they live in misery. See, it trips off the tounge doesn't it, misery, squalor, poverty... OMG they cannot READ,,,,
\
But I have found that Haitians I know are telepathic, like the Masai.
That might be something that we could learn.
Anyway.. I am really struggling on how to be effective. What do they need that I have to give? What do I need that they have to give? And mostly I have found that I have some technical skills -- marketing, promotion, language.. and they seem to have wisdom. I love meeting with them because all I have to do is send out a spark - like putting the ball into play.. and watch them bat it around. They are MASTERS of the consensus process,
But most of the WORK in Haiti, by that I mean full top salary work, is with the FOREIGN NGOS,, which are .. for the most part.. heirarchical, patriarchal... non cooperative... and materially oriented.
So perhaps this is just the cowboys and the indians again.
I somehow always wanted to be with the indians..
betcha you did too!
Thanks so much for the chat.
I get very lonely here.
hugs
e
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
A rant on Missionaries
I just posted this this morning on the Corbett list, a private English only Haiti list serve which is not Google searchable.....and I did so want google to search.....
Pardon me for a moment while I have a small eruption to relieve some of the pressure that is building down here under my tectonic plates.
I have been off list for many months now working here on the ground. Here on the ground we speak a combination of four primary languages... Spanish, Kreyole, French and English.. we add Italian accents and hand signals... and move our feet to meregue and kompa...
So we understand one another.
No one here is monolingual or monocultural
No one here is a cultural imperialist
No one here pities the poor
We are all just gettin along, Gracias a Dios,
But now I back amonst the do gooders who want to save us and I am really pissed off.
The press is all full of cries for vengence for Duvalier after a Haitian judge has decided the issue. Here in the DR the prisons are undergoing a transformation into a restorative justice model. I did a story on it .. google it. They are more forgiving than we are Stop with the calls for vengence. The Haitians are going to live in peace with one another and with both Duvalier and Aristide. It is done.Let peace prevail,
Now about all those begging medical missionaries. I had to stop going to the local Union Episcopal Church here for fear I would have to sit next to these BIZARRE christian missionary couples with their frightened clinging wives and many infant children who kept their eyes on the floor when I walked them into the english library.. And they had a HILUX truck.. that is $150,000 on the hoof here. And they were transporting medical supplies via HELICOPTERS .. here in the DR which has a very good public health system with hospitals and pharmacies in every town.
So in following new links to go onto all these web sites.. where they keep talking about
POOR Haiti. I am so sick of this contempt for the poor.
How about we get down on the floor and kiss their feet and ask them to teach us how they manage to live in such grace and dignity and joy despite their travails?
And as for the Irish fund raising house building gig.. Digicell.. I would suggest that Haiti is actually RICHER than Ireland right now, no? They have essentially NO foreign debt and immense pledges of aid so stop already with your arrogance
Ditto for all of those from outside the island who think that a concrete block house is better than a mud and wattle kai with a thatch roof. A concrete block house.. or a zinc house.. is an OVEN.. a mud and wattle kai with a thatched roof is brilliant architecture,
As for all these state of the art hospitals.. Dr Farmer et al,. Did you give no thought to the fact that you may be as disruptive to the spiritual healing system .. as . well.. say,.. importing subsidized rice? Have you ever had trainings for the Hougans?
Nope I bet not,. just the pill pushers and surgeons
if you really want to help
please send dentists
we need them all over the island
from Las Terrenas on
Until we all learn that Haitians and Domincans represent civilizations which are far older and wiser and richer than ours, we are never going to get anywhere.
And I believe that we need them more than they need us.
Pardon me for a moment while I have a small eruption to relieve some of the pressure that is building down here under my tectonic plates.
I have been off list for many months now working here on the ground. Here on the ground we speak a combination of four primary languages... Spanish, Kreyole, French and English.. we add Italian accents and hand signals... and move our feet to meregue and kompa...
So we understand one another.
No one here is monolingual or monocultural
No one here is a cultural imperialist
No one here pities the poor
We are all just gettin along, Gracias a Dios,
But now I back amonst the do gooders who want to save us and I am really pissed off.
