Earthquake in Haiti (February 9, 2010)
Update on the French effort (February 9, 2010)
Summary of relief efforts (February 4, 2010)
Update on the French effort (February 2, 2010
Special session of the Human Rights Council on Haiti (January 27, 2010)
Ministerial Preparatory Conference on Haiti (January 24 and 25, 2010)
Update on French effort (January 20, 2010)
Communiqué issued by the Presidency of the Republic (January 19, 2010)
Situation of Haitian children (January 18, 2010)
Allocation of €10 million to the United Nations emergency appeal (January 18, 2010)
Participation in a teleconference by Bernard Kouchner (January 17, 2010)
Alain Joyandet, Minister of State for Coooperation and Francophony, in Haiti (January 14, 2010)
Press briefings given by Bernard Kouchner
Press releases by the Presidency of the Republic
Update on the French effort (February 9, 2010)
1. Evacuations and treatment of the injured
Since 13 January, French aircraft have evacuated 1,266 French nationals, 1,216 Haitians, 50 [non-French] European Union citizens, 57 nationals of other countries and 326 adopted children, i.e. a total of 2,915 people. Sadly, 27 French nationals were killed and 6 others are reported missing.
The field hospital, operational since 16 January, has carried out 1,767 consultations, admitted 974 patients and carried out 141 surgical operations. In total, French medical teams in Haiti have seen nearly 10,500 people.
2. Support for the people
The French effort is now focused on supporting the people:
today, 516 French personnel remain working in Haiti alongside our beefed-up embassy staff;
on 2 February a reconnaissance mission went to Hinche to look at implementing a medium-term programme in Haiti for training and strengthening the country’s national police force;
on 7 February a Sécurité civile [emergency services] team took part in a medical and logistics reconnaissance mission in Léogane and Gressier;
on 6 February, an interministerial appraisal and evaluation mission to determine how to help rebuild Haiti arrived in Port-au-Prince ./.
Summary of relief efforts (February 4, 2010)
France’s strong, swift mobilization has, since January 12, made it possible to provide assistance to a large number of earthquake victims. Now that the emergency phase is coming to an end, we can make an initial assessment:
1. Evacuations and repatriations
2,769 people have been evacuated, either to metropolitan France (1,642 people), or to the French West Indies (1,127 people). The 2,769 people evacuated include 1,221 French nationals, 1,216 Haitians, 47 [non-French] European Union citizens, 57 nationals of other countries and 278 children who are in the process of being adopted by French families.
2. Medical care
232 of those evacuated or repatriated were hospitalized, mainly in the French West Indies.
Medical facilities provided by France to Haiti (field hospital, advanced medical unit, the French Navy hospital ship Sirocco) have allowed 7,200 consultations, almost 300 admissions and 364 surgical operations to take place.
Update on the French effort (February 2, 2010
1. Evacuations and treatment of the injured
Since January 13, French aircraft have evacuated 1,213 French nationals, 987 Haitians, 37 [non-French] European Union citizens and 57 nationals of other countries, i.e., a total of 2,294 people. Nearly 200 of them - including 170 Haitians - who were injured, have been evacuated to the French West Indies (96 to Martinique and 102 to Guadeloupe). Sadly, 25 French nationals were killed and 9 others are reported missing.
The field hospital, operational since January 16, has seen over 1,000 patients, admitted nearly 400 and carried out more than 100 surgical operations. In total, French medical teams in Haiti have seen over 5,600 people.
The French Navy’s landing platform dock [ship] "Sirocco" has an on-board operating theater which is being used to operate on Haitians injured in the earthquake.
2. Support for the people
The French effort is now focused on supporting the people:
4 water production units have been installed to meet the needs of 40,000 people a day;
1,000 tons of humanitarian aid will be delivered from Martinique and Guadeloupe on February 4 and 18;
1,028 French personnel are currently deployed in Haiti (including 364 from the Sécurité civile [emergency services], 540 from the Defense Ministry and 114 gendarmes);
our personnel and equipment on the ground are being increased to ensure the resumption of our embassy’s activities and contribute to the start of the reconstruction phase.
3. Adoptions
The International Adoption Service (SAI - Service de l’adoption internationale) has done an important job of collecting and collating information from families and bodies authorized to carry out adoptions, liaising with the French Embassy in Port-au-Prince and the Ministry’s crisis center in Paris. To date, 909 families have contacted the SAI regarding 999 children. 418 families have been given decisions on a total of 482 children.
France is dealing with the adoption procedures fully in accordance with its international commitments and Haitian legislation, in the children and families’ interests. The SAI and French Embassy are collecting the necessary paperwork to verify the existence of decisions issued before the earthquake. Already 228 children for whom adoption rulings have been produced have arrived in continental France and 50 others are expected in the next few days.
