The Right to Housing for Internally Displaced Haitians

While the eyes of the world are on Haiti's illegitimate elections and the return of the deposed dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, about 1.5 million displaced earthquake survivors continue to live in sub-human conditions. In the absence of large-scale or systemic responses by the government, international community, or aid organizations, progressive civil society organizations are evolving strategies to win the right to housing. "We're supporting earthquake victims who are organizing themselves to form a social movement to claim their rights, first, for quality housing and, second, against being evicted," said human rights lawyer Patrice Florvilus.

Overall conditions in the camps have not improved since their spontaneous creation a year ago. New research by Professor Mark Schuller shows almost no progress in providing basic services in camps, even in the midst of a cholera epidemic which has claimed more than 4,000 lives and infected more than 209,000 others. Schuller's team of researchers found that the number of camp residents with access to water today is only 40.5 percent, while only 30.3 percent of camps have toilets. In a second report just released by the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti and the LAMP for Haiti Foundation, 60 percent of the camp residents surveyed live on less than $1 a day, and have only marginal access to food and clean water. One-half said they had been unable to feed their children for at least one entire day during the preceding week.

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