Jun 13, 2015
Haitian journalists grilled an American Red Cross official Wednesday about the group's Haiti program, but the official declined to provide any new details of how it spent nearly $500 million donated after the 2010 earthquake.
The Red Cross called a press conference, held at the Le Plaza Hotel in downtown Port-Au-Prince, in response to ProPublica and NPR's story published last week revealing a string of Red Cross failures in Haiti.
The American Red Cross official at the press conference was repeatedly interrupted by Haitian reporters frustrated that he would not give specifics on its spending:
The official, Walker Dauphin, criticized our story for making "misleading allegations" and said that "in total, more than a hundred projects were implemented."
But Haiti's most prominent newspaper, Le Nouvelliste, wrote that Dauphin was merely "retracing the broad strokes of the interventions and expenses ... while avoiding going into detail." The paper ran the story on its front page under the headline, "When the Red Cross drowns the fish," a reference to sidestepping a touchy subject.
Jean-Max Bellerive, who was prime minister of Haiti when the earthquake hit, also publicly criticized the American Red Cross, telling Le Nouvelliste that the Haitian government must "take legal actions to demand accountability."
In the United States, Rep. Rick Nolan, D-Minn., has called for the House oversight committee to hold hearings on the Red Cross' Haiti program. The story has also prompted anger and calls for investigation in a number of states. Watch this video where an activist and Georgia state senator interrupt a Red Cross spokesman: "They do not deny anything that's been said and just direct you to some website," said Sen. Vincent Fort.
Red Cross spokeswoman Jana Sweeney said in a statement: "The Red Cross is happy to talk with any member of Congress who has questions about our relief work in Haiti, or elsewhere."
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Haitian journalists grilled an American Red Cross official Wednesday about the group's Haiti program, but the official declined to provide any new details of how it spent nearly $500 million donated after the 2010 earthquake.
The Red Cross called a press conference, held at the Le Plaza Hotel in downtown Port-Au-Prince, in response to ProPublica and NPR's story published last week revealing a string of Red Cross failures in Haiti.
The American Red Cross official at the press conference was repeatedly interrupted by Haitian reporters frustrated that he would not give specifics on its spending:
The official, Walker Dauphin, criticized our story for making "misleading allegations" and said that "in total, more than a hundred projects were implemented."
But Haiti's most prominent newspaper, Le Nouvelliste, wrote that Dauphin was merely "retracing the broad strokes of the interventions and expenses ... while avoiding going into detail." The paper ran the story on its front page under the headline, "When the Red Cross drowns the fish," a reference to sidestepping a touchy subject.
Jean-Max Bellerive, who was prime minister of Haiti when the earthquake hit, also publicly criticized the American Red Cross, telling Le Nouvelliste that the Haitian government must "take legal actions to demand accountability."
In the United States, Rep. Rick Nolan, D-Minn., has called for the House oversight committee to hold hearings on the Red Cross' Haiti program. The story has also prompted anger and calls for investigation in a number of states. Watch this video where an activist and Georgia state senator interrupt a Red Cross spokesman: "They do not deny anything that's been said and just direct you to some website," said Sen. Vincent Fort.
Red Cross spokeswoman Jana Sweeney said in a statement: "The Red Cross is happy to talk with any member of Congress who has questions about our relief work in Haiti, or elsewhere."
Haitian journalists grilled an American Red Cross official Wednesday about the group's Haiti program, but the official declined to provide any new details of how it spent nearly $500 million donated after the 2010 earthquake.
The Red Cross called a press conference, held at the Le Plaza Hotel in downtown Port-Au-Prince, in response to ProPublica and NPR's story published last week revealing a string of Red Cross failures in Haiti.
The American Red Cross official at the press conference was repeatedly interrupted by Haitian reporters frustrated that he would not give specifics on its spending:
The official, Walker Dauphin, criticized our story for making "misleading allegations" and said that "in total, more than a hundred projects were implemented."
But Haiti's most prominent newspaper, Le Nouvelliste, wrote that Dauphin was merely "retracing the broad strokes of the interventions and expenses ... while avoiding going into detail." The paper ran the story on its front page under the headline, "When the Red Cross drowns the fish," a reference to sidestepping a touchy subject.
Jean-Max Bellerive, who was prime minister of Haiti when the earthquake hit, also publicly criticized the American Red Cross, telling Le Nouvelliste that the Haitian government must "take legal actions to demand accountability."
In the United States, Rep. Rick Nolan, D-Minn., has called for the House oversight committee to hold hearings on the Red Cross' Haiti program. The story has also prompted anger and calls for investigation in a number of states. Watch this video where an activist and Georgia state senator interrupt a Red Cross spokesman: "They do not deny anything that's been said and just direct you to some website," said Sen. Vincent Fort.
Red Cross spokeswoman Jana Sweeney said in a statement: "The Red Cross is happy to talk with any member of Congress who has questions about our relief work in Haiti, or elsewhere."
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.