The Foreign and European Affairs Ministry and French Embassy in Port-au-Prince remain fully mobilized on the situation of the children in Haiti.
Special session of the Human Rights Council on Haiti (January 27, 2010)
The Human Rights Council held a special session on January 27 in Geneva devoted to Haiti, convened on Brazil’s initiative and with the support of many countries, including France.
Ministerial Preparatory Conference on Haiti (January 24 and 25, 2010)
On January 25, Bernard Kouchner took part in the Ministerial Preparatory Conference on Haiti, hosted by Canada in Montreal, in the presence of the Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive.
Following this conference a statement was adopted reaffirming the principle of respect for the sovereignty of the Haitian government with regard to the provision of humanitarian aid and reconstruction efforts. The participants pledged to adopt a coordinated, coherent and global approach in order to respond to Haiti’s immediate and long-term needs.
Update on French effort (January 20, 2010)
Immediately after the earthquake which rocked Haiti on 12 January, France mobilized extensively to come to the aid of the disaster-stricken people and assist the French nationals.
1. Personnel and equipment deployed
Today, nearly 800 French personnel are deployed on the ground, including 667 sécurité civile [emergency services] and 84 military personnel, 30 Health Ministry staff and 10 additional Foreign and European Affairs Ministry officials.
The relief teams, assisted by a helicopter and a sécurité civile plane, have already completed work on 13 sites and are currently working on four new ones. They have extricated 14 survivors from the rubble.
A field hospital (70 people, 33 tonnes) has been installed since 17 January at the French lycée. It is being assisted by an advanced medical unit (70 people, 6 tonnes) which is doing the triage and treating the walking wounded as well as providing additional in-patient capacity. A sécurité civile helicopter is evacuating some patients to Guadeloupe and Martinique, depending on the type of treatment required. All in all, over 60 French doctors, in 40 mobile teams, are deployed on the ground.
To address the health challenge of supplying the disaster-stricken people with drinking water, a water purification unit has been installed capable of supplying up to 20,000 people a day.
3 to 5 military planes are making daily round trips between Haiti and the French West Indies and have already delivered 50 tonnes tonnes of equipment and emergency supplies. In addition, a Defence Ministry C-130 is being deployed to deliver humanitarian aid and transport French nationals evacuated from Haiti to the French West Indies.
French capabilities are also being put at the disposal of the NGOs which have 43 workers on the ground. 5 more humanitarian workers and 15 tonnes of aid are scheduled to leave Paris today.
The Ministry’s crisis centre has also sent to Haiti a team of 6 specialists in consular and humanitarian issues. In Paris, the 50 crisis centre staff remain fully mobilized to coordinate the French effort. Since the beginning of the crisis, an "adoption unit” has been set up within the crisis centre, manned by 7 members of the international adoption service. In the "telephone answering unit” nearly 150 Ministry volunteers have been working in shifts since 12 January to deal with some 12,000 calls received to date.
2. The effort is continuing
A further 93-strong sécurité civile squadron has just arrived in Haiti, as has a light transport and landing ship loaded with vehicles, tents and humanitarian aid. A landing platform dock [ship] will arrive on 24 January with helicopters, medical teams and 800 tonnes of equipment.
5 planes chartered by the Foreign and European Affairs Ministry are expected in Port-au-Prince by Friday with a total of 55 tonnes of sécurité civile equipment and humanitarian aid prepared by the NGOs.
3. French community
Since 13 January, the 3-5 daily round trip flights have evacuated nearly 1,000 people, including 621 French nationals and 331 Haitians.
Thanks to the work of the teams on the ground, 609 French nationals have been located safe and sound. There has regrettably been confirmation of the deaths of 17 French nationals, whilst we are still without news of 16 of our compatriots.
Communiqué issued by the Presidency of the Republic (January 19, 2010)
During their telephone conversation last week, the President of the Republic and President Obama expressed the resolute commitment of our two countries in Haiti, and decided to combine their efforts in order to deal with the urgent humanitarian situation and to respond, in the future, to the enormous reconstruction requirements. (Read ...)
Situation of Haitian children (January 18, 2010)
The terrible plight of all Haitian children, who are especially vulnerable, has been a constant concern of the relief teams since the start of the rescue operations.
Liaising with the Ministry’s crisis centre and the French Embassy in Port-au-Prince, the additional consular staff sent specially to Haiti yesterday are tasked with checking on the child care centres, orphanages and all the children there, ensuring they are registered in the aid distribution channels and, if necessary, supplying aid to them directly.
All Haitian children reported to be in great need of medical attention can be evacuated by air, including obviously children currently in the adoption process. (Read ...)
Allocation of €10 million to the United Nations emergency appeal (January 18, 2010)
Communiqué issued by Bernard Kouchner
Continuing her active efforts to help the Haitian population suffering so terribly from the 12 January earthquake, France has decided to respond to the emergency appeal for Haiti launched by the United Nations on Friday, 16 January with a contribution of €10 million.
