The day after the January twelve earthquake, the half-a-dozen radio
stations that managed to stay on air were a lifeline for a Haitian
population faced with despair.

Way before the intervention of the humanitarian agencies and
before local authorities could react, the radio remained the only
method of communication for 1.5 million Haitians suddenly
displaced, as well as those safe but frightened in houses still
standing.

The radio was used to send messages for help, to spread news
about the fate of relatives, and to share experiences of the
earthquake. Haiti's oral media was for once, much more social than
political and it was to stay that way for many weeks after the
earthquake.

Internews, a US non governmental organization (NGO) quickly
stepped in with "Enfomasyon nou dwe konnen" News You Can Use,
broadcast daily in Creole through many of Haiti's independent radio
stations (21 in all).

Today, six months after January 12, the government,
International organisations and the NGOs are far better
coordinated. However in the two departments most affected by the
earthquake, the majority of the displaced population is still
living in camps.

Many are out of work and penniless and keen to join the
‘cash for work programmes' whereby they get paid to clear
canals or debris. Many say they have received no aid for
weeks.  Rumors that forced evictions may occur is spreading
talk of popular resistance. Every time humanitarian teams arrive in
camps, there are expectations that there will be  distribution
of free food.

To help avoid misunderstandings and the risk of chaos because of
a lack of reliable information, the IOM has deployed special
communicators to explain the situation to camp dwellers.

This is what community outreach means and these young Haitians
are playing a key role in preventing misunderstandings from blowing
up into violence. Humanitarian agencies on the ground all value the
work of the ‘community mobilizers'. It has quickly become a
key element in communicating between the humanitarian community and
the displaced population.

Getting closer to the people

"Now, it's about getting closer to the people who do not always
understand the action of NGOs, nor of the government," said Pascale
Verly, IOM's communication officer overseeing the community
mobilizers section. "When we distribute coupons to the people,
often they think that we are going to give them food", said
Stephanie Daviot. IOM Registration Team Officer. In Vallée
Bourdon camp, for example, hundreds of IDPS surrounded those who
came to register the population. The population is often frustrated
and confused about the role of those who come to the camps. The
community mobilizers work to dissipate confusion, by engaging in
dialogue and providing realistic explanations.

Supported financially by the Japanese government and the
Emergency Relief Response Fund for Haiti (ERRF), IOM's
communication department in Haiti helps the government transfer
messages to the IDP population. In fact, government messages often
reach the IDPs effectively because of the Community Mobilizers.
Their key role is to inform and sensitize the people affected
without leading to inflated expectations and subsequent
disappointment and anger.

Mobilizing the Community

Most of the Community Mobilizers are university graduates. They
are recruited based on their capacity to engage in dialogue with
the communities, to work in a stressful environment and their
ability to maintain good relationships with different segments of
the population. These basic qualifications are then complemented
through ongoing training.

The Community Mobilizers support other IOM teams with their
work.

"The other departments of IOM are like clients to whom we provide a
consistent communication service to facilitate their own task in
the field", said Elisabeth Labranche, a 25 year old philosophy
major, befitting her role as a Community Mobilizer.

"Upstream or downstream", the communication team has a
fundamental place in the registration process", explained Stephanie
Daviot. Her team's main responsibility is to collect precise
information on the families living in the camps, and the families
do not always understand the reason for and the implication of
these activities.

Based on this, a campaign of sensitization and information
outreach, orchestrated by the Mobilizers who must have a good
rapport with the population, is necessary before the Registration
Team can undertake their work. The Mobilizers continue to inform
the population throughout the registration process. At the end of
the registration, those registered always want to know what action
will be taken as a result of the information collected.

Other times, the Mobilizers are used to ease the fears of camp
managers.

"Many NGO have already done a registration here" complained
Gerson Edée, Manager of Centre Sportif in Carrefour, which
accommodate more than 780 IDP families.

Edée, was worried that this would be just one more
registration which, once again, will be left without any follow
up.

The IOM Communication Team also uses alternative media; Kenny
Mix, a Disc Jockey (DJ), known to many Haitians, toured the camps
as the mobilizers handed out flyers to describe the different steps
of the registration. "We favor oral and visual communication"
explained Pascale Verly. Tragically, Kenny passed away in June and
is mourned by many in Haiti.

The Mobilizers were able to ease the concerns of the population
of the Vallee Bourdon when the government wanted to relocate to
another safer camp. Relocation is only one of the five options for
the displaced but these people were hesitant to move far from their
original communities and their way of life.

In response to concerns from both those being relocated and the
host community, IOM encouraged committees to form to welcome the
IDPs. Members of these committees explained how the new settlement
camp would function in order to ease apprehension among the IDPs.
As a result of this work more than 7,300 people have decided to
relocate since the beginning of the relocation process.

The communication flows in the reverse as well so that IDPs
provide feedback to the humanitarian actors through IOM's
mobilizers.

"The information gathered during our registration campaign
allows us to create a database that will serve in the
reconstruction process for the country", said Pierrot Rugaba, a
manager with the IOM Registration Team.

According to Rugaba, "this is the beginning of a communication
process that will inform the reconstruction of the country, a
process that takes into consideration the essential needs of
disaster affected Haitiens."