Haiti: Availability of official documents since the 12 January 2010 earthquake; whether the authorities are able to issue documents such as police reports, birth and death certificates, medical files and driver’s licences
Sources consulted by the Research Directorate indicate that official documents were already difficult to obtain before the 12 January 2010 earthquake in Haiti and that the situation has deteriorated since then (Haiti 10 May 2011; Libération 30 Aug. 2010; GARR 27 July 2010). During a 10 May 2011 telephone interview with the Research Directorate, the Director of the National Identification Office (Office national d’identification, ONI) branch in Fort-Liberté stated that [translation] “almost everyone encounters difficulties” obtaining official documents (Haiti 10 May 2011). However, in 6 June 2011 correspondence sent to the Research Directorate, an official at the Embassy of Canada in Port-au-Prince wrote, without providing any further details, that according to Haitian government officials whom he consulted, although service had slowed down in some offices in the country, [translation] “authorities [were] generally able to issue these documents” (Canada 6 June 2011).
Official document archives were destroyed or damaged in the earthquake (ibid.; US 8 Apr. 2011, Sect. 6; Libération 30 Aug. 2010). Some registers also had to be relocated (ibid.; Haiti 10 May 2011). In particular, the building that housed the Haitian National Archives (Archives nationales d'Haïti) had to be abandoned and the documents moved (Libération 30 Aug. 2010; Radio Métropole 24 Feb. 2010). According to an article posted on the website of Radio Métropole, which broadcasts out of Port-au-Prince, 50,000 Haitian National Archives register books were moved (24 Feb. 2010). The Director of the ONI stated that it is sometimes hard to determine precisely where the registers are now located (Haiti 10 May 2011).
A story published in the French daily newspaper Libération approximately eight months after the earthquake notes the lack of resources and personnel, and the disorganization of civil status registers (Libération 30 Aug. 2010). According to Libération, the earthquake [translation] “destroyed” the civil status registers (ibid.). The article notes that the administrative means available to National Archives employees are [translation] “laughable”; according to the Director General of the Archives, searches must all be done manually and take a great deal of time (ibid.). According to an official of the Haitian Collective of France (Collectif Haïti de France, CHF), which is composed of associations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and individuals working for the development of Haiti (CHF n.d.), the service provided by the Haitian civil status system is [translation] “defective” (CHF 28 Feb. 2011). According to the Director of the ONI, it is difficult to obtain official copies of civil status records such as birth, marriage and divorce records (Haiti 10 May 2011). He explained in particular that the necessary forms were not available (ibid.). However, he noted that it is easier to obtain official copies of death certificates because these forms are available (ibid.). According to Libération, an additional challenge is the fact that a number of people have assumed the identities of others using documents found in the rubble (30 Aug. 2010).
According to the US Department of State 2010 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, requests made to the National Archives for certified copies of documents tripled after the earthquake (US 8 Apr. 2011, s. 6). That report goes on to state that the ONI faced line-ups for months as people sought to replace lost or damaged identification cards (ibid.). According to the Director General of the Archives, almost 2,500 requests for birth certificates are received every day, and there are nearly two million Haitians who are not in any of the registers (Libération 30 Aug. 2010). The Director General of the Archives also mentioned the challenge of registering the more than 250,000 deaths caused by the earthquake (ibid.). According to Radio Métropole, in February 2010, over 14 million civil records needed to be entered in a database in order to facilitate access (24 Feb. 2010).
However, the National Archives announced in April 2011 that they were launching a pilot project in Port-au-Prince for a new service called “delivery windows” (Livraison au guichet) or “document delivery windows” (Livraison d’actes au guichet, LAG) to improve access to official copies of civil status documents (TNH 19 Apr. 2011; AlterPresse 18 Apr. 2011). The Haitian National Television (Télévision nationale d'Haïti, TNH) website states that the initiative is part of a strategy to decentralize National Archives services (19 Apr. 2011). Sources indicate that this new service is also aimed at reducing the presence of [translation] "racketeers" (TNH 19 Apr. 2011; AlterPresse 18 Apr. 2011). The Director of the National Archives stated that the service would be expanded across the country [translation] “'soon'” (quoted in AlterPresse 18 Apr. 2011). The National Archives Director stated, however, that [translation] “the LAG will not handle irregular files, that is, files that are not registered or that present other problems” (ibid.). No information on the precise nature of the services offered through the LAG could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
Sources indicate that document registers in the provinces were less affected than those in Port-au-Prince (Haiti 10 May 2011; Libération 30 Aug. 2010). However, the director of the ONI in Fort-Liberté stated that the registers located in the Ouest department and in the southwestern part of the country were seriously affected; in particular, he mentioned those in Petit-Gonâve, Jacmel and Léogâne (Haiti 10 May 2011). The Director also explained that, even in those regions that were hit less hard by the earthquake, the ability to issue official documents has been compromised because they depend on Port-au-Prince (ibid.).
