The Tragedy of Haiti

Haiti's humanitarian situation is expected to grow even more dire in the coming year due to what the Miami Herald is calling a "perfect storm" of unfortunate events, but what might be better labeled an outright shit-storm of tragedy and calamity.

A series of hurricanes this summer left nearly 800 Haitians dead and thousands homeless, wrecked farms and washed away millions of dollars worth of crops and livestock, increasing poverty and malnutrition.  

And if it can be said that the poverty in Haiti could possibly be worse than it is, rising poverty is expected to meet the global financial downturn head on this year, making matters worse. 

All the while, donor fatigue is setting in as less money is available for aid and little economic or social progress have been seen in Haiti in the past few years -- any of which was entirely wiped out by the hurricanes.  

The world financial catastrophe, says the Miami Herald, has largely stolen the spotlight from the tragedy of the 2008 hurricanes in Haiti, the nation's worst humanitarian disaster in 100 years.  

Meanwhile, the nation is struggling with an extremely fragile political system in a staggered process of reform.  

Read about the struggle at the Miami Herald link above.