The press is all full of cries for vengence for Duvalier after a Haitian judge has decided the issue. Here in the DR the prisons are undergoing a transformation into a restorative justice model. I did a story on it .. google it. They are more forgiving than we are Stop with the calls for vengence. The Haitians are going to live in peace with one another and with both Duvalier and Aristide. It is done.Let peace prevail,
Now about all those begging medical missionaries. I had to stop going to the local Union Episcopal Church here for fear I would have to sit next to these BIZARRE christian missionary couples with their frightened clinging wives and many infant children who kept their eyes on the floor when I walked them into the english library.. And they had a HILUX truck.. that is $150,000 on the hoof here. And they were transporting medical supplies via HELICOPTERS .. here in the DR which has a very good public health system with hospitals and pharmacies in every town.
So in following new links to go onto all these web sites.. where they keep talking about
POOR Haiti. I am so sick of this contempt for the poor.
How about we get down on the floor and kiss their feet and ask them to teach us how they manage to live in such grace and dignity and joy despite their travails?
And as for the Irish fund raising house building gig.. Digicell.. I would suggest that Haiti is actually RICHER than Ireland right now, no? They have essentially NO foreign debt and immense pledges of aid so stop already with your arrogance
Ditto for all of those from outside the island who think that a concrete block house is better than a mud and wattle kai with a thatch roof. A concrete block house.. or a zinc house.. is an OVEN.. a mud and wattle kai with a thatched roof is brilliant architecture,
As for all these state of the art hospitals.. Dr Farmer et al,. Did you give no thought to the fact that you may be as disruptive to the spiritual healing system .. as . well.. say,.. importing subsidized rice? Have you ever had trainings for the Hougans?
Nope I bet not,. just the pill pushers and surgeons
if you really want to help
please send dentists
we need them all over the island
from Las Terrenas on
Until we all learn that Haitians and Domincans represent civilizations which are far older and wiser and richer than ours, we are never going to get anywhere.
And I believe that we need them more than they need us.
Friday, February 3, 2012
The Donate Button
I've put a donate button up on the blog.
So why should you send me money?
Good question.
At first, I put up a post about paying off the debt that I have been carrying for the Vieques witness here
but that is ancient history now.. and no one forced me to go into debt for it. There were lots of folks ready to perform at a concert for me in Asheville but my Quaker Meeting had not consensed on a pass through fund so I declined.
Now the subject of donations came on up the local list serv here in the DR after I published the stuff on Narcotrafficing.. about how one guy was going to put a tip jar to buy my guitar.. which was on my Amazon wish list that I had posted.
My Taylor, which was the best guitar that I had ever owned, was stolen from me in a confrontation against the crack dealers in Las Terrenas seven years ago. I had felt compelled to hurl a rock through the plate glass window of the Belgian realtor who had first started the cocaine trade into Las Terrenas. I spent New Year's Eve in the police station. The Belgians refused to press charges after they interviewed me extensively in French and found me sober-- and I just kept asking them "why would I do that?" .. They have left town now.
Then there was the $6000 that I spent over the last six months in feeding the Haitians here in the DR. Three thousand for the food and another three for the gas and the rental car.. the only rental car that we had for the organizing of the 5000 Haitians.
But how am I, who has lived off a family trust all my life, going to accept money from someone who has, for instance, punched a clock all their lives?
Well, ok. That is a big one. Will I accept money, no. Can you buy me a beer? Absolutely! But I am not a big beer drinker so can I just put it towards the guitar?
Now when I was imbedded with the Interpol guys there were lots of folks who PROMISED to buy me a beer. So you guys owe me.
And I am reasonably sure that the Embassy or someone with deep pockets and a black budget promised to pick up the tab for all that driving around that I did == showing you what I knew about Pedernales and Constanza. So I believe that $6000 is on you.
And since Quakers are meticulous about money.. some would say cheap .. some would say hung up ,. but we will not labor the point.. let me tell you what I would do should the absolute best outcome happen
if I receive donations of #27,000, I can retire my debt entirely
I now pay $486 on this debt, with no hope of reducing the principal since I have friends who do not have enough to eat.
