Hot 97 DJ Cipha Sounds suspended over Haiti slur

(CARIBBEAT - Jared McCallister)
As the dust settled last week on the latest episode of the Hot 97 DJ Cipha Sounds debacle, at least three points were made clear - New York's Haitian community is organized, it has clout and it WILL be taken seriously.

Cipha Sounds, whose real name is Luiz Diaz, incensed Haitian New Yorkers and their supporters by saying that he's remained HIV-negative because he does not "mess with Haitian girls."

As soon as the half-witted comment left his lips, the station was flooded with phone calls and the social networks Twitter and Facebook were abuzz.

The deejay apologized for what he called a "tasteless joke" but his pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

(A video of his apology can be seen on Rockmasters, a popular Haitian entertainment website at www.rockmasters.com/page2.html.)

Last week, calls for Cipha Sounds' firing could still be heard.

Haitian community leaders and supporters gathered outside the radio station's Manhattan headquarters last Monday to express outrage over the insensitive remark.

Station officials finally took decisive action by suspending Cipha Sounds indefinitely and declaring he "will immediately undertake sensitivity training focused on the Haitian community and specifically, the challenges the Haitian community has faced in terms of the HIV epidemic."

The officials also vowed to "work with local community leaders to utilize the influence of Hot 97 to increase awareness of HIV and community programs to address the HIV epidemic."

"The Haitian community is an important part of our listenership whom we respect and value," said Alex Cameron, senior vice president and market manager for Emmis-New York which runs Hot 97.

"The suspension is an indication of the importance we place on delivering a product that respects our Haitian audience," he said, putting a bright spotlight on the economic and political power a unified Haitian community has in New York City.

US resumes deportation of illegal Haitian migrants

(jamaicaobserver.com)

NEW YORK, USA — The Obama administration has quietly resumed the deportation of illegal Haitians since the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country was devastated by an earthquake on January 12 this year.

Haitian activists and lawyers say that the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has, in recent weeks, begun rounding up Haitian immigrants, including some who had been released earlier this year.

Barbara Gonzalez, an ICE spokeswoman said, without elaborating, that the agency was deciding whom to deport in a manner “consistent with our domestic immigration enforcement priorities”.

The Obama administration has said it is focusing immigration enforcement efforts on catching and deporting immigrants who have been convicted of the most serious crimes or who pose a threat to national security.

Officials said that Haitians who have been granted a special immigration status, known as temporary protected status (TPS), will continue to be shielded from deportation.

TPS, which was granted for 18 months to Haitians, and is set to expire in mid-July. Haitians who have committed felonies or at least two misdemeanours were not eligible for the programme.

Immigration officials declined to disclose how many Haitians they plan to deport but confirmed that 351 Haitians are in detention.

“I don’t think Haiti can handle more challenges than what it has right now,” said Dr Mathieu Eugene, the first elected Haitian official in the New York City Council.

“The earthquake, the cholera, the election — everything’s upside down in Haiti,” he added.

US federal officials had suspended deportations to Haiti immediately after the massive earthquake.

TPS, which is sometimes granted to foreigners who are unable to return safely to their home countries because of armed conflict or natural disasters, was extended to Haitians in the United States, permitting them to remain temporarily and work.

US immigration officials said many Haitians, including some with criminal convictions, were also released from detention centres across the country.

Now, officials say they would deport only Haitians who had been convicted of crimes and had finished serving their sentences.

But Eugene said Haitians in New York are bracing for broader deportations, despite the US government’s seemingly limited plan.

“The people in the community are worried because they don’t know what the next target population is going to be,” he said.

Ricot Dupuy, the manager of Radio Soleil, a Creole-language radio station in Brooklyn, said he had been “flooded with calls” about the plans for deportations.

Officials said about 300,000 people were killed and 1.5 million left homeless by the massive earthquake in January.

In addition, in recent months, Haiti has been afflicted by a cholera epidemic.

Yesterday, Haiti’s health ministry said that 2, 535 people have died since the outbreak begun in mid-October.

It said almost 57,000 of the 114,497 people infected have been treated in hospitals.

Haiti Reconstruction Projects OKd

(CARIBBEAT - Jared McCallister)

Four major reconstruction projects in Haiti - with a value of $102 million - were approved last week by the steering committee of the Haiti Reconstruction Fund (HRF), said a group spokesman.

The projects are neighborhood housing reconstruction ($65million) through the World Bank, building demolition and debris removal ($25million) through the United Nations, a $10million education project to be implemented by the Inter-American Development Bank, and the strengthening of Haiti's disaster-and-risk-management capacity ($2million) by the UN.

The HRF is a partnership between the international community and the government of Haiti, designed to help finance post-earthquake reconstruction.

The financing effort was requested by the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission last week at its board meeting, chaired by former President Bill Clinton. The approval was given at a meeting of the HRF held simultaneously Wednesday in Santo Domingo and Port-au-Prince. For information, visit www.haitireconstructionfund.org.

Hot 97 DJ Makes Derogatory 'Joke' About Haitian Woman

On Friday Dec 17, 2010, Hot 97 Morning Show Co-host K-Fox mentioned that she had brought back condoms with her from a benefit for Haiti held the night before. The condoms were given out to prevent the spread of AIDS. Co-host Cipha Sounds then made the following derogatory statement: "I don't have to worry about AIDS because I don't mess with Haitian women". Almost immediately after his comments, all over facebook & twitter, tempers were flaring and people were/are calling for the dismissal of Hot 97 on-air radio personality Cipha Sound. As a direct result of this, later in the day during the 'Throwback At Noon Show' Cipha Sound came back on air to apologize about the "joke" he made earlier. The apology seemed to be an attempt to save his job. No word yet as to what course of action [if any] will be taken by Hot 97. Let's see what happens next...

(NOTE: some sources are quoting Cipha Sounds as saying: "I'm HIV negative because I don't mess with Haitian girls".)

12 candidates want Haiti election annulled

(upi.com)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Haiti's presidential election Sunday was so chaotic 12 of the 19 candidates held a news conference to demand it be canceled.

Voters were upset, too. They shut down some polling places and cascaded into the streets to make their frustrations known, throwing rocks and bottles at United Nations peacekeeping troops, The Christian Science Monitor reported.

The dozen presidential hopefuls at the news conference accused the Inite party, backed by President Rene Preval, of trying to rig the election, the online U.S. newspaper said. Among them was Michel Martelly, a musician considered a top contender in the race who was accompanied by rapper Wyclef Jean, said the media event was held "to denounce today's massive fraud all over the country."

The country's electoral commission held its own news conference, urging calm and reassuring people the vote was on track, the Monitor said.

"There are places where bandits shut down polls, shots were fired and stones were thrown," Pierre Opont, the election commission's director general, said. "But it is only a small percentage of the polling areas and it won't stop us from voting and getting a valid result."

Haiti's voters faced confusion, delays and rejection at the polls, observers reported. Many found their names missing from voter lists, and illiterate voters had no one to help them find their names, The Miami Herald reported.

