Haitian crisis raises concern among Brethren, prompts ecumenical relief efforts.

"Haiti is of great concern for many of us," said Stan Noffsinger, general secretary of the Church of the Brethren General Board, in reference to a political and humanitarian crisis in the Caribbean island nation. "We must be unceasing in our prayer that the killing and warfare cease so peace, God's peace, reigns on earth."

Haiti is in chaos following weeks of killings, the overtaking by rebel forces of a third of the country including the capital city Port-au-Prince, violence by pro-government forces, and the exit of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to asylum in central Africa. The United Nations Security Council approved an international military force from the US, Canada, and France, in an effort to stabilize the country.

Noffsinger shared the denomination's concerns and prayers with Ludovic St. Fleur, pastor of Eglise des Freres Haitiens, a Church of the Brethren congregation in Miami, Fla., and overseer of the Orlando Haitian Fellowship. "The situation (in Haiti) is extremely difficult for everyone," said St. Fleur, who has family there. "The schools and businesses are all closed. People are staying off the streets as it is very dangerous." The St. Fleur family in Haiti, and those worshipping with them, are safe but they have asked the Church of the Brethren to be in prayer for their continued safety and for the killing and violence to end. St. Fleur said the conversation with Noffsinger would be "a source of great comfort and encouragement, to know sisters and brothers will be praying for the Haitian people."

Noffsinger encouraged awareness of churches that have Haitian members and that minister with communities of Haitian immigrants. Atlantic Southeast District, which includes two congregations with Haitian members, is "urging all of our people to keep the Haitians in prayer," said Martha Beach, district executive minister. Some Brethren congregations in the Dominican Republic, which shares a border with Haiti, are composed primarily of Haitian immigrants.

The General Board's Emergency Response/Service Ministries is actively preparing to respond to the crisis by supporting the efforts of Church World Service (CWS), said Roy Winter, director of Emergency Response. On Thursday, staff at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md., were busy packing 30 Interchurch Medical Assistance medicine boxes and eight Bristol-Myers Squibb disaster relief boxes scheduled for air shipment Mar. 8. These supplies, along with an air shipment of dehydrated food, will be received in the Dominican Republic and transported to Haiti.

An outpouring of refugees was anticipated, but currently Haiti is relatively calm with the arrival of the international force. The calm has slowed the exodus, reported CWS staff Donna Derr, but continued calm may depend on how quickly rebels are disarmed and a new government established. CWS is making contingency plans with government and ecumenical partners to address humanitarian needs in Haiti, the US, the Dominican Republic, and other countries. In the Dominican Republic, services to refuge seekers could include temporary shelter, food, water, and health care. The CWS Immigration and Refugee Program also has identified services it can provide to Haitians interdicted at sea and taken to the US military's Guantanamo Bay facility in Cuba. In addition, CWS is advocating on behalf of refugees with the US government, foreign ambassadors to Haiti, and ecumenical partners in Haiti. The organization is urging the US to provide protection to those fleeing Haiti, and to grant temporary protective status to Haitians in the US who fear for their safety if deported.

Source: Newsline 3/05/2004
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