Seeking Justice for the Victims of Cholera in Haiti: Framing the Reparations Debate Through Transitional Justice

On 1 December 2016 the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon apologized for the cholera epidemic in Haiti, an illness Nepalese peacekeepers brought with them upon arrival in Haiti. After years of silence and denial from the UN, the UN finally established a "New approach to cholera in Haiti," promising material assistance and support to the victims through a "victim-centered approach." Based on fieldwork conducted in March 2017 in the communities most affected by the cholera outbreak, this article brings forward the victims' views on the specific form the material assistance package should take. This article links this discussion with the literature on socio-economic dimension of reparation in transitional justice, discussing the collective and the individual approaches to reparation and the victims' preference for the latter.