Now if I had $486 a month, I would hire Manu Emmeleat, a Frenchman who lives in Las Terrenas, who is a local construction expert,here
This would only be part time for him but Manu would be able to ORGANIZE the Quiskeya Corps, get the guys their references and papers, talk to various builders, help us get things rolling on the ground. Since he is French and knows all of the builders in town and lots in Santiago and Santo Domingo.. has a completely LEGAL business in the DR.. he would be invaluable in both making contacts with Dominicans and helping us get aid from France.
I already have an apartment up there that we can use for an office. Ditto my big computer that I can take up there.
So...
can I use your money well?
I believe that I can.
Please Donate.
So why should you send me money?
Good question.
At first, I put up a post about paying off the debt that I have been carrying for the Vieques witness here
but that is ancient history now.. and no one forced me to go into debt for it. There were lots of folks ready to perform at a concert for me in Asheville but my Quaker Meeting had not consensed on a pass through fund so I declined.
Now the subject of donations came on up the local list serv here in the DR after I published the stuff on Narcotrafficing.. about how one guy was going to put a tip jar to buy my guitar.. which was on my Amazon wish list that I had posted.
My Taylor, which was the best guitar that I had ever owned, was stolen from me in a confrontation against the crack dealers in Las Terrenas seven years ago. I had felt compelled to hurl a rock through the plate glass window of the Belgian realtor who had first started the cocaine trade into Las Terrenas. I spent New Year's Eve in the police station. The Belgians refused to press charges after they interviewed me extensively in French and found me sober-- and I just kept asking them "why would I do that?" .. They have left town now.
Then there was the $6000 that I spent over the last six months in feeding the Haitians here in the DR. Three thousand for the food and another three for the gas and the rental car.. the only rental car that we had for the organizing of the 5000 Haitians.
But how am I, who has lived off a family trust all my life, going to accept money from someone who has, for instance, punched a clock all their lives?
Well, ok. That is a big one. Will I accept money, no. Can you buy me a beer? Absolutely! But I am not a big beer drinker so can I just put it towards the guitar?
Now when I was imbedded with the Interpol guys there were lots of folks who PROMISED to buy me a beer. So you guys owe me.
And I am reasonably sure that the Embassy or someone with deep pockets and a black budget promised to pick up the tab for all that driving around that I did == showing you what I knew about Pedernales and Constanza. So I believe that $6000 is on you.
And since Quakers are meticulous about money.. some would say cheap .. some would say hung up ,. but we will not labor the point.. let me tell you what I would do should the absolute best outcome happen
if I receive donations of #27,000, I can retire my debt entirely
I now pay $486 on this debt, with no hope of reducing the principal since I have friends who do not have enough to eat.
Now if I had $486 a month, I would hire Manu Emmeleat, a Frenchman who lives in Las Terrenas, who is a local construction expert,here
This would only be part time for him but Manu would be able to ORGANIZE the Quiskeya Corps, get the guys their references and papers, talk to various builders, help us get things rolling on the ground. Since he is French and knows all of the builders in town and lots in Santiago and Santo Domingo.. has a completely LEGAL business in the DR.. he would be invaluable in both making contacts with Dominicans and helping us get aid from France.
I already have an apartment up there that we can use for an office. Ditto my big computer that I can take up there.
So...
can I use your money well?
I believe that I can.
Please Donate.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Close Encounters
Do you remember the opening of the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind"< when different people kept having the same vision and were all being drawn to the same place?
Well, it is happening here and now.
Perhaps not a landing.. But then again.. who knows?
One on the major discussions on Haiti is held via a private list serve maintained and monitered by Bob Corbett. We refer to ourselves as Corbetters and our home as Corbettland. Over the last five years, I have made friends as fine as any in this virtual land.
