15 years after earthquake, Haitian Montrealers disappointed by lack of change in country

Hundreds of people stood still in Montreal's La Maison d'Haïti on Sunday, holding electric candles and listening as one by one, they named their loved ones who died in the Haiti earthquake 15 years ago. 

The evening wouldn't be long enough to name the more than 220,000 people who died on Jan. 12, 2010, when a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck the country's capital, Port-au-Prince.

Political activist Myriam Merlet was one of the first victims to be commemorated. 

"The family lost a sister, but the country lost someone who dedicated their entire life to the cause of Haitian women," said Merlet's sister Pascale Merlet, standing beside her other sister, Joelle.

For Pascale, the anniversary is one of pain — and frustration.

"There's a war that is permanent and a drama that is permanent in Haiti but we only talk about it on the week of January 12," she said. "That upsets me."

A gathering at La Maison d'Haïti on the anniversary of the earthquake has become a sort of annual ritual, says the centre's executive director Marjorie Villefranche. 

"I thought I would feel different," she said. "[Fifteen] is like a number that reminds us that time passes, but it's not very different."

There are just under 179,000 people of Haitian origin in Canada, 87 per cent of whom live in Quebec, according to data from the 2021 census. About 45 per cent of them call Montreal home.

Villefranche says though the diaspora hasn't forgotten about the earthquake or its impact, its lingering effect appears to be lost on the rest of the population.

The country is facing rampant gang violence that killed more than 5,600 people last year as a UN-backed mission led by Kenya grappled with the issue.

Overall, gang violence has left more than 700,000 Haitians homeless in recent years, with many crowding into makeshift and unsanitary shelters after gunmen razed their homes.

"We want a long-term investment, a long-term development for the country. Not a quick help, emergency help. We don't want that anymore," said Villefranche, describing the ongoing situation as a "second earthquake." 

Joelle Merlet, who lost her sister in the earthquake, echoes Villefranche's sentiments about the state of the country. 

"It's a day that enrages me because of all the people we've lost, and it's also a day that enrages me because we thought that after this catastrophe, there would be a change in Haiti, that there would be a renewal in Haiti," she said.

But Joelle says that hasn't been the case.

Hopes for the future

Frantz Voltaire, the director of the Centre international de documentation et d'information Haïtienne, Caribéenne et Afro-Canadienne, remembers leaving the country less than 10 minutes before the earthquake. 

His cousin Georges Anglade, a writer and prominent Haitian activist — also father of Dominique Anglade, the former leader of the Quebec Liberal Party — died that day with his wife. 

"We had coffee in the morning," said Voltaire. "You discover that he died this day and so, this is a trauma."  

He regrets the lack of proper burials for the victims of the catastrophe. 

"They died without ceremony and we need to remember what happened," said Voltaire, emphasizing the need for commemoration. 

The loss of places that were dear to him also affected him. 

"The cathedral where you were baptized, the clinic where you were born, the college where you were educated, all of this disappeared in a few minutes, even a few seconds," he said.

Voltaire sees a link between the tragedy and the current state of the country. 

"The population was displaced in places where they can't have a normal and decent life," he said, noting those places are where gangs are present. 

He wants the international community to listen to Haitians' concerns when discussing solutions to stabilize the country. 

Voltaire also stressed the importance of strengthening Haiti's police forces and setting up a civil organization to deal with catastrophic situations. 

"I think we can be a leader with the Canadian government to find a peaceful solution for the country," said Villefranche.