Participation in a teleconference by Bernard Kouchner (January 17, 2010)
During a conference call initiated by his Canadian opposite number, Bernard Kouchner, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, talked to Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive, American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon, Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, other members of the Group of Friends of Haiti and Alain Le Roy, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations.
They assessed the situation and Haitian people’s needs and reaffirmed their resolve to work together, pooling efforts in close coordination with the United Nations.
They agreed on the need rapidly to prepare the reconstruction and offer a positive way forward for a traumatized Haitian population, and mobilize all the international community’s players, including States, aid donors, the international financial institutions, NGOs and companies, on the basis of a coherent strategy. With this in mind, Bernard Kouchner urged the necessity to take account of every dimension of the reconstruction, including in particular the essential strengthening of the capacity of the Haitian government. This requires an international conference capable of bringing together all those of goodwill; a first preparatory meeting will be held in Montreal on 25 January.
Bernard Kouchner has also had telephone conversations with several of his European opposite numbers and Catherine Ashton, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, with whom he discussed the necessity of stepping up the European Union’s emergency humanitarian aid effort in Haiti, delivery of the aid and support for the United Nations in ensuring security.
Alain Joyandet, Minister of State for Coooperation and Francophony, in Haiti (January 14, 2010)
Following the violent earthquake which hit Port-au-Prince, Alain Joyandet went immediately to Haiti. At Nicolas Sarkozy and Bernard Kouchner’s request, the Minister of State for Cooperation and Francophony is in this way expressing France’s solidarity with the stricken people.
Alain Joyandet ensured the coordination of French aid on the ground, liaising with European and international initiatives.
Alain Joyandet met members of the deeply affected French community, many of whom have gathered on the site of the French Embassy. He took them a message of comfort and ensure the utmost is done to locate and help our compatriots.
Press briefings given by Bernard Kouchner
Read the interview given by Bernard Kouchner to the "Le Quotidien du médecin" newspaper (excerpts)
"The French government is making a huge effort, alongside the NGOs, to deal with this tragic earthquake and support the Haitian people. 549 personnel are currently on the ground. Among them, 250 rescuers are working round the clock to free the many casualties from the rubble. A field hospital is taking in dozens of people every day. As I speak, the 70 medical personnel who immediately arrived in the devastated capital of Port-au-Prince have already treated over 2,000 people, including performing major operations."
Read the press briefing given by Bernard Kouchner on January 15, 2010
"We decided to evacuate all French nationals who wanted to be evacuated. There are flights, round trips between Martinique and Guadeloupe and Haiti, but we have to take account of the fact that planes are having difficulty landing and that for the time being jumbo jets can land only during the day; I hope this will change."
Read the press briefing given by Bernard Kouchner on January 13, 2010 at 19h
"We have been ready for action since yesterday evening: the crisis centre worked throughout the night. Two planes are preparing to leave. Given the time difference - one’s coming from Martinique and the other from Paris - one will arrive around midday and the other later in the afternoon."
Read the press briefing given by Bernard Kouchner on January 13, 2010 at 11h30.
"A first French plane is arriving in a few minutes. I’ve just had our ambassador, Didier Le Bret, on the phone. He is on his way to the airport, since, as you know, there’s a need for lorries to transport the relief; all this is especially difficult. I want to pay tribute to him and all the French officials there."
Press releases by the Presidency of the Republic
Statement by Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the Republic (January 14, 2010)
"France was the first country to respond: by yesterday evening, 70 firefighters from the sécurité civile [emergency services], doctors from the SAMU [mobile emergency medical service] and a gendarmerie unit had landed in Port-au-Prince."(Read ...)
Communiqué issued by the Presidency of the Republic (January 13, 2010)
President Sarkozy was absolutely horrified and deeply shocked to learn of the powerful earthquake which hit Haiti on Tuesday, 12 January; there’s every reason to fear that this earthquake has caused a large number of casualties and extensive damage. He expresses his wholehearted solidarity with the Haitian authorities and people, as well as with the United Nations personnel severely affected by the earthquake.
The urgency now is to help the victims, those trapped in the rubble, the injured and those missing. On President Sarkozy’s instructions, France has decided immediately to dispatch sécurité civile [emergency services] detachments and a platoon of gendarmes to take part in the operations to rescue local people and find and help, where necessary, our compatriots reported missing.
In spite of the communication problems, the French authorities, who are fully mobilized in Paris, the French West Indies and in our embassy in Haiti, are working together with the Haitian authorities, United Nations and the other countries directly concerned.
More information
Establishment of gendarmerie relief effort in Haiti (January 13, 2010)
The gendarmerie’s mission is to make itself available to the local authorities in order to help protect persons and property.
Print version
France / Haiti (in French)