Abner Jean, who could not cast a ballot despite holding a valid registration card because his name wasn't on election rolls.

"We are not going to stand for an election that is not the will of the people," Jean told the Monitor. "If they put in a candidate that we did not choose, we'll use whatever means necessary to kick them out."

Polls were to open at 6 a.m., but people were kept waiting for hours as election workers set up.

The BBC said its correspondents saw only a trickle of voters at the polls in the early hours of the first election since January's massive earthquake killed 230,000 people and caused widespread devastation.

"There are more than 5,000 people here and the [electoral commission] sent us less than 40 names. We don't have enough ballots," Elizer Fritznel, a polling place supervisor, told the Monitor.

Observers said Haitians expressed cynicism about the election.

"We have nothing to eat and no place to live, we are so thin that even the air that blows can lift us, from where do we get the strength to go out and vote?" one woman told the BBC.

The large slate of candidates means a runoff could be necessary Jan. 16.

Tomas strengthens into hurricane‎

(CBC News)

Tomas has been upgraded to hurricane status as it moves toward Haiti, where more than one million people are still living in temporary shelters and camps after January's powerful earthquake.

The hurricane has maximum sustained winds of 130 km/h and some additional strengthening is expected, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said early Friday morning.

Tomas was about 280 kilometres west of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, where heavy rain was falling.

"Storm surge and winds will be a concern for the warned areas but rainfall is the major threat for Haiti," said CBC meteorologist Johanna Wagstaffe.

Heavy rain could cause flash floods or landslides on Haiti's unstable hillsides.

Authorities have urged the people living under tarps and in tents to seek safer shelter, but many of the displaced have said they have nowhere else to go.

The storm is expected to cross over Haiti's southwestern tip then swirl through the strait that divides Haiti from Cuba.

Haiti braces for tropical storm Tomas

(msnbc.msn.com)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — At least 21 people were missing or dead after Tropical Storm Tomas swept over the Caribbean island nation of St. Lucia as it headed toward Jamaica and the tent cities of Haiti.

An American tourist was reportedly among those killed.

Tomas weakened to a Tropical Depression early Wednesday, but was forecast to pick up strength over the next two days and a hurricane watch for Jamaica was issued by the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

Haiti, the Dominican Republic and southeastern Cuba were also warned to monitor Tomas's progress with forecasters warned of a "significant threat" to those areas later this week.

At 5 a.m. ET, the storm was about 410 miles south-southwest of Haiti's Port-au-Prince and moving west-northwest at about 5 mph.

As Tomas churned over the open Caribbean sea, officials appealed to Haitians in tent camps to start evacuating, encouraging them to travel to the homes of family or friends.

"We have launched an appeal for voluntary evacuation, particularly in the camps," said Alta Jean-Baptiste, the director of the Haiti's Civil Protection Office. "We have plans to evacuate the camps but we won't be able to evacuate everybody."

Nadia Lochard, the coordinator for civil protection in Haiti's western department, said authorities were showing camp dwellers how to properly tie up their tents before evacuating.

She said even heavy rains in the country's southern region could potentially impact Port-au-Prince since several of Haiti's rivers originate in the area and extend to the capital.

In the tent camp of Corail-Cesselesse, managers held a "loudspeaker meeting" with megaphones to tell residents about the evacuation order, said Bryant Castro, the American Refugee Committee staffer managing the camp.

Residents were told to seek any home they could find and are expected to start leaving as soon as Wednesday.

Corail has already been affected by a storm which collapsed 344 tents and sent 1,700 people fleeing for new shelter.

The dangers have only become clearer since.

"I would say ... that insufficient analysis was done on exploring all the options before selecting the Corail site," said Castro, the camp's manager. "The Corail site is located on a flood plain, and hydrologically it's not a sound location."

Oxfam spokeswoman Julie Schindall said aid workers are concerned about delivering services to the camp if roads from Port-au-Prince flood.

"This goes back to the original thing: No, (Corail is) not a safe place to live," she said. "We knew a hurricane was going to come — this is Haiti, this always happens — and we have not had a level of reconstruction that gets people under tents into houses."
At this point there is little to be done before the storm.

Jonel Romelus, a 36-year-old mason who moved to Corail, said his family — his wife, two daughters ages 2 and 5, a sister and nephews — will stay in the camp unless the government can provide shelter. They have nowhere else to go.

"God will protect me. I'm not going to be the only one (staying at Corail). If something happens, we'll deal with it," he said. "If they could have moved more quickly and built more houses, it would have been safer."

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this story.

Cholera feared near Haiti capital‎

(bbc.co.uk)

Aid agencies in Haiti say they fear that suspected new cases of cholera might mean the epidemic is moving closer to the capital Port-au-Prince.

Suspected cases are being investigated in three new departments, health officials in Haiti said on Wednesday.

They said nearly 300 people were now known to have died in the cholera outbreak.

The UN is investigating allegations that excrement from Nepalese peacekeepers caused the epidemic.

-

Sarah Jacobs from the aid organisation Save the Children told the BBC that 174 new cases of cholera were being investigated in the area around Arcahaie, a village in the northern Port-au-Prince district and about an hour's drive from the capital.

"These suspected cases are much nearer the capital," Ms Jacobs said late on Wednesday.

"So if this is actually confirmed as cholera as we suspect it will be, it means that the cholera has spread, it's that much nearer to the capital. And that's the thing we really need to avoid," she added.

So far a handful of cases have been reported in Port-au-Prince, but they were all people who had contracted the disease in other parts of the country.

"We really don't know about communities where diarrhoea cases are occurring but not reaching health centres” - Jon Kim Andrus PAHO

Aiding flood victims in St. Lucia

(CARIBBEAT - Jared McCallister)

A benefit for flood victims of St. Lucia's Dennery Village, organized by St. Lucia House Foundation and showcasing St. Lucia's Kwéyòl culture, music, dance and cuisine, will be held Saturday at the St. Lucia House, 438 E. 49th St. (between Church and Snyder Aves.). Doors open at 7 p.m. and tickets are $10. Call (347) 715-6280 for information.

Haiti quake risk

(nypost.com)

CHICAGO -- Haiti could be facing another quake disaster, experts said yesterday.

As many as 300,000 people died in the January quake originally believed to have been caused by an undetected fault.

But the journal Nature Geoscience concludes the fault originally blamed for the quake was not the source, and a new threat remains.

Meanwhile, a cholera outbreak on the island has already killed 250 people and sickened more than 3,000.

OAS reviews Haiti’s readiness for elections

(caribbeanlifenews.com)

Key stakeholders at the Organization of American States (OAS) recently reviewed Haiti’s state of readiness for the Nov. 28, 2010 General Election.

Representatives of member states and permanent observers of the OAS participated in a meeting of the “Haiti Group of Friends,” in Washington DC recently.

OAS Secretary General Albert Ramdin informed the meeting of some of the challenges being faced by Haiti’s Office of National Identity (ONI) and Haitian citizens in the lead-up to the election.

