I need to weigh in on the debacle of the Idaho group charged with kidnapping the children in Haiti.  Andean Aid does not do relief work such as assisting after a catastrophe like earthquake.  And Haiti is not in our region of service.  Yet, the actions of this group hurt all organizations that work with children.  It should also be a wake-up call about how the relief efforts of these disasters are handled.

During my career I’ve been involved in emergency management in several areas.  In the Navy I was responsible for helping to manage damage control aboard a submarine and in the nuclear power industry I held several positions to help alleviate emergencies and taught emergency planning.  A basic tenet in each case was that those with a specified role handled the emergency and those without a role were either evacuated from the area or contained.  We did not open the doors to the nuclear plant during an emergency and allowed unqualified people to “do what they thought best”.

So, my question is, what was the Idaho group even doing in Haiti?  Why do unqualified people and groups flock to the scenes of disasters and more importantly why are they allowed to flock to these areas?  My guess is that the answer lies in the lack of a centralized point of control.  There is no one person or entity in control.

Did the Idaho group have good intentions?  Probably.  But, in the end, they did more harm than good.  The legal system in Haiti was tied up deciding what to do with them.  Police had to arrest, guard and feed them rather than participate in the search and recovery effort.  They are lucky that all they endured was a few days in a jail cell floor.  There are areas of the world where the punishment would be harsh and swift for taking children across international borders without documentation.

I want to assure our supporters and contributors that Andean Aid takes great pains to ensure that we operate within the law in the countries where we serve.   We have formed a civil association in Venezuela and we are fully documented to provide our services to children and families.  Our president Ana Carillo and director Gaby Andrade (see their bios on the Directors and Staff Page) are diligent in keeping abreast with changes in the law and we work with very good child welfare attorneys in Venezuela.  We work hard to earn and keep your trust.