Corruption Amidst Destruction
When the dust settled over Port-au-Prince and news of the Haiti earthquake reached the world, billions of people donated food, money, clothing, and medical supplies in relief efforts. Some dedicated souls even flew to Haiti to assist in the rescue missions and establish treatment centers. While the majority of people have acted generously and selflessly, some scammers have capitalized on this generosity and have profited from the relief efforts.
Symantec Corporation, a security software that tracks suspicious Internet activity, discovered the first Haiti hoax on January 14, just two days after the earthquake struck. An unidentified scammer circulated a mass email that claimed to be from the British Red Cross Society. The scammer asked for donations on behalf of Haiti and begged people to “please give what [they could]…to help thousands of people there in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.” Unfortunately, the money went directly to the scammer rather than the British Red Cross. Similar emails from other scammers have sent people to phony websites that put destructive viruses or attachments on their computers.
Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter have also been used to exploit the kindness of those looking to help Haiti. Numerous groups and fan pages have sprung up, assuring people that for every member that joins, $1 will be donated to the relief efforts. These groups have circulated fake status messages that read, “If you believe in helping people let’s do this: PLEASE NOTE that this status is being tracked, the owners of Facebook have confirmed they will send $1 to the rescue fund for the Haiti earthquake disaster for every time this is cut and pasted as a status. You only have to leave it for a minimum of 1 hour. Let’s all do our bit to help.” Facebook owners later denied these claims.
Another scam has involved various texting campaigns. The Haiti earthquake marked the first time that texting has been used in a large-scale way to raise money after a natural disaster. While some of these campaigns were genuine, many were not.
Finally, some organizations have taken advantage of grieving families. These scammers promise that, for a fee, they will find missing loved ones in the earthquake-ravaged country.
Numerous complaints over these various hoaxes have incited the FBI to act. In a public advisory, the FBI urged people to “make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes.”
Perhaps the most disturbing example of these corrupt scams occurred during mid-February, when ten Americans were charged with child trafficking in Haiti. The Baptist missionaries were arrested during a border crossing when they attempted to bring 33 Haitian orphans into the Dominican Republic. They intended to take the children by bus to a 45-room hotel at a beach resort called Cabarete. However, many of these children lacked proper documentation and some were not orphans. According to Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive, “One [8-year-old] girl was crying, and saying, ‘I am not an orphan. I still have my parents.’” Many of the children were hungry and thirsty. A two to three-month-old baby was dehydrated and sent to a nearby hospital. Bellerive says that “it’s not Americans that were arrested, it was kidnappers that were arrested.” While Haiti may view the church workers as “traffickers,” the Baptists say that they were “just trying to do the right thing.” Spokeswoman Laura Silsby says that “We came here simply to help these children…We went to the border based on the approval of the Dominican government to take the children into the Dominican Republic…[A] pastor entrust[ed] these precious children to our care because his orphanage collapsed and his churches collapsed, and he had nowhere for these children to go.”
Amidst the controversy, some Haitian parents believe that giving a child up for adoption to foreigners may be their best chance for a future. Saintanne Petit-Frere, a mother of six living in a tent camp, says, “My parents died in the earthquake. My husband has gone. Giving up one of my kids would at least give them a chance… My only fear is that they would forget me, but that wouldn’t affect my decision.” Adonis Helman says, “Some parents I know have already given their children to foreigners… I’ve been thinking how I will choose which one I may give.”
As news of the Haiti earthquake slowly fades from the media, scams and hoaxes continue to plague the good intentions of well-to-do citizens. This corruption must be curbed if Haiti wishes to recover from its recent devastation.
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