Ramdin, who met a day earlier with the director of Haiti’s ONI, said the registration process was being challenged by limited resources, given the large amount of Haitian citizens trying to register to vote two months before the polls.

The secretary general indicated that Haitians were also concerned about the possibility of tropical storms ahead of the election, which would compromise the electoral process since thousands of Haitians are still living in tent cities.

“While the international community, for good reason, is focusing on the electoral process and the politics of the country, we must not forget that there are still millions of Haitians living in difficult circumstances,” he said.

“Those are not the best circumstances to have a population go into an electoral process and this is one of the concerns we should keep in mind for the next two months,” Ramdin added.

‘Heart of Haiti’ artisan gifts

(caribbeanlifenews.com)

Creating on-going sustainable jobs in Haiti is a herculean task and necessary for an economic base so that people can live humane lives. In spite of almost no tourism in the past decade compounded by the devastation of January’s earthquake, more than 240 artisans in Haiti are selling their goods and experiencing a steady income stream.

Fairwinds Trading’s founder Willa Shalit believes in trade not aid and had been invited by the Clinton Foundation to help jump start the artisan sector in Haiti.

“The creativity in Haiti is widely powerful,” says Shalit who linked up with Brandaid, an organization working with artisans in Haiti.

Now with Macy’s as a partner and outlet, a wider public will have access to buy vibrantly decorated papier-mache vases and painted trays from Jacmel, metal worked picture frames, fruit bowls, and pendants from Croix des Bouquets, and quilted potholders, oven mitts and cosmetic bags from Citi Soleil women quilters.

“For $10, people can own something from Haiti and it can help support artists there.” Shalit said, “You don’t have to be a foundation, everybody can help Haiti, own a piece and connect.”

Recently, Macy’s launched their International Gifting Centers in New York and Miami, a gift corner in the home décor departments. By the end of October, 25 Macy’s stores will carry the Heart of Haiti line plus ‘Rwanda Path to Peace’ items.

Designer J. went to Haiti in May, met with the artisans, and developed samples—a collaboration of the indigenous vision and craft techniques, and a retail market. “It is totally from the Haitian aesthetic,” Shalit commented, “We suggested shapes and sizes. It’s like bringing the market to the product, what may appeal to a greater audience.”

Shipping began in mid-August.

Jacmel, two hours south of Port-au-Prince, is known for its fabulous carnival with creative costumes and papier-mache masks, and was heavily damaged by the earthquake. The artisans, using their craft techniques, are making vases, bowls, and other decorative items. They work outside, storing their creations in tents--the earthquake destroyed their studios and homes. Shalit suggests that hopefully, with the money from these orders they can get out of their tents. Brandaid received a grant from Clinton Bush Foundation to help rebuild the workshops.

Well-known metal artist from Croix des Bouquets Serge Jolimeau whose beautifully crafted metal items are for sale and Sister Angela, who works with the women quilters in Citi Soleil, attended the Manhattan launch. Haitian diva Emeline Michel sang with her musicians. Haitians and friends of Haiti celebrated the launch and were spotted buying their favorite gift items. The accompanying website is: http://bit.ly/haitianartisans.

Opening in time for the holiday season, the Centers will continue as an on-going part of Macy’s. Fairwinds Trading is working on its spring line of items.

Shalit acknowledges that in times of crisis aid is necessary, but in countries where people live on just a few dollars a day, Fairwinds Trading helps establish a market for artisan products creating on-going income-producing jobs; she started with basket makers in Rwanda. Other partners in this sustainable business model of trade not aid are PQ2 Peacequilters and Gahaya Links.

Haiti, Jamaica at greater tsunami risk than previously thought

(latimes.com)

LOS ANGELES, USA (MCT) -- Haiti and Jamaica are at greater risk for destructive tsunamis than previously believed, according to a new study of tsunamis generated during the catastrophic Haiti earthquake in January.

The study, published online Sunday in the journal Nature Geoscience, raises troubling questions about the possibility of high death tolls should Jamaica be hit by a large earthquake, which could cause populated coastal areas to collapse into the Caribbean Sea and trigger tsunamis that would rebound back to shore.

John Orcutt, geophysics professor at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, who was not involved in the study, said the report is a reminder that people on beaches or living near the coastline during a quake should be aware of the dangers of tsunamis.

After a quake, "If you live along the coastline, you want to be thinking about the potential tsunami hazard and get a couple hundred yards — a couple football fields up — just to make sure you're not going to be in an area that's inundated," Orcutt said.

He said even a 3-foot-high tsunami could bring in a wall of water moving at 40 mph. "It's nothing to mess with," he said. "It's like being hit by a car."

Costas Synolakis, director of the Tsunami Research Center at the University of Southern California, who also was not involved in the study, said coastal residents need to be better prepared. "The lesson here is, we really need to prepare for this," Synolakis said. "Even if they are rare events, they are high-impact events."

Matthew Hornbach, a research associate at the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, said the study helps explain what was observed during the magnitude 7 or 8 earthquake that hit Port Royal in Jamaica in 1692, destroying the hub of British colonial interests in the Caribbean. Jamaica and Haiti both lie on top of the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault.

"During that event, a large chunk of Port Royal sunk into the ocean, and it also experienced a couple of tsunamis," Hornbach said. "It basically devastated the British Empire in the Caribbean for a while. ... A lot of people drowned," he said, some because their houses sank below sea level and others because tsunamis pushed walls of water inland.

"They found bodies floating in the water for days," Hornbach said.

Much of the city sank into the sea. The toll was placed at 2,000 dead, but authorities at the time did not include slaves in their count.

The study was conducted to explain a mystery that popped up after the Haiti earthquake: Why were there so many reports of tsunamis in a region that wasn't supposed to have many?

Hornbach said scientists had long expected tsunamis to occur from earthquakes generated from "subduction zones," in which one tectonic plate slides under another. Such earthquakes push up the seafloor, moving water up and resulting in tsunamis.

But the Haiti quake occurred on a fault where one plate pushes past the other and doesn't significantly push up the seafloor. Scientists had long believed those faults don't often cause tsunamis.

But what Hornbach's team found during a visit to Haiti in February and March was that the Jan. 12 quake caused the collapse of both coastal land and underwater sediment.

It was those landslides — both above and under water — that triggered tsunamis that rebounded onto sparsely populated coastal areas of Haiti, killing at least three people and wiping out several homes.

For example, near the town of Grand Goave, a chunk of shoreline the size of several football fields sank near where a tsunami roared ashore.

The study published Sunday was a collaboration of the University of Texas, the City University of New York, the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of Missouri, the Haitian Bureau of Mines and Energy, the Universite d'Etat de Haiti and the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Haiti confirms scores of deaths due to cholera outbreak

(bbc.co.uk)

Hundreds of people received treatment in the car park of a hospital in Saint-Marc

Haiti's president and medical officials have confirmed that an outbreak of cholera has killed scores of people north of the capital Port-au-Prince.

The victims suffered diarrhoea, acute fever and vomiting. More than 1,500 people were infected, officials said.

