Mexico Steps Up on Haitian Earthquake Relief

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MEXICO 000274 SENSITIVE SIPDIS HAITI EARTHQUAKE TASK FORCE USAID/W FOR DCHA/OFDA WHA ROBERTA JACOBSON NSC DAN RESTREPO WHA/MEX EWDWARD LEE WHA/CAR V DE PIRRO IO/UNP B NARANJO IO/UNP M GARUNCKIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID MX HA PREL PHUM SUBJECT: Mexico Steps Up on Haitian Earthquake Relief REF: 10 STATE 4090; 10 STATE 4208; 10 STATE 4854 MEXICO STEPS UP ON HAITIAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF ¶1. Poloff called the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) January 21 to express thanks to the GOM for Mexico's abundant assistance efforts following the Haiti earthquake. Poloff encouraged the SRE to register the GOM's efforts with the United Nation's Financial Tracking System, designed for the organization and distribution of international donations. The GOM's efforts in responding to the Haiti disaster demonstrate a willingness to assume a wider role in dealing with these kinds of crises. ¶2. Poloff conveyed to SRE Director for Technical Cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean, Sonya Gonzalez, the USG's thanks for the enormous outpouring of charitable efforts from the GOM and Mexican people in response to the earthquake in Haiti. Various Embassy offices (e.g. AID, ODC) worked closely with the GOM in coordinating delivery of Mexico's assistance. SRE Director for Programs of National Execution, Nadi Cruz, told Poloff January 21 that the GOM had raised $8 million USD to donate directly to the United Nations. In addition to this financial contribution, the GOM responded with the following: * The day following the earthquake, President Calderon held a press conference calling on all Mexicans to demonstrate their solidarity with Haitians by making donations to the Mexican Red Cross and announcing the GOM's assistance package to Haiti. * SRE deployed an Initial Damage Assessment Team to determine assistance package requirements. The Civil Protection Chief of Emergency Management was deployed along with approximately 40 Mexican search and rescue personnel, water distribution personnel, and two generators. The search-and-rescue personnel began drawing down last week, returning to Mexico City aboard a Mexican Navy aircraft. * The Mexican Air Force (MAF) flew two C-130 aircrafts to move GOM personnel to and from Haiti. The aircraft will fly any additional missions necessary. A "Phase-D" Team (consisting of kitchen support, search and rescue teams, dogs, specially trained handlers and other unidentified entities) is on standby for deployment. * The Mexican Navy (SEMAR) also deployed the hospital ship "Huasteco," which arrived in Haiti on January 20. The vessel has an ambulance helicopter and 400 tons of supplies, 25 doctors, 100 tons of food, light generators, mobile kitchens, four water purification plants, and three large tents on-board. * Additionally, the SEMAR ship Papaloapan left Mexico City January 22, with the expectation that it will arrive in Haiti Wednesday, January 27. The ship is carrying two Mi-17 helicopters, 38 tons of food, medicine, and supplies, such as blankets and sleeping mats. * SEMAR also deployed a CASA 295 fixed-wing transport aircraft to support personnel on the ground. The Mexican Navy ship MEXICO 00000274 002 OF 002 Oaxaca stands on alert for deployment if needed. * The Mexican Red Cross has already positioned 8,000 tons of food in the city of Veracruz, and it sent a shipment of 120 tons January 21. ¶3. Poloff informed Cruz that the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (OCHA) established a Financial Tracking System (FTS) to catalogue and distribute international donations, and asked Cruz whether SRE had registered Mexico's donations. Cruz said that the SRE had an outdated website that it had used to register donations on a much smaller-scale during previous disasters, but that keeping track of all the Haiti contributions had overwhelmed the office. ¶4. Cruz understood the importance of international coordination and told Poloff she would make an effort to begin documenting contributions made through SRE, other GOM agencies, and the Red Cross, before conveying them to the FTS. Poloff sent Cruz and Director General for Technical and Scientific Cooperation, Maximo Romero Jimenez, a more detailed description of the FTS and a link to the website. Poloff also suggested that the GOM designate one national non-governmental organization that could receive individual donations and register them in the FTS. ¶5. Cruz expressed frustration to Poloff that the SRE had faced difficulty contacting JTF Haiti to reschedule a landing time for the GOM's C-130, which will carry additional food and supplies to Haiti. While originally scheduled to land in Haiti on January 22, the C-130 was delayed, unable to depart on-time, and lost its original landing time. It was rescheduled for January 27 at approximately 2:00 am after countless calls to JTF Haiti, according to Cruz. Poloff reiterated that the Port-au-Prince airport now averaged over 100 flights a day, three to four times the pre-crisis numbers, simply jamming the airport with landings. Cruz said Mexico would greatly appreciate being informed of whether any new cancellations that would allow the GOM's C-130 an earlier arrival. (Note: To facilitate the SRE's efforts to secure landing times for its planes, the GOM needs to establish an on-the-ground liaison officer with the UN and JFT Haiti and not try to coordinate disaster assistance from SRE Mexico City. End note.) ¶6. Comment: Mexico has been working with us and in international fora to create an institutionalized capacity to respond to disasters on the international scene; its effort in this instance has demonstrated an increased political will to tap that capacity. End comment. MINIMIZE CONSIDERED FEELEY