‘We should be thanked upside down and sideways’

Two weeks ago, officials from the U.S. State Department and the United Nations expressed concern about Julian Fantino’s comments about Haiti. In an interview with the Vaughan Citizen, Mr. Fantino responds.

And Mr. Fantino had strong words for anyone who would put Canada’s contribution to Haiti’s recovery in a bad light. “Shame on them. It’s unfortunate that people have run off without full information about what we’re going to do. These comments from (UN representatives and U.S. State department representatives) are irresponsible when matched with our commitment. We should be thanked upside down and sideways. We pledged $400 million over two years in March 2010 at an international donors conference and we are one of very few countries that actually meets its commitments,” he said in defending Canada’s participation in the rebuilding effort in Haiti since a devastating earthquake killed upwards of 300,000 people three years ago, left 300,000 homeless and caused an estimated $12.5 billion in damage.