Haiti

By JIM ABRAMS (AP)

Congress is calling for the United States to take the lead in relieving earthquake-shattered Haiti of its estimated $828 million debt to international institutions.

The House approved by voice vote Wednesday and sent to President Barack Obama legislation that instructs U.S. directors at the International Monetary Fund and other global development institutions to use their votes and influence to cancel Haiti's debt.

Debt relief is one of several approaches to helping Haiti recover from the January earthquake that took an estimated 230,000 lives.

by Tanu Henry

For more than two decades now, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) has been a diehard supporter of Haiti.

In the United States Congress, and beyond those halls, she has been one of the few consistent voices speaking out about the problems of Haiti and on behalf of Haitians at home and those living in, or immigrating to, the U.S.

by Cynthia Gordy

Los Angeles Representative Maxine Waters was one of the first members of Congress to visit Haiti in January after a major earthquake ravaged the island nation. As stories have faded from headlines, she has stayed focused on relief. White House correspondent Cynthia Gordy spoke with Waters days before her second mission to Port-au-Prince, about challenges in the recovery, criticism of the official in charge of U.S. aid and her goal to wipe out Haiti's debt.

by Jim Lobe

With U.S. President Barack Obama preparing to host Haitian President Rene Preval at the White House Wednesday, Congress is moving quickly to show support for far-reaching debt relief and additional aid for the earthquake-stricken Caribbean nation.

The Senate Friday approved a resolution urging the U.S. representative at major international lending institutions to push for the cancellation of all of Haiti's outstanding multilateral debt – about 700 million dollars – or about two-thirds of the country's total outstanding debt of some 1.2 billion dollars.