U.S. Should Urge U.N. To Take Responsibility For Haitian Cholera Epidemic

Foreign Affairs: No Immunity from Cholera
Debra L. Raskin, lecturer at Columbia Law School, and Anil Kalhan, associate professor at Drexel University Thomas L. Kline School of Law

“…Despite [the evidence that U.N. peacekeepers brought cholera to Haiti,] the United Nations has refused to accept responsibility for the [2010 cholera] outbreak and has resisted efforts to hold itself accountable. To date, the United States has supported the organization in its resistance. … The United States must do more to urge the United Nations to take responsibility for its actions. … [T]he United States and other U.N. member states must help ensure that the United Nations has funds to compensate Haiti’s cholera victims. … The United States should use its influence within the international community to urge the United Nations to meet its obligations. Otherwise, the organization may find itself compromised or Haiti’s cholera victims may find themselves without any remedy … Bringing justice to the victims of cholera is not only good for U.S. legal and foreign policy, but will also ensure that international law and human rights are afforded the respect they deserve” (7/13).

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