President Rene Preval said his government was taking steps to ensure the disease did not spread further.

There are fears the outbreak could reach the camps around the capital for survivors of January's earthquake.

The quake killed some 250,000 people and left 1.5 million homeless. Tens of thousands of people are still living in crowded tent cities with poor sanitation and little access to clean drinking water.

Cholera is an intestinal infection caused by bacteria transmitted through contaminated water or food. The source of contamination is usually the faeces of infected people.

It causes diarrhoea and vomiting, leading to severe dehydration, and can kill quickly if left untreated. It is easily treated though rehydration and antibiotics, however.

Hospitals 'overwhelmed'

"I can confirm it is cholera," President Preval told Reuters news agency.

"Now we are making sure people are fully aware of precautionary measures they have to take to prevent contamination"

The director general of the health department, Dr Gabriel Thimote, said the worst-affected areas were Douin, Marchand Dessalines and areas around Saint-Marc, about 100km (60 miles) north of Port-au-Prince.

Local hospitals were "overwhelmed", and a number of people were being evacuated to clinics in other areas, he added.

At one point on Thursday, hundreds of people were laid out in the car park of St Nicholas hospital in Saint-Marc, with intravenous drips in their arms to treat dehydration, until it began to rain and they were rushed inside.

Some patients said they drank water from a public canal, while others said they bought purified water.

"I ran to the bathroom four times last night vomiting," 70-year-old Belismene Jean Baptiste told the Associated Press.

Another man said three of his relatives had died within a matter hours.

The victims range in age, but the young and the elderly appear to be the worst-affected.

David Darg, a medical relief worker in Haiti, told the BBC he had visited an area near Saint-Marc which - according to local residents - was the source of the outbreak.

"After visiting the hospital and meeting some of the medical staff, they were able to pinpoint where these cases were originating from so we headed out to a very rural area," Mr Darg told the BBC's World Today programme.

"There's a lot of water in that area particularly," added Mr Darg. "We started heading out along narrow roads lined with villagers begging for water, because by now they'd been seeing people dying in their communities and knew not to drink water from the river, which ordinarily would have been their main source of water: they drink water straight from the river."

There were fears of a cholera outbreak in the aftermath of January's earthquake, but none emerged.

This is the first time in a century that cholera has struck the Caribbean nation, the World Health Organization said.

The Artibonite department was not badly damaged in the earthquake but thousands of people who lost their homes have moved into camps or are living with relatives there.

"We have been afraid of this since the earthquake," said Robin Mahfood, president of Food for the Poor.

The agency was preparing to airlift donations of antibiotics, oral dehydration salts and other supplies to the affected areas.

------------------

HOW TO HELP:

- Terrence J. Terrence (host of 106th & Park) has teamed up with an organization called Project Medishare that has been providing medical care in Haiti for 16 years. Please text SAVE to 501501 to donate $5. 100% of the money will go towards buying supplies to fight this cholera epidemic. This is our chance to make a difference, to do our part, and to save lives.

3 Inmates Killed In Botched Haiti Prison Escape

(miamiherald.com)
PORT-AU-PRINCE -- United Nations troops and Haitian National Police officers restored a sense of order to downtown Port-au-Prince Sunday afternoon after three prisoners were killed in a botched jail break.

(heraldsun.com.au)
"They tried to get out and were killed," Haitian National Police spokesman Frantz Lerebours told the Miami Herald.

Residents near the national penitentiary, in downtown Port-au-Prince, reported that gunshots were heard at the facility about 10am local time.

Haitian police said the three prisoners overpowered several guards and stripped them of their weapons - three shotguns and an M-14 rifle - but were killed before they made good on their escape bid.

By mid-afternoon, dozens of UN troops and riot police officers blocked off the street leading to the prison's entrance, the Herald reported.

In the chaos after Haiti's devastating earthquake on January 12, thousands of prisoners escaped from the jail, with today's incident continuing a long saga of unrest at the facility.

October 10, 2010

Today is 10, 10, 10...

...Mayan Elders visited the United Nations on Friday to calm the public's fear about "2012 Doomsday". If you are interested in reading more about it CLICK HERE.

Wyclef Hospitalized For Stress

(nationalledger.com)

Wyclef Jean has been hospitalized with stress and fatigue. The former Fugees singer was forced to abandon his bid to become President of Haiti last week, and was admitted to a hospital in New Jersey on Sunday (09-26-10) due to his exhaustion.

A statement released by his family read: "Wyclef Jean has had an extremely grueling three months - truly an exhausting eight months, since the earthquake when he recommitted himself to our homeland and his passion for our people. He is currently suffering the effects of lack of sleep and stress, global travel, even the endless public eye, and has asked that his fans and supporters bear with him for the next several days as he regains his physical health and stamina. Then he will be back out in front of the crusade to rebuild Haiti and his pledge to make it even better for business."

Wyclef's representative, Marian Salzman confirmed he was in hospital, but said he expects the 'Gone 'Til November' singer to be released this week and that he "plans to take it easy" afterward.

Wyclef's bid to become president in November's elections was rejected, and although reasons were not given, it is thought he does not meet constitutional requirements for candidacy - which include owning property in Haiti, always having held a Haitian passport, and having lived in the country for five consecutive years.

The 37-year-old musician only fulfilled this last requirement on a technicality, having lived in the country until he was nine.

Wyclef has played a very active role in the relief effort in the country since its capital, Port Au Prince, was hit by a massive earthquake in January leaving an estimated 230,000 people dead, 300,000 injured and over 1 million homeless.

Tiger Style

This is my entry for the 'Urban Shogun' Draw-Off Art Contest 2010.
Had to do this one 'Calvin & Hobbes' style!

Haiti storm lashes tent city

(timeslive.co.za)

A sudden storm has left at least five quake survivors dead and dozens more wounded as it blasted through Haiti's capital, tearing down shabby tent homes, trees and power lines.

Those killed on Friday included two young girls and a 93-year-old woman who lived in close quarters with the tens of thousands of people left homeless by the powerful January 12 quake that devastated this impoverished Caribbean nation, said civil protection official Nadia Lochard.

She said thousands of tents had been torn apart by the freak storm and the strong winds and heavy rains it dumped in a matter of hours on Port-au-Prince, still filled with rubble more than nine months after the quake.

"Thousands of tents have been destroyed or damaged or simply blown away by wind gusts. We began evacuating people to schools and other shelters," said Lochard.

"People need blankets and clothes." Several other cities were also hit by the storm, prompting officials to fear a higher toll.

US meteorologists said the storm was not linked to any tropical storm system.

Meanwhile Tropical Storm Matthew killed seven people in Venezuela and brought fresh misery to Central America, where hundreds have been killed in flooding and landslides this year.

Tens of thousands of people were evacuated throughout the region.

In Port-au-Prince strong winds blew roofs off houses, uprooted trees and toppled power lines. Tents were blown away at a refugee camp near the presidential palace, and the wind knocked over public toilets, victims said.

Dozens of residents of tent dwellers protested steps from the presidential palace, which was also leveled in the quake.

