Veniel Calixte welcomed the Canadians to his disaster, hoping for saviours or at least a way out.
The Port-au-Prince artist became a paid minder and local fixer to international news crews — including QMI Agency — in the wake of last January’s earthquake that devastated large sections of his home country of Haiti.
Reliable and eager, 28-year-old Calixte ferried around journalists and kept them safe during early days when the capital was suffering and split open.
Of life before the quake, he explained: “I’ve never had the desire to leave my country before.”
But he suddenly imagined immigrating to Canada, and told us repeatedly — as QMI Agency has charted his course over these past months — that he admired and was humbled by countries that stepped up to help strangers get through desperate times.
Now, nearing the one-year anniversary of the catastrophe — a ridiculously terrible event that continues to be felt, thanks to still deplorable conditions and a deadly cholera outbreak — Canadian officials promise they have not abandoned Haitian citizens like Veniel.
“We remain committed to the people of Haiti,” Beverley Oda, minister of international co-operation tells QMI Agency.
“The victims of the earthquake and now the cholera epidemic are in the thoughts of all Canadians.
“Canada will continue to provide the humanitarian and recovery support needed for the people of Haiti to see a bright future for their families and the country.”
Officials with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (DFAIT) say they are constantly updating and pointing out new projects for Haiti.
The Canadian Armed Forces say they will also still have boots on the ground when the one-year anniversary is marked on Jan. 12. Though their response, and numbers, have largely shifted from walking through debris to sorting through paperwork.
Initially, the response by the Department of National Defence — one of the first forces to react — included about 2,050 personnel, divided between Port-au-Prince and the equally hard-hit areas around Leogane and Jacmel.
It was Jacmel that offered up some of the most poignant images for Canadians, as then governor general Michaelle Jean returned to the Haitian community where she spent her childhood.
Just off the sandy beach, and within sight of buildings turned to dust by the quake, the Canadian frigate HMCS Halifax was used as a floating base of operation. Near Leogane, the destroyer HMCS Athabaskan did similar desperate duty.
Today, the Canadian military commitment is currently 10 personnel — up from, at one point, five — who work for the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH).
Capt. Mark Peebles says they headquarter staff officers, and — while not in a medical tent or patrolling the streets — play a role in helping the country recover.
But he adds, it is unclear what will happen to the Canadian contribution after March, when the current mission with MINUSTAH ends.
While Canada says it is still committed to Haiti in the long road in rebuilding, any substantial recovery stretches far into the future.
And artist Veniel Calixte is no closer to finding refuge in Canada.
In a series of e-mails to QMI Agency, the well-spoken Haitian had asked for a quick way to get a visa to come to Canada, then requested money, pointing out: “That might be stupid from my part, however anyone in such situation would act likewise.”
When it was explained, as journalists we couldn’t get a visa for him or lend him $1,000 requested, he said he understood, but that he had hoped the international outpouring of support for Haiti would find its way down to him.
In a recent e-mail update, he said he was fine, however: “There are many troubles and tough times here.”
No, he added, he had not had contact with any other Canadians.
“Well, I still want to go there,” he said of Canada. “But the way I see life, I am feeling discouraged.”
Canadian aid
Canada’s response to the crisis in Haiti continues, as that country struggles closer to the one-year anniversary of the disaster.
Here are some of the important figures:
In November, Canada expanded its response to the cholera outbreak, by adding $4 million to a previous $1-million contribution announced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
As well last month, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities announced $7.2 million over the next three years to help five Haitian municipalities rebuild.
That fell on the heels of the Canadian Development Agency (CIDA) launching a $30-million call for one-year Haiti recovery and reconstruction projects — part of a $400-million pledge made by Canada at an International Donors’ Conference in New York.
Canadian police forces, as well, have pitched in with manpower and rebuilding, including a 10-person team assigned to the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH).
The work of non-government organizations and relief programs also continues. In Canada, World Vision alone has raised more than $40 million of resources — including $26.6 million in cash donations, $10.5 million in government grants and another $3.1 million in donated supplies — for the response.