Haiti: Clinton Arrives Amid Angry Protests of Suffering Haitians

Twenty-three days after the earthquake jolted Haiti and killed over 200,000 people, as many as a million people have still not received any international food assistance.

Over a million people are displaced. About 10,000 families are in tents, the rest are living under sheets, blankets and tarps.

Hundreds of Haitians have protested slow aid distribution among the quake-stricken people during a visit by former US President Bill Clinton.

The protesters marched through the capital Port-au-Prince and gathered outside a police station where the Haitian government is operating. "Our children are burning in the sun. We have a right to tents. We have a right to shelter," AFP quoted a protesting woman as saying on Friday.

Crowds of Haitians held the protests as Clinton arrived in the country. They were complaining about what they describe as corruption among officials responsible for handing out relief supplies.

Clinton, the coordinator of international aid distribution selected by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for the Caribbean nation, expressed bafflement about slow supply delivery. "I'm trying to get to what the bottlenecks are, part of it is just shipping the volume of food in here that is necessary," Clinton said.

He also rejected the idea of US ‘colonialism' in the impoverished country and said, "What I don't want to be is the governor of Haiti."

"I want to build the capacity of the country to chart its own course. They can trust me not to be a neocolonialist, I'm too old."

The remarks comes as the United States has deployed at least 20,000 troops in order to ‘maintain security' in the quake-leveled state. However, many people have been wary of the US role in 'spearheading' the reconstruction efforts and accuse the country of attempting to establish military rule.

Clinton's trip has also been shrouded in criminal conspiracy as regional media outlets have fueled speculations about his possible intermediary role to help release 10 Americans arrested for 'child kidnapping' and trying to 'traffic 33 Haitian children into the Dominican Republic under the guise of rescue efforts.

Clinton, however, denied the reports and rejected his involvement in any talks purportedly meant to help discharge the US citizens who may face trial in Haiti. "That's not within my mandate. I know that the State Department and government have had these discussions," noted Clinton.