Documents issued by hospitals and police stations
According to the Director of the ONI office, the registers of some hospitals and police stations were destroyed or damaged in the earthquake (ibid.). The Director stated that the availability of medical files and police reports therefore depends on the condition of the building where those documents were stored (ibid.). However, information provided by Haitian authorities to the Canadian embassy official in Port-au-Prince indicates that there has been no reduction in the capacity to issue police reports across the country since the earthquake (Canada 6 June 2011). The Canadian embassy official also writes that, according to the Haitian Ministry of Public Health (ministère de la Santé publique d'Haïti), [translation] “all” public hospitals are able to provide medical certificates; however, he adds that the situation is different with respect to certain private hospitals, as a number of them were destroyed by the earthquake (ibid.). The ONI office director also noted that driver’s licences are issued by the police and that the capacity to issue them also depends on the condition of the police station in question (Haiti 10 May 2011). However, he added that the capacity of police stations and sub-stations to issue documents was less affected, because they are more decentralized and more independent than other services; thus, some police stations apparently started issuing documents shortly after the earthquake (ibid.). According to the Haitian authorities consulted by the Canadian embassy official, driver’s licences started being issued again in April 2010 (Canada 6 June 2011).
Obtaining official documents from abroad
On 9 February 2011, a CHF official stated that it used to be possible for expatriate Haitians to obtain official copies of civil status records online or through Haitian consulates abroad, but that [translation] “for some time now,” this has no longer been the case (28 Feb. 2011). According to the official, Haitians living abroad must now go through family members in Haiti to obtain these documents, and these family members sometimes use the services of [translation] "racketeers" to speed up the process (CHF 28 Feb. 2011). The official indicated that these racketeers often provide false documents (ibid.).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
AlterPresse. 18 April 2011. “Les Archives nationales tentent d'améliorer l'accessibilité de leurs services.” <http://www.alterpresse.org/spip.php?article10919> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
Canada. 6 June 2011. Embassy of Canada in Port-au-Prince. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate by an official.
Collectif Haïti de France (CHF). 28 February 2011. “Le dysfonctionnement du système d’état civil d’Haïti, un obstacle majeur pour les Haïtiens-Haïtiennes en territoire français.” <http://www.collectif-haiti.fr/actualite-804-0-le-dysfonctionnement-du-systeme-detat-civil-dhaiti-un-obstacle-majeur-pour-les-haitiens-haitiennes-en-territoire-francais> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
_____. N.d. “Le Collectif Haïti de France.” <http://www.collectif-haiti.fr/collectif-haiti-de-france.php> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
Groupe d'appui aux rapatriés et réfugiés (GARR). 27 July 2010. “Le droit à l'identité encore plus menacé après le séisme du 12 janvier 2010.” <http://www.garr-haiti.org/spip.php?article633> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
Haiti. 10 May 2011. Office national d'identification (ONI). Telephone interview with the Director of the Fort-Liberté office.
Libération [Paris]. 30 August 2010. Jean-Louis Le Touzet. “Haïti, papiers zombies.” <http://www.liberation.fr/monde/0101654742-haiti-papiers-zombis> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
Radio Métropole. 24 February 2010. “Déménagement des Archives nationales d'Haïti (ANH).” <http://www.metropolehaiti.com/metropole/full_une_fr.php?id=17046> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
Télévision nationale d'Haïti (TNH).19 April 2011. “Les Archives nationales d'Haïti lancent le LAG pour décentraliser ses services.” <http://www.tnh.ht/actua/politique/archives%20nationales.htm> [Accessed 12 May 2011]
United States (US). 8 April 2011. “Haiti”. Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2010. <http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/160458.pdf> [Accessed 6 May 2011]
Additional Sources Consulted
Oral sources: Attempts to contact representatives of the Groupe d'appui aux rapatriés et réfugiés and the Archives nationales d'Haïti were unsuccessful. An official at the Embassy of Haiti in Ottawa did not provide information within the time constraints of this Response.
Internet sites, including: Amnesty International; Archives nationales d'Haïti; European Country of Origin Information Network; Factiva; Human Rights Watch; Le Nouvelliste; Premye.ht; United Nations - Integrated Regional Information Network, Refworld, ReliefWeb.