"We were unable to enter this camp to evaluate damage. People were angry," a civil protection agent explained.

Haitian officials said UN soldiers and Haitian police were helping them evacuate people whose shelters were destroyed or uprooted by the wind gusts, setting up hard plastic shelters for the displaced.

International groups treated many of the wounded. Others were transported to hospitals, according to a foreign doctor who declined to provide a toll of the victims.

Civil protection authorities said they were compiling data before releasing final figures.

Although the rain has stopped in Port-au-Prince, forecasters warned fresh storms could lash the already battered nation again in the coming days.

January's quake killed 250, 000 people, left 1.3 million homeless and destroyed much of the capital.

Some 125, 000 Haitian families were put up in the emergency camps following the quake.

Tent cities have sprung up in and around the ruined capital of the poorest country in the Americas, with little sign that those left homeless and destitute will move into more permanent housing in the near future.

International aid has been slow in coming, with only a fraction of the funds promised for rebuilding efforts actually disbursed.

Earlier in the hurricane season, the United Nations identified 130 tent cities as being at risk from rains and winds that could further worsen conditions for the most vulnerable, including thousands of orphaned children.

Wyclef challenges election in song

(Reuters)

Haitian hip-hop star and presidential hopeful Wyclef Jean has turned to song to accuse outgoing President Rene Preval of engineering his rejection as a candidate for the November election.

Local radio stations broadcast a song by Jean in Creole in which he called for the jailing of electoral officials who last week disqualified him and for the first time directly blamed Preval.

The 40-year-old Haitian-born, U.S.-based celebrity, who has an enthusiastic youth following in his poor homeland, is challenging his rejection, which was based on him not meeting residency requirements.

The dispute has raised fears of tensions that could disrupt the Caribbean nation's rebuilding after a massive Jan. 12 earthquake that killed up to 300,000 people.

In his Creole composition entitled Prizon Pou K.E.P. a (Jail for the Provisional Electoral Council), a sombre-voiced Jean sings that Preval "expelled me from the race."

"I know all the cards are in your hands . . . I voted for you to be president in 2006, why today did you reject my candidacy?" the song says, addressing Preval, who cannot seek re-election after serving two terms as president.

"It's not Wyclef that you have expelled, it is the youth you have denied . . . it's the population you have denied, it's the peasants you have denied," Jean sings. He also posted the song on his Twitter page https://twitter. com/wyclef.

Preval had been informed about the song but did not immediately react, aides said.

Caribbean Peoples Unite For Haiti

(CARIBBEAT - Jared McCallister)

Haiti in hearts of West Indian parade planners

Though its roots are in Trinidad and Tobago, the West Indian American Day Carnival Parade has always been an all-inclusive Caribbean affair, and this year, Haiti's going to get some special attention, according to carnival spokeswoman Jean Alexander.

Under the theme "Bridging Cultures," the 43rd annual festivities will include a benefit concert on Thursday for survivors of Haiti's Jan. 12 earthquake. The Thursday show kicks off the annual five-day event, which culminates with the massive carnival parade on Labor Day, Sept. 6, along Brooklyn's Eastern Parkway.

The parade of costume and music and floats begins at noon at Schenectady Ave. and Eastern Parkway. WIADCA President Yolanda Lezama-Clark cuts a ribbon to start the procession, which travels down the parkway to Grand Army Plaza.

Showtime is 7 p.m. Admission is $30 and $35 at the door.

The benefit and other pre-parade shows will be held on the Brooklyn Museum grounds, 200 Eastern Parkway (entrance on Washington Ave.).

Wyclef Cannot Appeal Haiti`s Election Council Ruling

CaribWorldNews, PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Weds. Aug. 25, 2010: Haitian-born Grammy Award-winning singer, Wyclef Jean, cannot appeal his disqualification from the upcoming Presidential election in his homeland.

That`s the word from the country`s provisional electoral council. A lawyer from the council said Tuesday that the council`s ruling is final and cannot be appealed.

Samuel Pierre of the council`s legal department told Reuters that, under article 191 of Haiti`s electoral law, rulings by the election authority`s disputes tribunal are definitive and cannot be appealed.

`Therefore there is absolutely no possibility for Wyclef Jean to be added to the list of candidates approved to run in the next presidential elections,` Pierre said. `So it`s over.`

Jean, after initially accepting his disqualification late Friday, said on Sunday he would appeal the decision which rejected his candidacy for the November 28 election.

But Council officials said Jean, who left his homeland with his family at the age of 9 to live in the United States, failed to meet residency requirements. His uncle, former Haiti ambassador to the U.S., Ray Joseph, was also disqualified, along with several other candidates.

Jean, 40, was among 34 presidential candidates vying for a spot in the election to choose a successor to President Rene Preval, who cannot run again after two terms. The council only approved 19 candidates and rejected 15 others.

Singer Sweet Mikey, whose real name is Michel Martelly, is among the 19 approved candidates, along with Axan Delson Abellard of the Konbit Nasyonal pour Devlopman (KNDA) party; Jacques Édouard Alexis of the Mobilisation pour le Progrès d`Haïti (MPH) party; Jean Hector Anacacis of the Mouvement Démocratique de la Jeunesse Haïtienne (MODEJHA); Charles Henry Jean-Marie Baker of Respè; Josette Bijou an Indépendant; Gérard Marie Necker Blot of the Platfòm 16 Désanm; Jean Henry Céant of Renmen Ayiti; Jude Célestin of INITE; Eric Charles of the PRNH; Yves Christallin of the Oganizasyon Lavni Wilson Jeudy of Fòs 2010; Jean Chavannes Jeune of the Alliance chrétienne citoyenne pour la reconstruction d`Haïti (ACCRHA); Léon J. Jeune of Konbit Liberation Ekonomik (KLE); Génard Joseph of Groupement Solidarité; Garaudy Laguerre of WOZO; Mirlande Hyppolite Manigat of Rassemblement des Démocrates Nationaux Progressistes (RDNP); Yvon Neptune of Ayisyen pou Ayiti and Leslie Voltaire of Plateforme Ansanm Nou Fò.

Wyclef to appeal Haiti electoral rejection

(Reuters)

PORT-AU-PRINCE - Musician Wyclef Jean plans to appeal his rejection as a candidate in Haiti's November presidential election, his spokeswoman said on Sunday.

Haiti's provisional electoral council, the CEP, ruled on Friday night that the singer-songwriter did not meet the requirement that presidential candidates maintain five consecutive years of residency in Haiti prior to running.

Jean told his spokeswoman, Marian Salzman, that he would appeal the ruling, Salzman said.

Jean also posted a message via Twitter saying, "Tomorrow our lawyers are appealing the decision of the CEP. We have met all the requirements set by the laws. And the law must be respected."

Jean left Haiti with his family to live in New York at age 9 and launched his music career in the United States. He had presented evidence that his lawyers said showed a "constant presence" in Haiti, which is struggling to recover from January's devastating earthquake.

A source close to Jean said he would argue that the council did not follow proper legal procedures in announcing its decision.

