Sens. Durbin and Bingaman, Rep. Meek Visit Haiti as Part of Congressional Delegation

Press Release

U.S. Senate Assistant Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Congressman Kendrick Meek (D-FL) will travel as a Congressional delegation to Haiti. The primary focus of the trip will be to examine global health and water projects in Haiti.

The delegation will be leaving today and traveling in Haiti for four days. Due to security concerns, details of the trip will not be released in advance, but the delegation will visit Port-au-Prince, Mirebalais, and other parts of the country.

"Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, with nearly 70 percent of its population out of work and 90 percent living in abject poverty. Haiti's infant mortality rate is the highest in our hemisphere; one in ten children dies before the age of five due to malnutrition; and the HIV/AIDS situation in Haiti is among the most frightening in the world,' said Durbin. "The purpose of this visit is to help examine the public health, economic and political situation in Haiti and to discuss ways Haiti can better confront its serious problems."

Durbin's position as a member of the Senate Leadership comes with the responsibility and capability to lead delegations on official visits with senior foreign government officials regarding political, economic, health, and security issues affecting United States bilateral and regional relationships. The trip will give the delegation the ability to gain first hand knowledge of progress in the region and the challenges that still lie ahead.

Roughly one in 50 Haitians has HIV/AIDS, and, according to the UN Programme on HIV/AIDS, more than 7,000 people die each year. Just half of rural Haitian households have access to safe drinking water and only 1 in 5 families have access to adequate sanitation.

The violence, corruption, and instability caused by the flow of drugs through Haiti cannot be overstated. An estimated 8 to15 percent of all cocaine entering the United States passes through Haiti, the Dominican Republic, or both.

Source