Following the declaration, Thursday, February 21, of the Spokesperson of the Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-moon, informing the plaintiffs' counsel, that their complaint filed in November 2011 against the United Nations (UN), on behalf of the victims of the cholera epidemic in Haiti, was not receivable, under section 29 of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.

Mario Joseph of the Bureau of International Lawyers (Bureau des Avocats Internationaux - BAI), which is the main lawyer of victims deplored "It is disgraceful that the UN will not even consider compensating the thousands of families who have lost their children, mothers , fathers, brothers and sisters due to the UN’s wrongdoing [...]"

"The UN says that our claims concern policy . Our case is about the UN dumping contaminated sewage in Haiti’s waters that has caused thousands of deaths. Under this definition, any harm that the UN does to anybody would be a matter of policy," indicated Brian Concannon, Jr. of the Institute for Just ice & Democracy in Haiti, who is co - counsel on the case.

"[...] It’s ludicrous for the UN to simultaneously claim immunity from Haitian courts , fail to follow through on its commitment to set up an alternative claims commission, and then also refuse to hear the claims internally. That amounts to a complete denial of justice, and no legitimate justice system would stand for it," added Mario Joseph.

"[...] This is only the beginning. We will continue to fight for justice and the UN can expect to defend itself against a lawsuit," declared Ira Kurzban, of Kurzban, Kurzban, Weigner, Tetzelli & Pratt, P.A ., also co - counsel on the case, affirming "We will win this case. Regardless of what the UN says, it has already been found guilty in the court of public opini on . This is a missed opportunity for the UN to do the right thing and demonstrate its commitment to justice and human rights, with dead ly con sequences for the victims."

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-7931-haiti-justice-request-for-compensation-of-victims-of-cholera-rejected-by-the-un.html

HL/ S/ HaitiLibre