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Navy and Marines
bridge Haitian divide from government
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Haitian
volunteers help unload supplies from a U.S. Army landing craft at a Haitian
Coast Guard station in Carrefour, Haiti, Jan. 19. Photo by Cpl. Bobbie Curtis ( February 19, 2010 )
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Children
from Carrefour, Haiti, gather as local leaders conduct a humanitarian aid
distribution in the city, Feb. 18. The Marines and sailors of the 22nd Marine
Expeditionary Unit transferred primary responsibility for humanitarian aid
distribution to the local and national Haitian government throughout the month
of February. Photo by Cpl. Bobbie Curtis
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“The
mission of the CMOC was to act as a bridge between the people and the local
government,” said Staff Sgt. Jerrick D. Croston, a civil affairs team chief
with 4th CAG and the 22nd MEU.
The
CMOC is located in the town of Carrefour, just outside the nation’s capital
city of Port-au-Prince, on Landing Zone Argonaut, a small encampment operated
by the Marines and sailors of Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine
Regiment, 22nd MEU.
At
the facility, civil affairs personnel met with town leaders and NGO officials
to plan distributions and combined operations for the people of the local area.
“As
local Haitians and organizations had needs, they brought them up to the CMOC,”
Croston, a Philadelphia native, continued. “The major achievement of the CMOC
was getting the mayors [of Carrefour] and the local government to work with the
community leaders of Carrefour.”
Croston
explained that many of the one million strong population of Carrefour have
strong loyalty to a few key leaders in the community, who are mostly pastors
from local religious organizations.
“After
the earthquake people looked to them,” he added. “So we brought the local
leaders and the local government together.”
Bringing
the local leaders and their followers together with the Haitian government and
several NGOs, the Marines and sailors of the CMOC streamlined the aid process
for the people of Carrefour, transferring the primary role of providing
humanitarian aid, from the U.S. Military to the Haitian local and national
governments.
The
civil affairs personnel conducted the operation in multiple-steps, beginning
with an assessment phase where the Marines and sailors found out what problems
were occurring in the area. Once problems were identified, the personnel worked
with Haitian leaders and NGOs to solve the issues.
“At
this point we have transitioned the role of the CMOC to the Haitian government
and are back in the assessment phase,” Croston explained. “We are making sure
the needs are being taken care of.”
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Chief
Petty Officer Charlotte Reijo, a team leader with Maritime Civil Affairs Team
207, meets with children from Carrefour, Haiti, Jan. 18. Sailors with MCAT-207
and Marine civil affairs specialists with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit
conduct operations from a Civil Military Operations Center in Carrefour, aimed
at uniting the people of Haiti and the Haitian Government with non-governmental
organizations to transfer primary humanitarian aid responsibilities in the area
from the U.S. to the local government. Photo by Cpl. Bobbie Curtis ( February 19, 2010 )
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Captain
Rebecca A. Popleiski, a civil affairs team leader with 4th CAG and the 22nd
MEU, said the group of civil affairs specialists have come a long way in the
month they have worked in Haiti.
The
Marines began their operations in the towns of Petite Goave, Grand Goave and
Leogone before moving to Carrefour. Those three areas had less involvement with
community leaders and worked more specifically with NGOs, where as the Carrefour
area of operations had a lot more grass-roots involvement, she explained.
“When
we pull out of here, all the cities are going to be able to stand on their
own,” Popleiski, a Washington D.C. native, explained. “Whether that’s local
government or national government … they have stepped up and taken charge.”
With
the aid of the Navy-Marine Corps civil affairs teams from the 22nd MEU and
Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, the government of Haiti has taken primary
responsibility for humanitarian aid distributions in the Carrefour area.
Marines and sailors from the 22nd MEU have become a supplementary force as the
Haitian Coast Guard and international NGOs take over.
This Story by : Cpl. Bobbie Curtis
Thank you : Cpl. Bobbie Curtis
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