France

A bit late in posting this, but in response to the recent New York Times series, a major French bank is hiring researchers to look into the history of its involvement in Haiti.  It is not straight-forward given mergers and the loss of almost all relevant documentation over the years, hence the need for outside expertise.  Haiti's history is one of exploitation by individual, institutions, and countries.  As the article by Matt Apuzzo points out, foreign banks have played a significant role in maintaining an ecosystem of exploitation.  This investigation is welcome and would not be happening without the NYT journalists and their reporting. 

Haiti is in the midst of a cholera outbreak, the origin of which is and may remain unclear.  We live in a mobile world and the source could be Africa, Asia, South America, or it may have already been in the environment.  Where it came from is less important than the fact that Haiti, and especially the poorest of the poor, will always be vulnerable without clean water, adequate sanitation, and good hygiene.  This is an update on the current cholera emergency and a reflection on actions that can prevent this from happening again.