July 9, 2018
Dear Friends of Pure Water for the World and Haiti,
You may have seen the recent news regarding the fuel riot that is taking place in Haiti, which began in response to a government announcement on Friday. This letter is to update you on the situation, as best we can at this point.
On Friday, July 6th, the Haitian government announced a significant increase in the price of fuel (gasoline, diesel and kerosene), to reduce government fuel subsidies. This announcement quickly led to wide-scale protests and civil unrest, primarily in the capital city of Port-au-Prince and in the northern city of Cap-Haitien.
In response to the violence and demonstrations, on Saturday, Haiti’s Prime Minister, Jack Guy Lafontant, rescinded the planned increase, tweeting, “The government announces the suspension of the price adjustment measure for petroleum products until further notice.”
While that announcement addressed the issue that sparked the demonstrations, civil unrest continues as protestors express their disapproval of the current president.
We want to assure you that the safety of our staff is our highest priority. We are in close contact with Marion Nonglaton, PWW’s Country Director in Haiti. She is in communication with our staff members. The office is closed today, and the staff has been advised to stay home.
We have seen, through many challenging times, that Haitians have an extraordinarily deep well of resilience and fortitude. Pure Water for the World remains steadfast in our commitment to our team in Haiti and to continuing our work to improve the lives of the beautiful children and families we are so honored to serve.
We are very grateful for you and for the outpouring of support for the Haitian people. We hope to see things settle and return to more normal conditions very soon.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us, should you have any questions.
Warm regards,
Carolyn Crowley Meub
Executive Director