He was among 34 presidential candidates vying for a spot in the election to choose a successor to President Rene Preval, who cannot run again after two terms. The council approved 19 candidates and rejected 15.

Wyclef Denied Run For President Of Haiti

(allhiphop.com)

Wyclef Jean's name has not been included on a list of approved presidential candidates for his native Haiti.

The entertainer-turned-politician sought to run for presidency and announced with much international fanfare. Jean needed to prove that he was a resident of Haiti, one of the requirements for the high office of the embattled land.

A list was released today and it included dozens of candidates, but not Jean says news service Reuters.

Earlier this week, the mega star had revealed that he was receiving death threats from those that opposed his looming campaign. Earlier Thursday, he met with the current president of Haiti and told the Associated Press the meeting was positive.

Wyclef Jean in hiding after death threats!

(guardian.co.uk)

Wyclef Jean has gone into hiding following alleged death threats as he awaits an official announcement on whether he can run in Haiti's November's presidential election.

The ex-Fugees star said he was at a secret location in Haiti in defiance of threats to leave the country but revealed few details about who may be responsible for the intimidation.

Jean's presidential hopes hang in the balance as electoral officials prepare to announce whether he is eligible to run in what promises to be a tumultuous contest with dozens of candidates.

A list of candidates who meet constitutional requirements to lead the earthquake-hit country – requirements that could disqualify Jean – was due to be published yesterday but officials said several unnamed candidates remained under review and that the announcement would not be made until Friday.

In a series of emails to the Associated Press, the 40-year-old rapper said he did not know whether the electoral commission, known as the CEP, would approve his candidacy but that there had been questions about whether he met residency requirements: "We await the CEP decision but the laws of the Haitian constitution must be respected."

His lawyers were at the commission's headquarters seeking to argue his case, he said. In the same emails he announced he was in hiding but did not elaborate on the nature of the threats.

If approved, Jean will be a frontrunner, but the fact he has lived in the US since he was a boy could put a premature end to a campaign launched two weeks ago with fanfare, dancers and hype.

Legal requirements and political intrigue – few believe the decision will be based on entirely technical reasons – could sink his hopes of swapping a recording studio for power in a broken country.

Jean was born in Croix-des-Bouquets, outside the capital, Port-au-Prince. At the age of nine he moved with his family to New York, then New Jersey, and made only fleeting return visits to the Caribbean.

Opponents said his history violated constitutional requirements that a candidate must have his or her "habitual residence" in Haiti and have resided in the country for at least five consecutive years before election day. Jean said his appointment as a roving ambassador by President René Préval in 2007 exempted him from residency requirements.

The race has drawn 34 candidates from diverse backgrounds, including veteran political operators and one-man band neophytes.

"This is a very volatile situation. The easiest thing they can say is 'You are all candidates'. But I don't know if they will do that," Robert Fatton, a Haiti-born political expert at the University of Virginia, told the news website Haitian Truth. "It's going to be fascinating to see how many are in the race after 17 August."

The Unity party of Préval, who is stepping down as president, has backed Jude Celestin, head of the government's primary construction firm, as his successor.

The party had been expected to back a former prime minister, Jacques-Edouard Alexis, who instead registered with a different party, the Mobilisation for Haitian Progress. The horse-trading suggested that murky deals as much as votes could determine the election outcome.

Fresh doubts about Jean's fitness for office arose today from a New York Times investigation into apparent mismanagement and questionable accounting at his charity, Yéle Haiti. The newspaper alleged the charity had failed to deliver water as it had claimed to several camps of earthquake survivors, and that some donations vanished into blurred lines between Jean's business, political and charity endeavours. He denies any wrongdoing.

Yesterday his public relations representative, Euro RSCG Worldwide PR, announced without explanation that it had resigned from all public relations work for Yéle and Jean's presidential campaign.

The musician has batted away doubts about his suitability for office. "Celebrity has taught me that politics is politricks. The fact that I'm coming with this with fresh eyes but not naive ears, I think that's a good start."

Wyclef Jean - If I Were President - Lyrics

If I was president,
I'd get elected on Friday, assassinated on Saturday,
and buried on Sunday.

If I was president...
If I was president

An old man told me, instead of spending billions on the war,
we can use some of that money, in the ghetto.
I know some so poor, they use the spring as the shower,
when screaming "fight the power".
That's when the vulture devoured

[chorus]
If I was president,
I'd get elected on Friday, assassinated on Saturday,
and buried on Sunday.

If I was president...
If I was president...
If I was president...
If I was president

But the radio won't play this.
They call this rebel music.
How can you refuse it, children of Moses?

[chorus]
If I was president,
I'd get elected on Friday, assassinated on Saturday,
and buried on Sunday.

If I was president...
If i was president

Tell the children the truth, the truth.
Christopher Columbus didn't discover America.
Tell them the truth.
The truth
YEAH! Tell them about Marcus Garvey.
The truth YEAH! The truth.
Tell them about Martin Luther King.
Tell them the truth.
The Truth.
Tell them about JFK

If I was President
[chorus]
If I was president,
I'd get elected on Friday, assassinated on Saturday,
and buried on Sunday.

If I was president...
If I was president

Pras Questions Wyclef's Goals For Haiti

(mtv.com)

Pras spoke out against his former Fugees group member Wyclef's presidential run recently, explaining that he felt the hip-hop musician wasn't the right type of leader to help the poverty- and earthquake-ravaged country of Haiti. The "Ghetto Superstar" artist also criticized Wyclef's announcement on CNN, saying the political hopeful failed to deliver a vision.

Pras told MTV News that despite his friend's good intentions, he lacks the experience to develop policy to help the country in its vulnerable state.

"He talks about health care, he talks about education, he talks about infrastructure," Pras told MTV News. "But that's in any society. That's right here in America, we need that. But how are you gonna get to that point? There's a short-term goal that needs to be addressed and there's a long-term goal. To be honest with you, the short term is probably more important than the long term. And he didn't even mention the short term."

Wyclef also drew the ire of actor Sean Penn, who delivered a harsh commentary against the Haitian activist while appearing on CNN himself.

"Right now, I worry that this is a campaign that is more about a vision of flying around the world, talking to people. It's certainly not one of the youth drafting him," Penn said. "I would be quite sure that this is an influence of corporations here in the United States and private individuals that may well have capitalized on his will to see himself flying around the world.

Clef has said the people are drafting him to run.

"I feel like I'm being drafted by the population right now to give them a different face, a different voice," he said during his announcement.

Pras, though, noted his former Fugee mate speaks broken Creole and doesn't even speak French, key languages for Haitians, which will make his impending run difficult.

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- Pras plans to support Wyclef's opponent, Michel "Sweet Micky" Martelly (who also happens to be a Haitian Musician). I guess this will be a battle of the "rock star candidates" -- Politics will have to take a backseat. Haiti's infrastucture may collapse even furthur, but at least we'll get some good music out of the deal...

...right?

Lauryn Hill, what say you?

August 9, 2010

Today is 8, 9, 10...

