The second major crisis being faced by Haiti

[Dr Rajesh Gopal]

Every death diminishes us. It is much more painful when it is untimely
and catastrophic in nature.

The poorest country of the western hemisphere (Haiti) has had the worst
earthquake of the last two centuries anywhere in the Globe.

Let us all do our level best to mobilize all types of support at the different
levels (especially though the Indian Diaspora in the USA and Canada)
which our fellow humans desperately need at these troubled times.

As an MBBS student at the AIIMS, New Delhi (in the very early eighties) ,
I was introduced to AIDS by my teachers. Besides other synonyms used
for AIDS, it was described in a bit judgemental and somewhat stigmatizing
manner at that time as the disease of four H’s:-

(1)Homosexuals
(2)Haemophiliacs
(3)Heroin addicts and
(4)Haitians.

Perhaps that underscored the need to address all the socio-economic
and cultural determinants of this development challenge-the imminent HIV pandemic
which the migrants from Haiti-the Haitians(pronounced as hayshans) were reflecting
even at that time in the USA.

The two catastrophes have played a major havoc there, with the damaged parliamentary
building, presidential palace, deceased hundreds of thousands of its citizens including
its UN chief; and physically, mentally and emotionally traumatized survivors.

Let us do what all we can do to respond to the two crises in Haiti and the development
challenge elsewhere.

In solidarity,

Dr.Rajesh Gopal.