Global Community Must Help Haiti Recover From ‘Double Tragedy’ Of Earthquake, Cholera

The Washington Post’s August 12 editorial on Haiti “rightly drew attention to the heavy and tragic toll of the cholera epidemic and the continued need for more resources and support,” and the U.N. “shares The Post’s concern,” Martin Nesirky, spokesperson for U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, writes in a Washington Post letter to the editor. He describes the U.N.’s work to directly address the cholera epidemic, as well as “our longer-term efforts on improving water and sanitation infrastructure,” and he notes the U.N.’s “drive to support Haiti’s long-term plan to eliminate cholera and end the epidemic,” launched last year by Ban. “So far, only half of the $444 million needed for the next two years has been mobilized, and less than a quarter of the $40 million earmarked for humanitarian needs has been received,” Nesirky writes, concluding, “With sufficient support, we can assist the people of Haiti in recovering from the double tragedy of earthquake and cholera, combat poverty and lay the foundations for stability and prosperity. This is what the people of Haiti need. Our job is to help them” (8/14).

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