UN told to apologise for role in 2010 cholera outbreak in Haiti

The United Nations (UN) has been called upon by this country’s Prime Minister to apologise for the organisation’s role in the 2010 cholera outbreak in Haiti, which resulted in the death of 8,000 Haitians.{{more}}

“In 2010, negligent, or even reckless, UN peacekeepers contaminated a Haitian drinking water supply, which led to an outbreak of cholera that killed 8,000 innocent Haitians and infected 600,000 others. There is no longer any scientific dispute that the UN is responsible for this outbreak, as has been conclusively established in the relevant reports,” Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves said in his address at the recently concluded General Debate of the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Prior to the UN’s negligence, Gonsalves said Haiti had not seen a single case of cholera in 150 years.

“Today, there are more cholera-infected persons in Haiti than there are in the rest of the world,” the PM disclosed.

“I continue to be deeply disturbed by the UN’s callous disregard of the suffering it has wrought in a fellow CARICOM country, and by the shameful, legalistic, avoidance of what is a clear moral responsibility on the part of the UN.

“Accordingly, I call on Secretary General Ban Ki Moon to acknowledge unambiguously, and apologise for, this organisation’s role in the tragedy, and to take immediate steps to compensate the victims and their families. Anything less will further undermine the moral authority and credibility of this institution,” Gonsalves stated.