Cholera
Overview
Cholera broke out in Haiti in October 2010, and continues to constitute a grave medical emergency. Overwhelming evidence has established that reckless disposal of human waste by a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping base in Mirebalais poisoned Haiti’s rivers with a particularly deadly strain of cholera bacteria and created the epidemic. Now, despite even UN Special Envoy to Haiti Bill Clinton’s acknowledgment that the UN was the “proximate cause” of the epidemic, the UN continues to refuse to accept responsibility and control cholera in Haiti.
BAI and IJDH represent Haitian victims of cholera in their quest for justice from the UN.
In November 2011, we filed 5,000 claims with the UN, seeking:
A) The installation of a national water and sanitation system that will control the epidemic,
B) Compensation for individual victims of cholera for their losses,
C) A public apology from the United Nations for its wrongful acts
In February 2013, after 15 months of silence, the UN tersely dismissed the claims in a two-line decision deeming the claims “not receivable.” Since then, their strategy continues to be denial and stonewalling the media.
On October 9, 2013, BAI, IJDH, and law firm Kurzban, Kurzban, Weinger, Tetzelli & Pratt (KKWT) filed a lawsuit against the UN in NY Federal Court. Click here for a full timeline of the events that led up to this.
The Cholera Accountability Project (CAP) works with Haitian grassroots groups and international advocates in a broad-based campaign to force the UN to take action to stop the cholera’s killing. Diarrheal disease and lack of safe water are the worst public health problems in Haiti. Our case demands the installation of water and sanitation infrastructure that will control the epidemic and save more than 5,000 lives each year.
Get involved today by:
Making your voice heard on Twitter by tweeting this.
Petition to the UN to provide clean water & sanitation in Haiti.
Donating to support the case.
Watching and sharing Baseball in the Time of Cholera.
Jonathan Katz, NPR discuss persistence of Haiti Cholera epidemic
NPR interviewed journalist Jonathan Katz, who has been covering the cholera epidemic in Haiti since it began three years ago. Katz discusses how lack of sanitation has prolonged the epidemic despite $9 million in foreign aid pledged to fight cholera. On the United Nations response to claims of blame, Katz notes ”since [the IJDH lawsuit], the science [supporting the claim] has been so overwhelming that the UN basically doesn’t even take up the issue of whether it’s responsible.” Why Cholera Persists In Haiti Despite An Abundance Of Aid NPR STAFF, NPR March 21, 2014 It’s been more than three years since cholera struck Haiti. And the epidemic continues today. The deadly bacteria have killed more than 8,500 people. And it has infected hundreds of thousands. Why has the outbreak been so hard to contain — especially given the $9 million in foreign aid pledged … Continue reading
New Cholera Lawsuit Claims UN Waived Immunity
A new lawsuit has been filed in Federal Court in Brooklyn, NY against the United Nations. The class-action lawsuit claims the UN waived immunity in 2004 when establishing the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti. This filing comes just a few days after the United States government confirmed its support of the UN’s immunity in a lawsuit filed by BAI, IJDH, and KKWTP on behalf of five named plaintiffs. Haiti: New Class-Action Lawsuit Seeks Compensation From UN For Cholera By the Caribbean Journal staff, Caribbean Journal March 11, 2014 A new lawsuit filed Tuesday in Federal court in Brooklyn seeks compensation from the United Nations for its alleged role in bringing cholera to Haiti. The lawsuit comes after the United States government wrote a letter last week charging that the United Nations has absolute immunity from suit under the UN Charter … Continue reading
Cholera Victims Need Stronger Support for Remedies
Cholera-Stricken Haitians Need Stronger State Support for Remedies John Marshall Law School International Human Rights Clinic, Partner March 7, 2014 A lax justice system is stymying efforts of cholera-infected Haitians to seek redress for their epidemic. But a new report from The John Marshall Law School International Human Rights Clinic and the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) says this human rights abuse can be addressed with better accountability for state and non-governmental violators. The team submitted their report to the top U.N. official charged with overseeing people’s rights to safe drinking water and sanitation. In October 2010, a cholera epidemic broke out in Haiti that has killed more than 8,500 people and infected more than 700,000. According to the report, extensive evidence shows U.N. peacekeepers introduced the deadly strain to the country from reckless waste management that … Continue reading
Haitian American Elected Officials Letter to Secretary Kerry
Below is part of a letter from the National Haitian American Elected Officials Network (NHAEON) to Secretary of State John Kerry. The letter calls for the State Department to refuse to intervene on behalf of the UN in the cholera case, asking Kerry to do everything in his power to get justice for cholera victims. Click HERE for the full version. March 5, 2014 Dear Secretary Kerry, We write as members of the Haitian-American community and the National Haitian American Elected Officials Network (NHAEON) to express our deepest concerns by the United Nations’ failure to take responsibility for the cholera epidemic occurring in Haiti. We are writing to you with deep respect, for your decades of support for Haiti, the rule of law and global health, and asking you to do everything in your power to ensure that Haiti’s cholera epidemic is stopped … Continue reading
Haitian Diaspora Letter to Secretary Kerry
Below is part of a letter from 26 Haitian Diaspora groups to Secretary of State John Kerry. The letter calls for the State Department to refuse to intervene on behalf of the UN in the cholera case, asking Kerry to do everything in his power to get justice for cholera victims. Click HERE for the full letter. March 5, 2014 Dear Secretary Kerry, We write as members of the Haitian-American community deeply concerned by the United Nations’ failure to take responsibility for the cholera epidemic that it brought to Haiti. We are writing to you with deep respect, for your decades of support for Haiti, the rule of law and global health, and asking you to do everything in your power to ensure that Haiti’s cholera epidemic is stopped and we are provided justice. As you know, the cholera epidemic has killed over 8,500 Haitians … Continue reading
Cholera as a Grave Violation of Right to Water in Haiti
February 28, 2014 The following is a joint submission on behalf of IJDH and the International Human Rights Clinic at John Marshall Law School for the UN Special Rapporteur’s report on violations of the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation. The submission discusses violations of the right to water in Haiti, focusing specifically on Haiti’s ongoing cholera epidemic and efforts to seek accountability and redress. The cholera crisis in Haiti represents a grave violation of the right to water, and provides a highly relevant case study in the strategies used and difficulties faced by victims seeking accountability and remedies for right to water violations perpetrated by non-State actors, including the underlying structural causes and power relations that limit access to judicial accountability mechanisms and complicate non-judicial accountability relationships. IJDH JMSL Violation of Right to Water in Haiti