Haitian Officials Evicting Quake Victims, Says Amnesty

Thousands of Haitians living in camps have been forcefully evicted by local authorities and face other human rights abuses, Amnesty International said on January 12.
Haitian Officials Evicting Quake Victims, Says Amnesty
A Haitian woman sits in a tent city near Port-au-Prince on Jan. 10. Amnesty International said Thursday, on the two-year anniversary of the devastating earthquake, that thousands of Haitians living in camps have been forcefully evicted. Thony Belizaire /AFP/Getty Images
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<a><img class="size-large wp-image-1793684" title="Haitian woman near Port-au-Prince" src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/HAITI-WOMAN-136692226-750.jpg" alt="Haitian woman near Port-au-Prince" width="590" height="360"/></a>
Haitian woman near Port-au-Prince

Thousands of Haitians living in camps have been forcefully evicted by local authorities and face other human rights abuses, Amnesty International said on Jan. 12, the two-year anniversary of the quake.

Haitian authorities have forcefully evicted a number of people from camps near Port-au-Prince, left over from the January 2010 earthquake that displaced hundreds of thousands, the rights group said. Around 500,000 people still live in camps.

“Homelessness caused by illegal forced evictions is a preventable crisis that further traumatizes the victims and violates human rights,” said Javier Zuniga, an adviser with the London-based rights group.

On Dec. 20 and 21,2011, around 1,000 residents of a camp in Place Jeremie in Port-au-Prince were evicted by authorities. Around a dozen people with machetes and knives destroyed the tents at 4 a.m.

“I was sleeping, along with my 15-day-old baby. They tore the tent down on top of me, without any warning. I had no time to take anything. I could only save the baby. All the baby clothes are lost. I spend the night [outdoors] and I have nothing to cover the child,” a woman who lived there told the rights group.

Later, those who were evicted were paid a small amount, ranging between 1,000 to 10,000 gourdes ($25 to $250).