UN General Assembly
2005

region in transition, looking towards investment, particularly in education, support for the delivery of health care and continued support for democratic governance. It is not charity that is required, but a sound, sensible investment in our common future. Haiti is our poorest member in the region and is perhaps the example from which it is best to draw lessons. We want to thank Brazil and the many sister countries of Latin America that have risen to the challenge with men and materiel. But while much has been given, there are many pledges of donor aid that have not materialized as they should. It is a complaint throughout the developing world that donors make pledges of financial and material support but do not follow through on those pledges. Haiti today is paying the price in a real way for having charted the way towards freedom in this hemisphere when, in 1804, it struck a blow for the freedom of Africans in the West. Today, we repeat what the American Christian Bishop, T. D. Jakes, said 5