US President Barack Obama asks for $2.8bn for Haiti

[pampango]

Source: BBC

US President Barack Obama has asked Congress for $2.8bn (£1.9bn) in emergency funds to help post-earthquake reconstruction efforts in Haiti.

He made the request a week before a UN donors conference is due to be held in New York, at which Haitian officials plan to ask for $11.5bn in assistance.

The US Senate is said to be close to a bill meeting Mr Obama's request.

Senate foreign relations committee chairman John Kerry said the Senate was close to introducing legislation to meet the president's request.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8586877.stm

[lib2DaBone]

1. $2.8 Billion? Not to be insensitive... will any American Jobs be included in this?

Chinese troops currently patrol Haiti. Haiti is rumored to have some oil and a good amount of natural resources...

Will China prevail while American Tax dollars pave the way?.... Do politicians EVER look out for AMERICA?

[rabs]

2. Chinese troops in Haiti

FYI before the quake China had 142 police officers in Haiti as part of the UN peacekeeping mission. Eight were killed when the quake flattened the U.N. headquarters.

But China has no military troops with the U.N. mission.

China was among the first countries to provide aid and medical personnel after the quake.

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The Security Council resolution 1908 of 19 January 2010

Up to 8,940 military personnel
Up to 3,711 police

Country contributors
Military personnel
Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, France, Guatemala, India, Jordan, Nepal, Paraguay, Peru, Phillipines, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, United States and Uruguay.

Police personnel
Argentina, Bangladesh, Benin, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Columbia, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Egypt, El Salvador, France, Grenada, Guinea, India, Jamaica, Jordan, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Senegal, Serbia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Togo, Turkey, United States, Uruguay and Yemen.

[pampango]

3. "Chinese troops currently patrol Haiti." You can relax. China just withdrew its 130 police.

"China has decided to withdraw its single unit of nearly 130 riot police serving in the U.N. mission in Haiti" Looks like their plan to take over Haiti and plunder it of its natural resources using 100 police just fell apart.

Here's the bad news, though: "The move comes several weeks after a devastating Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti that killed more than 200,000 people in Haiti. More than 100 U.N. staff and peacekeepers, including eight Chinese police, were crushed to death in the 7.1 magnitude quake. The Chinese contingent will be replaced by a police unit from India, according to a senior U.N. official." Now India is going to try to take over Haiti using its police.

http://turtlebay.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/03/25/in_surprise_move_china_withdraws_riot_police_from_haiti

You don't sound insensitive at all. Much of Haiti was destroyed and 200,000 people killed and you want to know if we help them what's in it for us. Sounds quite progressive, actually. ;)

[EFerrari]

4. Don't worry. The corporations that are going to inhale that money

don't have thin skins.