Today I received a posting via Stuart Leiderman who works out of New Hampshire, helping the Haitian League, which is the largest group of the US Haitian Diaspora. Its' director, Bernard Laurendans, is a dedicated Haitian American who devotes his energy to envisioning a higher future for his country.
He presents us this vision:
"Imagine visiting a new rural Haitian community of two thousand, whose people are well-nourished, safely-housed, free of infectious and transmissible diseases and parasites, and able to work productively throughout the seasons. Imagine a place where drinking water is plentiful, clean and conveniently available; Where toilets and showers are nearby, sanitary and simple to use and
maintain; Where windmills and solar panels and pumps power refrigerators, lights, equipment and irrigation; And where reliable telephones, computers and durable vehicles are available to maintain contact and commerce throughout the country and the world beyond. Imagine attracting Haiti’s unemployed youth to a countryside network of "Lakou" for six-month vocational training programs in a variety of subjects, helping them toward ethical professions, and facilitating their access to credit. Imagine Haiti's unemployed being able to establish productive farming or thriving
businesses in all ten departments, east to west, north to south. For someone familiar with conditions in most Haitian villages today, this new kind of community would be a stretch of the imagination. But to those who are familiar with the minimum living standards necessary for a small rural population to survive anywhere in the world today, this description would be an unarguable benchmark, a social, ecological and economic imperative."
And my response --
I got one of the those very eerie Close Encounters of the Third Kind feelings when I read the vision of the small villages... since this idea of the small sustainable villages has been a subject of discussion here in the DR among me and my French and American and Dominican friends for the last seven years.
So let me propose that we STOP just thinking about HAITI and START thinking about THE ISLAND. SINCE we are an ISLAND. Not that we would ever kjnow it from a map. You cannot find a map.. except one that is hand drawn or a nautical chart .. that has the entire island. But we live on an island.
There are at least one million Haitians here .. the majority of whom wish to return.
There is a chain of undeveloped, unspoiled, untouched land from the tip of Samana right across to Belledare which could be developed into an ecotourism chain of small ecotouristic "typica" retreats...
I did a proposal once for homestays on the border -- putting folks into Dominican homes for four days and if they survived, moving them into Haiti for three!
Let us shift our heads around and understand that it is WE who need to learn to live more like Haitians.. closer to the earth, more in concert with it. with less stuff...
So.. how about a chain .. so we can bring back the Haitians who are stranded on this side of the island... building little artistic villages as they go, leaving the DR with a nice trail of camp sites, and bringing back with them all those two liter used coca cola bottles filled with topsoil and seedlings?
Everything that is needed for the regrowth of Haiti is flourishing on this side of the island.
Together, these two nations could become an ecotouristic paradise, teaching music and art, in many languages. The old animosities that plagued them for centuries have been broken down since the quake and new bonds of brotherhood have formed.
Edwin Paraison and his Fundacion Zile are ready to shelter this project.
I am sure that he could secure the permission from the Minister of the Environment to start a march back to Belledare
as soon as you all come up with the plans
Well, it is happening here and now.
Perhaps not a landing.. But then again.. who knows?
One on the major discussions on Haiti is held via a private list serve maintained and monitered by Bob Corbett. We refer to ourselves as Corbetters and our home as Corbettland. Over the last five years, I have made friends as fine as any in this virtual land.
Today I received a posting via Stuart Leiderman who works out of New Hampshire, helping the Haitian League, which is the largest group of the US Haitian Diaspora. Its' director, Bernard Laurendans, is a dedicated Haitian American who devotes his energy to envisioning a higher future for his country.
He presents us this vision:
"Imagine visiting a new rural Haitian community of two thousand, whose people are well-nourished, safely-housed, free of infectious and transmissible diseases and parasites, and able to work productively throughout the seasons. Imagine a place where drinking water is plentiful, clean and conveniently available; Where toilets and showers are nearby, sanitary and simple to use and
maintain; Where windmills and solar panels and pumps power refrigerators, lights, equipment and irrigation; And where reliable telephones, computers and durable vehicles are available to maintain contact and commerce throughout the country and the world beyond. Imagine attracting Haiti’s unemployed youth to a countryside network of "Lakou" for six-month vocational training programs in a variety of subjects, helping them toward ethical professions, and facilitating their access to credit. Imagine Haiti's unemployed being able to establish productive farming or thriving
businesses in all ten departments, east to west, north to south. For someone familiar with conditions in most Haitian villages today, this new kind of community would be a stretch of the imagination. But to those who are familiar with the minimum living standards necessary for a small rural population to survive anywhere in the world today, this description would be an unarguable benchmark, a social, ecological and economic imperative."
