SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Italian Official Condemns Haiti Earthquake Relief as 'Vanity Parade'
Guido Bertolaso, who led L'Aquila quake response in Italy, targets lack of leadership and role of US military
Jan 25, 2010
The Italian government official who led the country's response to the L'Aquila earthquake has condemned relief efforts in Haiti as a disorganised "vanity parade", ahead of an international conference on rebuilding the devastated country.
Guido Bertolaso, the head of Italy's civil protection service, said there had been a fundamental lack of leadership thus far in foreign aid missions to Haiti, warning also that the large US military mission in the country was not entirely helpful.
"The Americans are extraordinary, but when you are facing a situation in chaos they tend to confuse military intervention with emergency aid, which cannot be entrusted to the armed forces," Reuters reported him as telling Italy's RAI television.
Italy's foreign minister, Franco Frattini, swiftly distanced the government from Bertolaso's comments. He had "attacked American and international organisations head on. The Italian government does not share these statements," Frattini told reporters in Washington.
Dozens of nations have sent rescue teams and relief supplies to Haiti. The effort involves government staff, troops and representatives from hundreds of separate charities and NGOs. The process has already been criticised as taking too long to bring desperately needed food, water and shelter.
Later today, the Haitian prime minister, Jean-Max Bellerive, will join Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, and ministers from Canada, France and other nations in Montreal to begin planning his country's long-term reconstruction.
Bertolaso led Italian relief and reconstruction efforts following the quake in April last year around the city of L'Aquila. The death toll was a relatively low 307 but thousands of buildings were damaged or destroyed.
Having arrived in Haiti on Friday, Bertolaso said he had seen "a terrible situation that could have been managed much better".
"When there is an emergency it triggers a vanity parade. Lots of people go there anxious to show that their country is big and important, showing solidarity," he said.
He expressed doubt over the efficacy of having so many US military personnel involved. "It's a truly powerful show of force but it's completely out of touch with reality. They don't have close rapport with the territory, they certainly don't have a rapport with the international organisations and aid groups."
Haiti's government has raised the confirmed death toll from the 12 January quake to 150,000, saying the figure could double. About 1.5 million people are believed to have been left homeless.
Canada's foreign minister, Lawrence Cannon, said today's Montreal meeting was intended to begin mapping out what was needed to get Haiti's government back up and running for reconstruction.
"It's not a donor or pledging conference," he told the Associated Press. "It's to make sure we have an action plan. We want to co-ordinate better in the short term and make sure we all know who is doing what and how."
One goal, he said, was to "physically get the Haitian government back on its feet".
The British-based aid agency Oxfam has called on the conference to cancel Haiti's PS552m debt, saying an insistence on repayment would be "both cruel and unnecessary".
"Immediate cancellation of foreign debt must be accompanied by urgent action to support farmers and prevent a man-made food crisis exacerbating the hardship faced by the people of Haiti," said Jeremy Hobbs, the executive director of Oxfam International.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
The Italian government official who led the country's response to the L'Aquila earthquake has condemned relief efforts in Haiti as a disorganised "vanity parade", ahead of an international conference on rebuilding the devastated country.
Guido Bertolaso, the head of Italy's civil protection service, said there had been a fundamental lack of leadership thus far in foreign aid missions to Haiti, warning also that the large US military mission in the country was not entirely helpful.
"The Americans are extraordinary, but when you are facing a situation in chaos they tend to confuse military intervention with emergency aid, which cannot be entrusted to the armed forces," Reuters reported him as telling Italy's RAI television.
Italy's foreign minister, Franco Frattini, swiftly distanced the government from Bertolaso's comments. He had "attacked American and international organisations head on. The Italian government does not share these statements," Frattini told reporters in Washington.
Dozens of nations have sent rescue teams and relief supplies to Haiti. The effort involves government staff, troops and representatives from hundreds of separate charities and NGOs. The process has already been criticised as taking too long to bring desperately needed food, water and shelter.
Later today, the Haitian prime minister, Jean-Max Bellerive, will join Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, and ministers from Canada, France and other nations in Montreal to begin planning his country's long-term reconstruction.