...that is all!

Wyclef in Haiti prez race!

(Reuters)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- Hip-hop star Wyclef Jean registered as a candidate yesterday for Haiti's November presidential election, in a move that has generated popular enthusiasm in the earthquake-ravaged nation.

"I would like to tell President Barack Obama that the United States has Obama, and Haiti has Wyclef Jean," the three-time Grammy award-winner told cheering supporters in downtown Port-au-Prince.

He spoke after registering his candidacy at Haiti's electoral council ahead of tomorrow's deadline.

Singer-songwriter Jean, 40, has never held elective office but is widely admired in Haiti and credited with never having forgotten his Haitian roots.

The former Fugees star was born in Haiti but grew up in New York and New Jersey.

Wyclef - Haiti's Next President?

(nypost.com)

Wyclef Jean will formally announce his bid for the presidency of earthquake-shattered Haiti within two weeks, sources tell us. The former Fugees star, 37, who's an ambassador under the current Haitian government, is ready to put his music career on hold to run for his homeland's top job. But the move will put him in conflict with former Fugees bandmate Pras (Prakazrel Samuel Michel), a Brooklyn native who campaigned for more relief after the deadly January earthquake, who's backing another candidate. Wyclef's reps confirmed he's submitted paperwork to run in the Nov. 28 election. His family yesterday said in a statement: "Wyclef's commitment to his homeland and its youth is boundless, and he will remain its greatest supporter . . . At this time, Wyclef Jean has not announced his intent to run for Haitian president. If and when a decision is made, media will be alerted immediately."

July 23, 1892

Haile Selassie, [Amharic,= Might of the Holy Trinity], Emperor of Ethiopia (1930-74). Born July 23, 1892, Tafari Makonnen, the son of a noted general and the grandnephew of Emperor Menelik II. A brilliant student, he became a favorite of Menelik, who made him a provincial governor at age 14. As a Coptic Christian, Tafari opposed Menelik's grandson and successor, Lij Yasu, who became a Muslim convert, and in 1916 compelled his deposition and established Menelik's daughter Zauditu as empress with himself as regent. In 1928, Tafari was crowned King of Ethiopia, and in 1930, after the Empress's mysterious death, he became Emperor as Haile Selassie the first, a direct descendant of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. He modernized Ethiopia and took great pride in the suppression of slavery. When Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935, he personally led defending troops in the field, but in 1936 he was forced to take refuge in England. Twice (1936, 1938) he appealed to the League of Nations for effective action against Italy. In 1940, after Italy entered World War II, he returned to Africa with British aid, and in 1941 he reentered Ethiopia and regained his throne. In the postwar period he instituted social and political reforms, such as establishing (1955) a national assembly. In the 1960s and 70s he worked for pan-African aims, particularly through the Organization of African Unity (OAU) - which was centered in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. In 1960 he crushed a revolt by a group of young intellectuals and army officers. In 1974, however, the army was successful in seizing control. Haile Selassie was progressively stripped of his powers and finally, on Sept. 12, 1974, the rebels deposed the last of the Solomonic Kings.

Emperor Haile Selassie I, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, The Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, God of the Rastafarians...

Haiti 6 Months Later

Helping Haiti rebuild
A nation in need of its expats

PETIT GOAVE, HAITI

SIX months in from the earthquake, charred corpses no longer line curbsides in Haiti. In their place now is the living -- homeless, jobless, orphaned and maimed.

Of the 1.5 million-plus displaced to flimsy encampments, only a fraction has moved to sturdier shelter. Roughly half of the population suffers from malnutrition and has no access to drinking water.

Making our way amid the rubble -- past the mass graves and feral dogs that dig through them -- we spotted a man atop a ruined hotel. Three stories up, he tightrope-straddled the building's wire frame, with all his might swinging a sledgehammer at the bolder-size mass of limestone that clung to the façade -- rock scribbled red with the word "Demolir." A scrum of onlookers, many children, stood below -- gazing up, waiting to salvage fallen scraps of metal and stone.

The man demolishing an entire building singlehanded with a hammer is Haiti today: hell-bent on survival, but facing huge tasks with only the most modest resources.

The international pledges of $10 billion over the next 10 years to help rebuild Haiti are excellent promises. But foreign donors know that mismanagement has historically devoured the lion's share of funds sent to Haiti. Getting aid where it should go requires the involvement of Haiti's professionals -- accountants, engineers, doctors, professors. Unfortunately, 83 percent of them don't live here.

Haiti's educated are disproportionately with the diaspora -- the 2 million living in New York, Paris, Montreal, the Dominican Republic, Boston, Miami, Africa and more.

In March, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the director of the International Monetary Fund, told an international donors conference that there is absolutely no way to carry out Haiti-rebuilding plans without creating new benchmarks of accountable spending and performance. That only begins to describe Haiti's need for its college graduates. The return of even a minority of skilled expats would jolt reconstruction.

The quake exacerbated the brain drain, claiming 20,000 professional lives and prompting all who could -- which meant many of the surviving professionals -- to get out.

Make no mistake, the world's response to the earthquake was quick and kind, and the aid effort has made progress, but not nearly enough. Roughly $800 million has been dedicated for relief projects, but that's only a bit more than half of the $1.5 billion that the United Nations believes Haiti needs to meet this year's most basic housing and health needs.

Haiti is working with the United Nations to involve professional Haitians, with a portion of reconstruction contracts reserved for these workers. Nations that host the diaspora -- America foremost -- can and should help.

One good idea: Haitians in Canada are pushing for government-sponsored leaves to help expatriates returning to the island to rebuild.

Of course, expats also help by sending money home. In 2008, the diaspora remitted $1.9 billion to Haiti, far exceeding all other aid sources and equivalent to almost a third of Haiti's gross domestic product.

Any country that relaxes its immigration policy for earthquake refugees would increase remittances, enlarging the economic foundation for the long rebuilding. Intuition and history both suggest that émigrés sending money back to their families is a surer bet than government-to-government or even to-charity aid.

Conditions in Haiti remain horrific. Immediate aid is critical, but money isn't everything. Haitians must be given the space to help themselves -- and that means involving the professionals in the diaspora. Congress could start by making it easier to come and go between homeland Haiti and the "adopted lands."

(Elizabeth Lazar, freelance writer who's traveled Haiti over the last six months.)

Haiti 1 Month Later

On January 12, 2010 Haiti was struck by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. What is the condition of Haiti one month later?

Today Haiti observes a day of mourning to mark the one month anniversary of the devastating quake that killed more than 200,000 people and left an estimated 1.2 million people homeless.

A Thursday downpour (the first heavy rain since the earthquake) was a reminder that as the rainy season approaches, adequate shelter was still needed for the 1.2 million still sleeping in the streets. Many people lost everything in the earthquake, and have only the barest protection from the elements. Haitian authorities have warned the rainy season, which starts in March, is now the greatest threat the country faces.

MORE TO COME...

Hope For Haiti Now

The 'Hope For Haiti Now' Telethon - a global benefit for earthquake relief - airs tonight At 8 P.M on nearly every network. Wyclef Jean will co-host the all-star telethon along with George Clooney. The telethon will be broadcast from Los Angeles, New York, London and Haiti.

More Earthquakes

- On January 20, A 5.9 aftershock struck Haiti. The strongest tremor since the Jan. 12 quake struck at 6:03 a.m., just before sunrise while many still slept. It forced more earthquake survivors onto the capital's streets to live and sent others fleeing to the countryside, where aid was only beginning to reach wrecked towns.

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- On January 19, A 5.8 earthquake struck the Cayman Islands, days after earthquakes in Haiti.

- On January 18, a 6.0 magnitude earthquake hit Guatemala and parts of El Salvador. There are no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

- On January 17, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake happened upon the Drake Passage off the coast of the Argentine Republic. There was no hard damage as the earthquake that struck was rather far away from the land area itself.

- On January 16, a 5.6 magnitude earthquake hit Venezuela, which lies on the very same Caribbean tectonic plot as Haiti. The quake has been reported to cause power failure, yet there were no damages or deaths.

Royal Caribbean keeps cruising to Haiti

(nypost.com)

Not even hundreds of thousands of rotting corpses can keep boatloads of vacationers from Haiti.

Royal Caribbean International is still cruising to private Labadee Beech, a mere 60 miles south of the earthquake's epicenter -- where mountains of decaying bodies foul the air and traumatized residents scrounge for food.

Guests on the 3,100-passenger Navigator of the Seas yesterday lounged in hammocks, sipped rum and tooled around on Jet Skis an hour's car ride from devastated Port-au-Prince.

And sister ship Liberty of the Seas is due to dock today.

"I just can't see myself sunning on the beach, playing in the water, eating a barbecue and enjoying a cocktail while there are tens of thousands of dead people piled up on the streets [of the capital]," someone wrote on the Web site cruisecritic.com.

But CEO Richard Fain argued that Royal Caribbean was keeping hundreds of Haitians employed and planned to donate $1 million to the rescue effort. He added that each cruise ship was dropping off food and water.

Yele Haiti

- On January 22, 2010 Wyclef Jean will co-host with George Clooney a “Hope for Haiti” all-star telethon that will air on nearly every network.

- In a news conference, entertainer Wyclef Jean called on the international community to construct a massive tent city and move earthquake victims outside of Port-au-Prince.
Click Here To Watch Video

- Wyclef’s response to accusations against Yéle Haiti

- Yéle Haiti lends helping hand in Port-au-Prince

- Yéle Launches Haiti Earthquake Alliance

Contact Family In Haiti

- Trying to get in touch with your loved ones? TCC Teleplex is offering free 3-minute calls to Haiti. CLICK HERE to find those phones in New York City

- To help US families reach relatives in Haiti, for the next two weeks, Google Voice is offering free calls to Haiti. If you don't have a Google Voice account, you can request an invitation at www.google.com/voice.

- The State Department Operations Center has set up the following number for Americans seeking information about family members in Haiti: 1-888-407-4747 (due to heavy volume, some callers may receive a recording).

Senegal offers land to Haitians

(Associated Press)

DAKAR, Senegal – Senegal is offering free land to Haitians wishing to "return to their origins" following this week's devastating earthquake, which has destroyed the capital and buried thousands of people beneath rubble.

Senegal's octogenarian President Abdoulaye Wade told a meeting of his advisers that Haitians are the sons and daughters of Africa, because the country was founded by slaves, including some believed to have come from Senegal.

The president is offering voluntary repatriation to any Haitian that wants to return to their origin," said Wade's spokesman Mamadou Bemba Ndiaye late Saturday following the president's announcement.

"Senegal is ready to offer them parcels of land — even an entire region. It all depends on how many Haitians come. If it's just a few individuals, then we will likely offer them housing or small pieces of land. If they come en masse we are ready to give them a region," he said.

He stressed that Wade had insisted that if a region is handed over it should be in a fertile area — not in the country's parched deserts.

Senegal, a nation of 14 million roughly the size of South Dakota, is considered one of the most stable and developed in the sub-region. Still nearly half of working-age adults are unemployed and the country has been burdened by high food prices, frequent blackouts and spiraling energy costs.

Many have criticized Wade for being a dreamer, proposing lofty projects that do little to alleviate poverty or address endemic corruption. Others see him as a statesman who dares to have a vision for Africa.

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My 2 cents: Haitians considering this offer should only do so if you are permitted to obtain dual citizenship!

Haitians in U.S. illegally can stay

(Associated Press)

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration said Friday it will allow Haitians who were already in the U.S. illegally to remain for the time being because of their country's catastrophic earthquake.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano granted the temporary protected status on Friday, two days after she temporarily halted deportations of Haitians, even those already in detention. The protection is only available to Haitians already in the country as of last Tuesday, and allows them to stay and work for 18 months.

Temporary protected status is granted to foreigners who may not be able to return safely to their country because of a natural disaster, armed conflict or other reasons.

Haitians in the U.S. illegally have pleaded for years for permission to stay, work and send money home — the same treatment the federal government gave Central Americans in 1998 after Hurricane Mitch devastated their region.

The pleas have been denied despite four tropical storms in 2008, massive floods almost every other year since 2000 and the long-running political strife that has prompted thousands to seek asylum in the U.S.

About 30,000 Haitians have orders to leave the U.S., according to Department of Homeland Security statistics. Many others are appealing their cases.

The federal government estimates there are about 100,000 to 200,000 Haitians living in the U.S. illegally, Napolitano said.

Napolitano declined to say Friday whether the U.S. would continue to interdict boats carrying Haitians who try to flee to the U.S.

Haiti Earthquake Relief

On January 12, 2010 a catastrophic 7.0 magnitude earthquake – and several very strong aftershocks - struck Haiti. The earthquake caused major damage to the nation's capital Port-au-Prince & many neighboring towns. The death toll is estimated at over 50,000 & expected to reach 100,000. Your donation(s) will help save lives! The need for assistance will be great for weeks, months and even years from now.

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HOW TO HELP:

- Yele Haiti - The foundation set up by Haitian-born singer Wyclef Jean - http://www.yele.org or text YELE to 501501 to donate $5 for Earthquake Relief via your cellphone.

- American Red Cross - http://american.redcross.org/supporthaiti or 1-800-RED-CROSS. Text the word HAITI to 90999 and $10 will be donated to the Red Cross. The gift will be charged to your cellphone bill.

- Doctors Without Borders - http://doctorswithoutborders.org/

- UNICEF - https://secure.unicefusa.org/site/Donation2?df_id=6680&6680.donation=form1 or 1-800-FOR-KIDS

- Save the Children - http://www.savethechildren.org/get-involved/fundraising-challenges/alt-ways-to-give-earthquake-haiti-0110.html or 1-800-728-3843

- Habitat for Humanity - https://www.habitat.org/cd/giving/donate.aspx?link=227

- Salvation Army - Donate (Option 1) - Donate (Option 2)