Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The devastating earthquake which struck Haiti on 12 January 2010 killed more than 230,000 people and injured 300,000 others. The earthquake, which destroyed much of the capital city, Port-au-Prince, and surrounding areas, also left approximately 1.5 million people homeless and caused losses and damage estimated at approximately €5.9 billion. Over 550,000 people remain homeless, living in temporary camps or with host families. The earthquake decimated the Haitian health sector which, as the Human Rights Watch report points out, was already extremely weak. Sixty percent of health facilities were damaged and ten percent of health professionals were killed or emigrated in the aftermath of the earthquake. The headquarters of the Ministry of Health and Population Services (MSPP) was completely destroyed. This damage was not only devastating for the health of Haitians living in the capital, but to the country as a whole since the bulk of Haiti's health system was concentrated in Port-au-Prince. As a consequence, women in Haiti continue to face considerable challenges in accessing sexual and reproductive health care, including safe ante and post-natal care.

Sexual violence and other forms of gender-based violence were also, unfortunately, widespread in Haiti prior to the earthquake. In the 1990s, Human Rights Watch (HRW) documented the use of rape as a form of oppression during the regime of Raoul Cédras. From 2004 to 2006, the UN Security Council estimated that 35,000 women and girls were subjected to rape and sexual violence in Haiti.

Ireland, through the Government's programme of official overseas assistance, Irish Aid, attaches considerable priority to supporting efforts to combat Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV). Irish Aid works in partnership with, among others, UN organisations, Non-Governmental Organisations, and the International Red Cross movement to provide safe and accessible Sexual and Gender based violence response and prevention services. Irish Aid is also one of the founders and an active member of the Irish Consortium on Gender-Based Violence. The Consortium has invested in considerable research aimed at strengthening programming in this area and is currently conducting research on Gender-Based Violence in so-called fragile states like Haiti. Irish Aid's focus on SGBV informs our funding support in response to humanitarian emergencies and this has been the approach in our interventions in Haiti since the earthquake.

Irish Aid's initial assessment mission in the days following the earthquake recommended a focus for humanitarian aid on the issues of clean water and sanitation, shelter, protection, and early recovery. These recommendations and the importance of protecting the most vulnerable, including expectant and new mothers, have guided our assistance to date.

As regards Ireland's funding response to the humanitarian needs in Haiti following the earthquake, Ireland pledged funding of €13 million for the period 2010-2012 at the Haiti Donor Conference which took place in March 2010. To date, Ireland has provided total funding support of €11.25 million to Haiti since the earthquake. We continue to pay close attention to the protection needs of those affected by the earthquake and to play our part in strengthening the protection of the most vulnerable populations, including expectant and new mothers.