Vulnerability: A Demanding Reminder of Public and Civic Responsibility

For sixteen years, January 12th has returned to the Haitian public sphere as a landmark of memory. Time has passed, emergencies have overlapped, and other crises have taken center stage. Yet, this date continues to pose an essential question: what have we collectively done with what we learned?

January 12th acts as a lasting reveal of an ancient, documented, and natural vulnerability that remains insufficiently integrated into public action and collective practices. Haiti lives on a territory exposed to multiple risks: earthquakes, floods, landslides, and cyclones. This is not new, yet it has never been fully translated into sustainable public policies to protect life.

State and Civic Responsibility In any constitutional order, protecting citizens’ lives is a fundamental duty, not a matter of goodwill. This implies anticipating risks, regulating construction, and investing in prevention. However, public action remains dominated by emergency management.

One of the clearest failures is in construction. The country has favored heavy, rigid models—often expensive and ill-suited to a seismic environment. Without realistic standards or effective control, dangerous practices persist.

But responsibility does not end with the State. In a democracy, executive responsibility intertwines with civic duty. When public action fails, citizens cannot remain passive. Learning, teaching, and organizing become vital necessities. This civic engagement does not replace the State, nor does it excuse it; rather, it highlights structural deficiencies while reducing their human cost.

Natural vulnerability will not disappear. What can change, however, is how we think about it and integrate it. January 12th reminds us that a lack of responsibility toward risk always has a human cost. It binds both institutions and citizens to transform the knowledge of danger into the effective protection of life.

Chantal Volcy Céant January 12, 2026