FAIRFIELD, Conn.,
Jan. 8, 2015 / -- Although the catastrophic physical damage to housing,
roads and public buildings wrought by the Haitian earthquake on
Jan. 12, 2010
is still visible, the psychological legacy that many young earthquake
survivors are still struggling to live with is less easy to see with the
naked eye.
Five years since the earthquake hit the tiny Caribbean island nation of Haiti,
many children there still have limited access to education, and some
report exposure to exploitation and sexual violence after the
already-fragile country descended into chaos in the aftermath of the
disaster. Many Haitian children still show signs of emotional and
psychological stress, and remain in desperate need of assistance and
protection today.
Their on-going distress, along with their hopes for a better future, is what Riccardo Venturi, World Press Photo award winner in 1997 and 2011, hoped to capture while visiting Save the Children relief programs in Haiti. Venturi's resultant images are a humbling reminder to all involved in the rebuilding of Haiti that the international response to the disaster is far from complete.
Children
who have lost one or both parents, are unaccompanied by a family
member, or are still living in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps,
are particularly at risk of exploitation, with sexual violence against
minors in such settlements commonplace.
"I don't feel safe here at all because people don't respect each other. There are many cases of abuse," said *Marie Darline, a 15-year-old girl who has been living in a sprawling Haitian IDP camp for four years.
She
is one of more than 85,500 people still living in temporary
accommodations following the earthquake, more than half of which are
children.
"If
my mother and father were alive, I would be protected. They wouldn't
let me live like this," said Lovely*, a 14-year-old domestic worker
living and working in Port-au-Prince.
Since
the death of her parents in 2010, Lovely has been forced into casual
domestic work in order to survive, and is frequently beaten and
mistreated by her employers. Sadly, Lovely's story mirrors that of
approximately 225,000 children aged between 5 and 17 who now find
themselves economically trapped into working as domestic child laborers,
with little or no chance of escape from their dismal living conditions.
Lovely*,
Marie*, and other children pictured in Venturi's photo series,
illustrate the fears and hopes for the future of Haitian children across
the island.
"When I headed to Haiti in 2010 right after the earthquake, I saw that fear and shock were particularly evident, most of all in children," he said.
"But
children have an incredible ability to smile and to live each day to
its fullest. Haitian children are always full of positive energy, but
today under the surface it is easy to see the signs of suffering and
emotional stress they still experience because of the earthquake, and
because of the difficulties they encounter in their daily lives.
"Many of my images have tried to capture their look of veiled melancholy while always trying to keep their sense of dignity."
Kevin Novotny,
Country Director at Save the Children Haiti, said Ventura's portraits
also show the children's willingness to take a lead in being part of the
recovery process, participating rather than passively coping with what
doesn't work for them.
"At
Save the Children, we encourage children to develop their own
capabilities across all of our programs in terms of education and
protection. This approach also contributes to overall resilience of
families and the community while building a better chance for the
future."
Save the Children gives children in the United States
and around the world a healthy start, the opportunity to learn and
protection from harm. We invest in childhood — every day, in times of
crisis and for our future. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
SOURCE Save the Children
