Chaos eases as Haiti food lines focus on women

Chaos eases as Haiti food line focus on women

By BEN FOX
The Associated Press
Sunday, January 31, 2010; 9:43 PM

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- The 79-year-old woman with a 55-pound bag of rice perched on her head gingerly descended concrete steps Sunday and passed it off to her daughter-in-law - who quickly disappeared behind the faded leopard-print sheets that are the walls of their makeshift home on the crowded turf of Haiti's National Stadium.

more on link

So they figured out how to make sure that everyone got food.

And it means making the guys stay the hell away for a while.

Suddenly, everything works. Amazing.

Families get food. Not just young men who hoard it.

Fascinating example of human dynamics isn't it?

Haitian women lose out in post-quake "survival of the strongest"

Elsewhere in Port-au-Prince, women have left food lines empty-handed after groups of men raided food distribution sites watched by police who were too few and too powerless to stop them.

From the other article you'll notice that many of these men go and sell the donated rice.

That even when it is given to a man with a famly, that it is still more equitably distributed when given to a woman.

I have no doubt this is true, I understand the reasons why it is true, and the truth of it literally makes me want to break down and sob. In fact...I think I will.

So whats to stop the evil men from forcing the women to go up and get the goods only to surrender it to the men that put them up to it?

When one woman an old one walks away with a 50 lb bag of rice on her head, this is headed in the wrong direction.

I think the US has the food distribution in order, we have food pantry's which work fine and they should be done the same in Port au prince. They should come in, get in line and each person given a number. They should be given enough for a few days time and then return when that time is up.

It is sick how it is being done, too many bad guys getting all the food and the good people are left to starve.

The guys don't have to do that. They want it. There isn't any cops to stop them. And the military really doesn't want to have to open fire and kill a few of them to make them understand that they mean business.

These guys are taking advantage in the worst possible manner.

The soup kitchen here isn't the same. It relies intrinsically on the knowledge of the people that they could do the swarming thing, but that a bunch of police officiers will be on hand in short order if they do. Since they know that either way they are going to get some food, the risk isn't worth it.

On the other hand, the guys in Port au Prince who are swarming relief efforts know that the foreign governments would REALLY prefer to not have to shoot several swarmers to get them to see order.

And there are few local order enforcers around.

The risk is worth it. They risk NOTHING, and get everything to themselves for their own personal benefit.

[edit on 2010/2/2 by Aeons]

Its all hype. My faterh came back from haiti a few days ago. NONE of the footage or stories he's has show any depictions of violence or disorder what so ever. Despite the aid being held up the people are making due. Struggling in the worst ways, but sharing with and looking out for each other.

He is some footage of his. www.youtube.com...