Displacement Camps (working title) is a character driven film which chronicles the journey of this North American film team in Haiti. Toronto born Malinda Francis, has familial roots in Barbados, New York based Michel Dessources J.’s family still lives in Haiti, and Oja Vincent as well with familial roots in Haiti. The team fundraise their way to Haiti through Networks of the Diaspora. A year after the Earthquake, and ensuing humanitarian crisis, they expose the stalled rebuilding efforts in Haiti.
A year after the Earthquake there are still 1.5 million people who are still living without Housing in Haiti. People are currently living in Displacement Camps containing 2,000, 5,000 and even up to 10,000 residents. There are as many as 1000 camps in Port au Prince. These residents in the camps face horrible living conditions, many people have little access to food, portable water, sanitation or security, and inadequate shelter.
In mid April, residents began to face threats or were being forced evicted by the Haitian Government and private land owners, which is increasing the already humanitarian crisis, the United Nations helped to negotiate a 3-week moratorium on evictions with the Haitian Government, which ended May 13, but the evictions have continued to this day.
Residents now contend with a Cholera epidemic that has currently killed up almost 3000 people, that has made the rebuilding need more urgency on an already urgent situation.
In October, Mario Joseph came to North America, and arrived at the Office of the Human Rights at the OAS to put forth a complaint on behalf of Haitians, for the Haitian Government to provide Basic Shelter, to its citizens.
Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) announced that the second round of dramatically flawed Nov. 28 presidential and parliamentary elections are not going to be held till February, which will make things harder for the rebuilding process.
This film follows Mario Joseph to Haiti where he continues to defend the rights of Haitians in his Office in Port au Prince. “I was in my Office in Port au Prince working, when the Earthquake happened, and 5mins after the Earthquake, I continued to work.”
Film wants give the audience a window into the experiences of how Haitian residents of the Displacement Camps. This film gives voice to how Haitian organizers and citizens are currently rebuilding and the obstacles that prevent this rebuilding, and solutions that citizens internationally can support in helping this rebuilding.
As the Filmmakers make their way through networks of the Diaspora, the film’s goal is to show that people can support everyone’s empowerment through these networks that lead straight from the ground here to the ground there.