Bertolaso led Italian relief and reconstruction efforts following the quake in April last year around the city of L'Aquila. The death toll was a relatively low 307 but thousands of buildings were damaged or destroyed.
Having arrived in Haiti on Friday, Bertolaso said he had seen "a terrible situation that could have been managed much better".
"When there is an emergency it triggers a vanity parade. Lots of people go there anxious to show that their country is big and important, showing solidarity," he said.
He expressed doubt over the efficacy of having so many US military personnel involved. "It's a truly powerful show of force but it's completely out of touch with reality. They don't have close rapport with the territory, they certainly don't have a rapport with the international organisations and aid groups."
Haiti's government has raised the confirmed death toll from the 12 January quake to 150,000, saying the figure could double. About 1.5 million people are believed to have been left homeless.
Canada's foreign minister, Lawrence Cannon, said today's Montreal meeting was intended to begin mapping out what was needed to get Haiti's government back up and running for reconstruction.
"It's not a donor or pledging conference," he told the Associated Press. "It's to make sure we have an action plan. We want to co-ordinate better in the short term and make sure we all know who is doing what and how."
One goal, he said, was to "physically get the Haitian government back on its feet".
The British-based aid agency Oxfam has called on the conference to cancel Haiti's PS552m debt, saying an insistence on repayment would be "both cruel and unnecessary".
"Immediate cancellation of foreign debt must be accompanied by urgent action to support farmers and prevent a man-made food crisis exacerbating the hardship faced by the people of Haiti," said Jeremy Hobbs, the executive director of Oxfam International.
The Italian government official who led the country's response to the L'Aquila earthquake has condemned relief efforts in Haiti as a disorganised "vanity parade", ahead of an international conference on rebuilding the devastated country.
Guido Bertolaso, the head of Italy's civil protection service, said there had been a fundamental lack of leadership thus far in foreign aid missions to Haiti, warning also that the large US military mission in the country was not entirely helpful.
"The Americans are extraordinary, but when you are facing a situation in chaos they tend to confuse military intervention with emergency aid, which cannot be entrusted to the armed forces," Reuters reported him as telling Italy's RAI television.
Italy's foreign minister, Franco Frattini, swiftly distanced the government from Bertolaso's comments. He had "attacked American and international organisations head on. The Italian government does not share these statements," Frattini told reporters in Washington.
Dozens of nations have sent rescue teams and relief supplies to Haiti. The effort involves government staff, troops and representatives from hundreds of separate charities and NGOs. The process has already been criticised as taking too long to bring desperately needed food, water and shelter.
Later today, the Haitian prime minister, Jean-Max Bellerive, will join Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, and ministers from Canada, France and other nations in Montreal to begin planning his country's long-term reconstruction.
Bertolaso led Italian relief and reconstruction efforts following the quake in April last year around the city of L'Aquila. The death toll was a relatively low 307 but thousands of buildings were damaged or destroyed.
Having arrived in Haiti on Friday, Bertolaso said he had seen "a terrible situation that could have been managed much better".
"When there is an emergency it triggers a vanity parade. Lots of people go there anxious to show that their country is big and important, showing solidarity," he said.
He expressed doubt over the efficacy of having so many US military personnel involved. "It's a truly powerful show of force but it's completely out of touch with reality. They don't have close rapport with the territory, they certainly don't have a rapport with the international organisations and aid groups."
Haiti's government has raised the confirmed death toll from the 12 January quake to 150,000, saying the figure could double. About 1.5 million people are believed to have been left homeless.
Canada's foreign minister, Lawrence Cannon, said today's Montreal meeting was intended to begin mapping out what was needed to get Haiti's government back up and running for reconstruction.
"It's not a donor or pledging conference," he told the Associated Press. "It's to make sure we have an action plan. We want to co-ordinate better in the short term and make sure we all know who is doing what and how."
One goal, he said, was to "physically get the Haitian government back on its feet".
The British-based aid agency Oxfam has called on the conference to cancel Haiti's PS552m debt, saying an insistence on repayment would be "both cruel and unnecessary".
"Immediate cancellation of foreign debt must be accompanied by urgent action to support farmers and prevent a man-made food crisis exacerbating the hardship faced by the people of Haiti," said Jeremy Hobbs, the executive director of Oxfam International.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy