Parish Twinning Program (PTPA)

www.parishprogram.org

www.visitationhospital.org

In addition to parish twinning, PTPA is building the Visitation Hospital in Haiti.

Partners In Health
Dr. Paul Farmer

http://www.pih.org/index.html

DD: You said the humanitarian process can be solved only with more international aid.  How about long-term solutions to the political crisis?

PF:  It's popular to say things like "The Haitians have to solve their own problems," but it's silly.  The Haitians did not create slavery, chronic interference with their internal affairs, gunboat diplomacy, foreign occupations and a long history of trade and aid embargoes.  The Haitians did not create unfair economic policies.  These were created outside of Haiti.
Erasing Haiti's debt, restoring constitutional

rule, ending arbitrary aid embargoes and sinking significant resources into public health, public education and public infrastructure would be central to addressing and indeed solving Haiti's social problems.  Haiti's flooding is a result of the ecological disaster (deforestation) that's been worsening over the past several decades, and that could be addressed, too.  But exhorting peasants not to cut down trees for firewood is not the way to address deforestation.  how else are they going to cook their food?

DD:  According to a recent New York Times story, the Bush administration has spent about $191-billion on wars in the Middle East.  At the same time, the U.S. government has cut back on the president's pledge to dedicate $15-billion to fight AIDS.  Do you ever think about what could be accomplished if some of the military funding had been redirected to health care?

PF:  I think about it every day.  I never fail to think about it.  The program for rebuilding Haiti, and for taking on the diseases of the poor globally, would cost peanuts compared to what it's cost to finance the wars you mention.  And of course I'm just talking about the financial costs.  As a physician, I think every day about the human cost of war, too.  I can't imagine it's possible to put a price tag on that.

Rays of Hope for Haiti

Sea Container Shipments to Haiti

Working with you to be a voice of justice, hands to help, and a heart of love for the people of Haiti

KWABS News
http://www.kwabs.com/artman/publish/cat_index_4.shtml

                                             
Haiti's forgotten poor                                                Rene Preval, Haiti President-Elect will Visit S. America                                                                               By Associated Press
By Reuters                                                                                          Mar 4, 2006, 09:33
Mar 4, 2006, 20:18                                                                     

Current news in Haiti
 

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/world/haiti/

Haiti Medical Mission of Wisconsin (HMMW)

http://www.haitimedicalmission.com/

We are a group of volunteer interdenominational medical professionals who work with the Haiti Parish Twinning Program to bring quality health care to the people of Thiotte, Haiti and the surrounding villages. We do this by sending medical teams to Thiotte to examine and treat the sick, and by teaching the basics of prevention and treatment to a core group of local health care workers and community members.  We claim the gospel mandate to have a preferential option for the poor as our mission, and will maintain a spiritually-based focus. We invite other individuals and like-minded groups to join us in this work through giving of self, time or money.