By Kristin Gray | SACOBSERVER.COM WIRE SERVICES

Musician Wyclef Jean weeps during a press conference urging international relief to Haiti. Photo © Courtesy / NNPA.

RELATED LINKS Yele Haiti Wyclef Jean Blog

WASHINGTON (NNPA) - With tears dribbling down his cheeks and his voice splintering with emotion, Wyclef Jean's message- spoken partially in his native Kreyol at a press conference in New York-captured the devastation felt by Haitians worldwide after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake plunged the Caribbean nation into further economic decay.

"I'm not the one that was reporting the news," Jean said. "I'm the one that was carrying the dead bodies on the street. After the camera is off, I still gotta' report back for duty. That's just the reality of my life."

But Jean spoke these words before a 6.1-magnitude aftershock jolted Haiti once again in the early morning hours of Jan. 20, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The aftershock is one of many powerful tremors to plague areas in and around Port-au-Prince following the initial Jan. 12 disaster, and sent droves of shouting, tearful people onto the streets, CNN.com reported.

The additional quakes have done little to restore the Haitian people's sense of calm and safety. At the Jan. 18 news conference, Jean urged international relief organizations to construct tent cities outside earthquake ravaged Port-au-Prince so aggressive cleanup measures could begin and aid could flow more freely into the country.

"Port-au-Prince is a morgue," Jean said at the press conference, describing the blanket of corpses lying prone on the city's streets. "We need to migrate at least 2 million people." The Haitian entertainer also counted on his own celebrity status to facilitate what could become one of the most colossal modern-day exoduses.

"I give you my word, if I tell them to go, they will go. But they need somewhere to go to," Jean added.

However, Jean's seemingly heartfelt address did little to assuage claims that Yéle Haiti, a nonprofit charitable organization that began as the Wyclef Jean Foundation 12 years ago, has misappropriated funds in its five-year history and provided little aid to Haitians caught in the throes of poverty and hunger.

In a Jan. 14 article entitled "Wyclef Jean Charity's Funny Money," TheSmokingGun.com unearthed an Internal Revenue Service document pointing to the charity's inconsistent financial record keeping and a copious number of expenses for studio rentals, public relations fees and a $100,000 payment for Jean to perform at a benefit concert. The article also claims Jean and Jerry Duplessis, a Yéle Haiti board member, paid $250,000 to for-profit TV station Telemax S.A. for "TV airtime and production services" as part of the foundation's outreach efforts in their native country. However, Jean and Duplessis both own an alleged "controlling interest" in the Haiti-based company.

"Did I ever use Yéle money for personal benefits? Absolutely not," Jean said at the press conference. "Yéle's books are open and transparent, and we have a clean bill of health by an external auditor every year since we started." Despite the fiscal scrutiny, Yéle Haiti has raised more than $2 million in the days following the massive natural disaster, mostly through mobile SMS donations. The foundation kicked off the largest text-based fundraising mobilization for relief aid in history, according to Time magazine.

Shaika Therlonge, a Haitian-American Howard University student from South Orange, N.J.- a town where Jean once lived - said unlike other celebrities inspired to thrust millions into Haiti after the earthquake, Jean has been a lifelong advocate. "Of all the organizations out there, I trust Wyclef's more. That's why I push his organization. I tell everybody to trust Yéle Haiti," said Therlonge, 25. "He's Haitian and he was born in Haiti; of course he wants to see better for our country. He's not trying to profit."
To further refute the accusations plaguing his foundation, Jean visited the "Oprah Winfrey Show" Jan. 20, where pop star Rihanna and vocalist Maxwell, who is of Haitian and Puerto Rican descent, performed. In addition, MTV Networks announced this week that Jean, actor George Clooney and journalist Anderson Cooper will host a live, commercial-free telethon on at least 11 major networks to raise funds for the embattled country.

Despite efforts to restore normalcy and the millions raised through media-driven fundraising efforts, little can be done to expedite the translation of these monies into substantive necessities -food, water, housing -that legions of Haitians desperately need.

According to some media outlets, gnawing hunger, fear and frustration are slowly pivoting Haiti's already delicate social framework into havoc, spawning violent altercations on the streets of Port-au-Prince. In response to the growing threat of an uprising, the United Nations Security Council announced Jan. 19 it would escalate peacemaking efforts proposed by Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in hopes of accelerating stability in Haiti.

"Following his visit on Sunday to the capital, Port-au-Prince, Mr. Ban asked the Council for an additional 1,500 police officers and 2,000 troops to reinforce the mission, known as MINUSTAH, to augment its 9,000 uniformed personnel already on the ground," the statement read. The 15-member council swiftly approved Ki-moon's recommendations and to date, the Dominican Republic has pledged to deploy 800 troops to its ailing neighbor. According to the press release, other nations are expected to boost military presence in the Caribbean country.

U.N. Peacekeeping Chief Alain Le Roy said the additional forces may be needed not only to protect the Haitian people from looters and violence, but to "escort humanitarian convoys...in case the situation unravels and security deteriorates." But according to Catholic Relief Services Acting Media Director John Rivera, who has been in contact with an aid worker on the island, images of Haitians brandishing machetes and pilfering precious items left unscathed by the tumult are infrequent.

"People feel secure," Rivera told the AFRO. "There has been some looting, but in isolated situations, especially around supermarkets, but it has not been widespread." However, Haiti's President Rene Preval pointed to discord and miscommunication among international relief organizations as the country's most pressing burden, according to The Associated Press. Preval, who has been left homeless by the quake, implored the international community to "keep our cool to do coordination and not to throw accusations at each other."

The U.S. presence in Haiti has been marked, with the U.S. Agency for International Development providing $55 million in humanitarian assistance to Haiti, according to a press release posted on their Web site. Similarly, the Department of Health and Human Services announced Jan. 18 that it had made improvements on the ground.

"We are working as quickly as we can to bring medical care in concert with the international community to save lives and to provide immediate medical care to those in need here," said Capt. Andy Stevermer in a transcript reviewed by the AFRO. "Currently we are accomplishing that with 265 personnel on the ground in Port-au-Prince engaged in or preparing to be engaged in health care, including doctors, nurses, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, and a variety of other health professionals... One team saw over 300 patients in a Haitian orphanage. In addition, a pediatric surgeon [supported] a complex surgical procedure with a victim from this event."

In addition, former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush cast partisanship conflicts aside and united to form the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund at President Barack Obama's request. The current president has also pledged to donate $100 million in relief aid to Haiti and has provided amnesty to Haitian nationals living in the United States for the next 18 months.

This story comes special to NNPA from the Afro-American Newspapers.