Cholera lawsuit against U.N. in Haiti, and death threats for Haitian advocate for women's safety

A lawsuit against the United Nations alleges that cholera was introduced into Haiti in October 2010 through Nepalese U.N. Peacekeeping troops sent to keep order after the catastrophic January 2010 earthquake. Allegedly, these troops did not properly treat sewage they were dumping into the Artibonite river. Since then, well over 8,000 Haitians have died and more than 700,000 have been stricken with cholera. The United Nations has denied responsibility and claims immunity. But part of the U.N.’s immunity clause mandates a mechanism for hearing and responding to grievances. The plaintiffs of a lawsuit claim the U.N. has not done so. The Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) has led the effort “to hold the UN accountable.” We’ll talk about the lawsuit with Beatrice Lindstrom, an (IJDH) attorney involved with the case, Dr. Evan Lyon, a University of Chicago physician who has worked in Haiti and DePaul economics professor Ludovic Comeau, who has researched the economics of development and sustainability in Haiti.
And, gender-based violence has long been a problem in Haiti, but it has intensified since the 2010 earthquake. Rapists have been able to act with impunity. Even the police have been implicated as perpetrators, says Malya Villard Appolon. She's the co-founder of KOFAVIV, the Commission of Women Victims for Victims. The organization is founded, operated and staffed by women, who themselves are survivors of gender-based violence. The group provides support to new victims and advocates for accountability and violence prevention. We spoke with Villard-Appolon while she was on a U.S. tour, in partnership with the Goldin Institute, to spread awareness about the issue, but she has not been able to return to Haiti because of death threats and threats to her family.

(photo: Ana Tiluse, 50, receives treatment for cholera symptoms in a hospital in Cornillon, Haiti, Wednesday Nov. 16, 2011. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa))