1/13/10

Yesterday afternoon an earthquake of a magnitude of 7.0 struck Haiti, wreaking widespread destruction and loss of life.  While the extent of the damage is not yet known, preliminary estimates suggest the island nation faces a major humanitarian crisis.  This disaster threatens to unravel the agonizing, but steady progress Haiti has made toward democratic and economic stability since 2004.  Though the international community is already moving to respond, with dozens of countries, along with the UN, and prominent NGOs pledging assistance, the earthquake has damaged various peace-keeping, economic and humanitarian missions already in the country, which ordinarily would have served as first responders.  Reports indicate the offices of the United Nations Stabilization Mission have been completely destroyed. 

In this precarious atmosphere, it is critical that the U.S. take the lead in coordinating a response to the crisis.  In the past, a U.S. response has made a pivotal difference in disaster zones across the globe as well as advanced U.S. interests, including in Indonesia, where a tsunami brought devastation to the world's largest Muslim-majority country; in Pakistan, which suffered from an earthquake in 2005; and in Bangladesh, which was ravaged by a cyclone in 2007.  In each instance, U.S. efforts proved pivotal.  The case of Haiti, so close to the US and where over 40,000 US citizens reside, should be no different.  For the U.S. response to be maximally effective and advance U.S. interests, it is essential that it draw on the full power of the government and American people.  The sad events highlight the need for coordinated action by America's diplomatic and development agencies, the military and NGOs - with each, as well as international agencies and other nations, having uniquely vital pieces to contribute.  Recovery assistance from the United States can make a pivotal difference to the people of Haiti, but that plan must be integrated across the U.S. government for it to quickly and effectively help put Haiti back on a path toward stability.  

Earthquake strikes Haiti, resulting in destruction and humanitarian crisis.  "The Tuesday afternoon quake, which had a preliminary magnitude of 7.0, was centered about 10 miles west of Port-au-Prince," reported the Washington Post.  According to the Wall Street Journal, "[t]he partial collapse of communications and other infrastructure has hindered efforts to assess the damage of the magnitude-7 earthquake. But terrifying reports, including photos, of collapsed buildings and buried bodies have heightened concern that the destruction is extensive."  Francis Ghesquiere, lead disaster risk management specialist at the World Bank, told the Journal that the death toll "would be exacerbated by the lack of zoning, building codes, and emergency preparedness in a country with a notoriously weak central government."  "The quake occurred along a fault line believed responsible for seven large quakes between 1618 and 1860, said Harley Benz of the U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colorado," reported NPR.  And the New York Times called it one of the "worst in the region in more than 200 years."  In the U.S., Haitian Americans were "left scrambling for information about the fate of relatives," and "[m]any crowded around television screens for any reports of casualties, or desperately tried to reach friends and family in their homeland to no avail," said a separate New York Times article.

Writing for the Daily Beast, UN Dispatch's Mark Leon Goldberg observes that this disaster struck at a pivotal time in Haiti's transition to stability.  "Since the fall of the Aristide government in 2004 and thanks to assistance from the United Nations and the U.S., Haiti has taken slow steps in the right direction, awarding Rene Preval the presidency in a democratic election, and benefitting economically from the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement Act."  But, as Goldberg laments, "for every step in the right direction, Haiti has been dealt an equal and opposite blow" including 2008 riots over food shortages, and destruction wrought by four successive hurricanes. [Washington Post, 1/13/10. U.S. Geological Survey, 1/13/10. WSJ, 1/13/10. NPR, 1/13/10. NY Times, 1/13/10. NY Times, 1/13/10. Mark Leon Goldberg, 1/13/10]

As international community assembles response, coordination and dispersement challenges lie ahead.  Assistance from the Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, UNICEF, and the Inter-American Development Bank has been pledged or initiated.  China, Venezuela, Israel, Mexico, France, Italy and the U.S. have pledged support. 

This international response runs into several challenges, particularly due to the fact that NGO and country missions already in Haiti have been severely incapacitated.  "Some aid groups with offices in Haiti's capital were tallying their own casualties," the New York Times reported. According to the Times, "Five workers with the United Nations mission in Haiti were killed and more than 100 more missing after the office's headquarters collapsed, United Nations officials said in a news conference. The Tunisian head of the mission, Hedi Annabi, and his deputy were among the missing, said Alain LeRoy, the United Nations peacekeeping chief. Earlier Wednesday, the French foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, said in radio interviews that Mr. Annabi had been killed in the collapse."

According to the Associated Press, "The U.N.'s 9,000 peacekeepers in Haiti, many of whom are from Brazil, were distracted from aid efforts by their own tragedy: Many spent the night hunting for survivors in the ruins of their headquarters..." What is apparent at this point is that the organizations that would have normally been first responders have been badly crippled, further complicating an already devastating situation.

In an NPR interview, Jacqueline Charles of the Miami Herald also questioned whether the country will be able to accommodate the large influx of aid.   "Well, I think the question before we even talk about distribution, we're going to have to talk about whether or not the aid will even arrive." As Charles explained, "problems always come in terms of dispersement and also coordination." [UN Dispatch, 1/13/10. Miami Herald, 1/13/10. NY Times, 1/13/10. AP, 1/13/10. NPR, 1/13/10]

An integrated response to natural disaster -using all elements of national power -is a national security priority for the United States.  In 2008 the Center for American Progress's Lawrence Korb and Max Bergmann argue that American response have proven pivotal in dealing with natural disasters, including the 2004 Tsunami in Indonesia, the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan, and the devastating 2005 cyclone in Bangladesh.  Korb and Bergmann go on to explain that, engaging in these disaster recovery mission promotes U.S. interests, because it "maintain[s] precious stability... improves the image of the U.S.... cast[s] our global military posture in a better light... and [it]is the price of being the world's largest superpower." Korb and Bergmann also point out that approval ratings for the U.S. in Pakistan and Indonesia jumped significantly, following U.S. involvement in disaster relief.

The Obama administration recognizes the need for an integrated approach to complex and interconnected issues.  The response has included the following elements:

Development.  The Washington Post reports that "Obama said he named U.S. Agency for International Development chief Rajiv Shah to coordinate American efforts" [Washington Post, 1/13/10]

Diplomacy. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that the U.S. "will be providing both civilian and military disaster relief and humanitarian assistance." [Hillary Clinton, via ABC News, 1/13/10]

Defense.  Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen said today that "We [military personnel] worked throughout the night to figure out how we can do that and do that as rapidly as possible."  Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security, particularly the Coast Guard, is central to the U.S. rescue and evacuation efforts in Haiti. [Admiral Michael Mullen, via MSNBC, 1/13/10.  NY Times, 1/13/10]

Additionally vital efforts are underway from the National Security and White House Staffs, and the United States Mission to the United Nations.  Politico reports that, "The President told them [National Security Staff] that he expects an aggressive, coordinated effort by the U.S. government... Each agency is working overnight to ensure that critical resources are positioned to support the recovery effort, including efforts to find and assist American citizens in Haiti."  [Lawrence Korb and Max Bergmann, 5/20/08. Lawrence Korb, et al, 11/09/09. Politico, 1/13/10]

What We're Reading

US Marines believe they've made significant inroads against Taliban-held towns in Helmand Province, though they warn about possible Taliban counter-attacks. The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction is boosting his manpower to better vet reconstruction funding.  Fresh protests against Coalition and Afghan Forces raids of Afghan homes highlight lingering tensions.

Baghdad was shut down while Iraqi Security Forces did a major sweep of the city and found so many explosives that they claim a major attack was thwarted.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair made a defiantly unrepentant appearance before a panel investigating Britain's involvement in the Iraq war.

Iran blames the United States and Israel for killing a university professor who worked on nuclear projects for the state. Opposition protesters say they are gaining traction in the countryside of Iran.

The underwear bomber's attempted attack has frayed the diplomatic relationship between the United States and Nigeria.

In the latest operations by the Mexican military, the head of a notorious drug cartel has been captured in his seaside vacation home.

Economic chaos continues in Venezuela as mobs of people purchase exports in fear of inflation following the government's efforts to devalue the national currency.

China tests its first land-based missile defense system following the sale of an arms packet to Taiwan by the United States. Citing the continued attempts by hackers to access the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists, Google announces it will stop censoring internet searches in China and it may even close its offices there.

Italy reflects following some of the worst ethnic riots in recent memory.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko will finish in fourth or fifth place in the upcoming presidential elections behind his longtime rival, pro-Russian Viktor Yanukovych.

A dead attorney, who posthumously posted a video accusing Guatemalan President Álvaro Colom of his murder, actually contracted the hit men who killed him, resulting in a bizarre political drama.

Commentary of the Day

Scott Shane explains that while 2009 may have seen large media coverage of various attempted terrorist plots within the United States, the plots show Al Qaeda to now be a scattered, uncoordinated group of amateurs who display more fervor than skill rather than a single powerful and sophisticated juggernaut.

Luis Alberto Moreno argues that using a regional drought in Latin America to make a concerted push for action on climate change can be bring rapid and tangible results.

The Washington Post urges Nigeria to implement political and electoral reform in order to build a more responsive government for its citizens and as a key partner to the United States.