And my response --
I got one of the those very eerie Close Encounters of the Third Kind feelings when I read the vision of the small villages... since this idea of the small sustainable villages has been a subject of discussion here in the DR among me and my French and American and Dominican friends for the last seven years.
So let me propose that we STOP just thinking about HAITI and START thinking about THE ISLAND. SINCE we are an ISLAND. Not that we would ever kjnow it from a map. You cannot find a map.. except one that is hand drawn or a nautical chart .. that has the entire island. But we live on an island.
There are at least one million Haitians here .. the majority of whom wish to return.
There is a chain of undeveloped, unspoiled, untouched land from the tip of Samana right across to Belledare which could be developed into an ecotourism chain of small ecotouristic "typica" retreats...
I did a proposal once for homestays on the border -- putting folks into Dominican homes for four days and if they survived, moving them into Haiti for three!
Let us shift our heads around and understand that it is WE who need to learn to live more like Haitians.. closer to the earth, more in concert with it. with less stuff...
So.. how about a chain .. so we can bring back the Haitians who are stranded on this side of the island... building little artistic villages as they go, leaving the DR with a nice trail of camp sites, and bringing back with them all those two liter used coca cola bottles filled with topsoil and seedlings?
Everything that is needed for the regrowth of Haiti is flourishing on this side of the island.
Together, these two nations could become an ecotouristic paradise, teaching music and art, in many languages. The old animosities that plagued them for centuries have been broken down since the quake and new bonds of brotherhood have formed.
Edwin Paraison and his Fundacion Zile are ready to shelter this project.
I am sure that he could secure the permission from the Minister of the Environment to start a march back to Belledare
as soon as you all come up with the plans
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
An Island United
We are one of the few divided islands in the world-- I think there are 10 or so but a few of us. like Cypryus, have always had a bit of sibling rivalry. Dominicans and Haitians have never had good relationships until the earthquake two years ago. When the quake hit, it was Dominicans who raced to the border with the hearts and hands open.
There was not one single church or store or town that did not contribute something to Haiti. There was not one dry eye in the nation. There was not one church empty.
I watched them, covered them as a journalist,as i also fervently monitored the internet postings for news that I might usefully cross post from French into English, via this blog, via Facebook, on to my nephew who works at FEMA.
The Servicio Jesuito de Migritorio were the ones who were first mobilized as they are the ones who work with the Haitian community here. Within a day, they had a warehouse and trucks lined up. On the first day, the donations started trickling in. A few boxes piled on the walls. Volunteers sat impatiently at the tables, waiting, becoming angry. Their anger was dissipated when a middle aged woman walked in carrying two plastic shopping bags full of boxes of saltines, and said:
"I am sorry. It is not much. It is all I could afford."
Here is the story that I wrote on that.
There was not one single church or store or town that did not contribute something to Haiti. There was not one dry eye in the nation. There was not one church empty.
I watched them, covered them as a journalist,as i also fervently monitored the internet postings for news that I might usefully cross post from French into English, via this blog, via Facebook, on to my nephew who works at FEMA.
The Servicio Jesuito de Migritorio were the ones who were first mobilized as they are the ones who work with the Haitian community here. Within a day, they had a warehouse and trucks lined up. On the first day, the donations started trickling in. A few boxes piled on the walls. Volunteers sat impatiently at the tables, waiting, becoming angry. Their anger was dissipated when a middle aged woman walked in carrying two plastic shopping bags full of boxes of saltines, and said:
"I am sorry. It is not much. It is all I could afford."
Here is the story that I wrote on that.
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