(2011-10) Haiti's Housing Crisis: Results of a Household Survey on the Progress of President Michel Martelly's 100-Day Plan to Close Six IDP Camps

Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) • 2011 • 16 pages

Summary — A survey of 150 families in the six displacement camps targeted by President Martelly's 100-day housing plan finds little community consultation, an unlawful camp closure with destroyed belongings, and cash payments residents said were insufficient for housing.

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Key Findings

Families in the six targeted camps were struggling to survive: two thirds had no one working, 77 percent had a family member go a day or more without eating, and 59 percent lacked daily access to safe drinking water. Camp closures proceeded without the durable solutions promised, with Stade Sylvio Cator residents unlawfully evicted without a court order and relocated to a site with less security and fewer services. Most residents were not informed or consulted; 82 percent had not been asked their opinion on closing their camp. Cash payments of US$250 to relocate were described by recipients as insufficient to rent or build housing.

Full Description

This briefing paper, prepared by the University of San Francisco School of Law, IJDH, and the Bureau des Avocats Internationaux, evaluates implementation of President Michel Martelly's plan to close six displacement camps within his first 100 days in office. It draws on an August 2011 survey of 150 families, 25 in each targeted camp, in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. An estimated 595,000 Haitians were still living in roughly 900 camps at the time. The survey found conditions in the camps desperate: two thirds of families had no one working, most reported family members going days without eating, and over half lacked daily access to safe drinking water. Little community mobilization had occurred; 82 percent of respondents had not been consulted on camp closures. One camp, Stade Sylvio Cator, was closed through an eviction by the Mayor of Port-au-Prince and police without a court order, and relocated families described worse conditions at the new site. The paper recommends protection from unlawful evictions, community outreach, transparent resettlement assistance, and cash payments tied to comprehensive housing support.

Topics

Geography

Time Coverage

2010 — 2011

Keywords

housing crisis, IDP camps, evictions, Michel Martelly, 100-day plan, earthquake reconstruction, household survey, displacement, camp closures, Port-au-Prince, durable solutions

Entities

Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti, University of San Francisco School of Law, Bureau des Avocats Internationaux, Michel Martelly, International Organization for Migration, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Haiti Reconstruction Fund, Nigel Fisher, Stade Sylvio Cator, Place St. Pierre, Nicole Phillips

Notes

IJDH/USF/BAI thematic briefing paper; ayitistats wave B