U.N. 'must face up' to Haiti cholera outbreak

Dec 22 2011

In this Guardian opinion piece, Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C., writes that the U.N. "must face up" to a cholera outbreak allegedly brought to Haiti by peacekeeping troops in the aftermath of the January 2010 earthquake. "More than 500,000 have been infected, and the disease -- which Haiti has not had in more than a century -- is now endemic to the country and will be killing people there for many years to come," he writes.

"Last week, U.N. officials once again denied responsibility for the disaster, and were, in my view, publicly dishonest about the available scientific research -- some of which was included in the U.N.'s own report on the epidemic," he continues. He cites evidence from multiple reports and media coverage from the time of the outbreak and concludes, "Everyone who cares about human rights in this hemisphere should join this effort to hold the U.N. accountable for this disaster" (12/20).