SLOVAK AID STILL STUCK AT HAITIAN CUSTOMS AFTER 9 MONTHS
(The Slovak Spectator) - Sorce - SITA
The Slovak Interior Ministry has confirmed that a container holding a second shipment of humanitarian aid sent by Slovakia to Haiti following a devastating earthquake there a year ago is still awaiting clearance by Haitian customs after nine months.
The information was released by the chancellor of the Bratislava College of Health and Social Work of St. Elisabeth, Vladimír Krčméry. "That is true," confirmed Lucia Gajarová of the Interior Ministry's communication department, the SITA newswire reported. The Slovak shipment is not the only one to suffer this fate: there are reportedly hundreds of containers from other countries also awaiting customs clearance.
"It is extremely complicated to get anything done in Haiti. Everything you can do here [i.e. Slovakia] within a week, takes a year over there," Krčméry commented. NGOs in Haiti are often blamed for working too slowly. However, Krčméry said that only those who can afford to offer bribes can act fast. Corruption is the largest enemy, he said, adding that bribes are sought for everything.
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