Saturday, the de facto President, Jocelerme Privert, welcomed the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), Ban Ki-Moon, as part of his one-day visit, to inquire of the situation of Haitians as well as the state of infrastructure after the passage of the Hurricane Matthew.

By late afternoon, during a joint press briefing in the gardens of the diplomatic lounge at the Toussaint Louverture International Airport the Head of State took stock of the social situation, political and economical of the country. He expressed his gratitude to all the friends of Haiti and their peoples, in particular, Venezuela, the United States, Colombia, Bolivia and Cuba, which have sent aid and particularly praised the generosity of the Dominican President Danilo Medina for the delivery of concrete and significant help to the devastated Haitian population.

Speaking, Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon declared "[...] I came to Haiti to express my solidarity with the Haitian people. It is one thing to read about the damage caused by the hurricane. It is another thing to see it for oneself. Today, in Les Cayes, I saw utter devastation. I have heard from many victims. I have felt their pain. I understand their frustrations, even anger. Ssome families have lost their homes, crops and livelihoods.

[...] We launched a flash appeal for 120 million dollars https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18897-haiti-flash-un-launches-a-$120m-flash-appeal-for-haiti.html and I urge all friends of Haiti around the world to step up and give. Provide the resources the people of Haiti so desperately need. This is a matter of life and death.

I also want to talk of another vital challenge, made even more difficult by the hurricane, the fight against cholera [...] The United Nations is intensifying actions on cholera. We are stepping up efforts to contain cholera and ensure all have access to clean water, sanitation and health systems. We are currently developing a program of material assistance to those most directly affected by cholera.

[...] Taking this opportunity, I strongly condemn all attacks against humanitarian convoys. Today, I myself witnessed such an attack in Les Cayes where trucks of the World Food Programme (WFP) were attacked near the base of the Minustah https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18914-haiti-flash-the-population-hungry-attacking-humanitarian-aid-trucks.html

[...] I understand the impatience and anger of the people waiting for emergency relief. We do our best to open roads and allow these help to arrive as quickly as possible. But when medications trucks are attacked and looted, when food and water are plundered https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-18929-icihaiti-flash-attacks-of-humanitarian-convoy-zero-tolerance.html this can only increase the distress of all and discourage international aid.

I implore you: let the aid through.

[...] I will never forget what I saw and heard today in Les Cayes and I will work hard for the world to remember and act."

HL/ HaitiLibre