For Immediate Release
July 27, 2010
Contact:Blaine Bookey, Esq.,
Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haitiblaine@ijdh.org, 415–515-8956
Rape in Haiti:Human Rights Groups Release Comprehensive Report on Violence Against Women and Girls in Post-Earthquake Haiti
July 27, 2010; Port-au-Prince, Haiti — More than six months after Port-au-Prince was leveled by the January 12 earthquake, hundreds of thousands of dis-placed women and girls live in fear of rape in tent cities that lack lighting, privacy and security. Today, the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) along with partners MADRE, TransAfrica Forum, and the law schools of the University of Minnesota and the University of Virginia released “Our Bodies are Still Trembling: Haitian Women’s Fight Against Rape,” the first report of its kind to focus exclusively on the crisis of violence against Haitian women and girls that has emerged in the aftermath of the earthquake.
The report is the product of a fact-finding delegation to Haiti in May coordinated by IJDH’s Lawyers’ Earthquake Response Network (LERN).
Blaine Bookey, Esq., NLG Haiti Subcommittee Member, staff attorney with IJDH and coordinator of the LERN delegation on rape and gender-based violence, returned to Haiti this week to continue advocacy efforts for Haitian women’s right to live free from violence. Bookey is working in close collaboration with women’s grassroots groups, and continues to conduct fact-finding interviews and gather evidence in preparation for filing litigation on behalf of assault victims.
She said today, “The findings presented in this report illustrate the crisis of rapes in the camps and the failure of the government of Haiti, the United Nations, and others in the international community to adequately address the problem. The report aims to help these groups implement a more effective response so that these crimes against women will not go unpunished.”The report released today contains the most detailed and up-to-date information available on the issue of gender-based violence in Haiti, and concrete recommendations for an improved response to the crisis. It tracks the high incidence and prevalence of rape in the camps, the lack of an adequate government or international response, and the courageous work done by grassroots women’s groups to address these threats. The findings from this report will be presented to to Haitian government officials, the United Nations and other humanitarian actors, and to donor states including members of U.S. Congress.
Lisa Davis, Human Rights Advocacy Director at IJDH’s partner organization MADRE, also a Guild Haiti Subcommittee member, said today, “Our partners in Haiti have been tirelessly working, not only to provide urgent care for women who have been raped in the camps, but to forcefully demand that addressing this threat be a priority in disaster response policies. Together, our international human rights advocacy has kept this issue from being swept away and ignored.”
For additional information on IJDH’s work to support Haitian women in their efforts to prevent rape, please visit the Rape Accountability and Prevention Project website.
About the Organizations:
The Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) fights for human rights and justice in Haiti and for fair treatment of Haitians in the U.S.MADRE works to advance women’s human rights by meeting immediate needs and building lasting solutions for communities in crisis.
TransAfrica Forum is the oldest and largest African American human rights and social justice advocacy organization promoting diversity and equity in the foreign policy arena and justice for the African World.The University of Minnesota Human Rights Litigation and International Advocacy Clinic, directed by Guild member Jennifer Green provided legal research and writing support for the report.
