We joked about photographing all the toilets at our various locations, although this is the sort of joking that masks a disturbing discomfort. Indeed, while all the squatting over seatless and sullied toilets and holes in the ground, is great exercise for the thighs, the practice of swatting flies and ignoring a horrendous stench is quite a different exercise. Further, aside from our guest house, I didn't find a toilet that consistently flushed, nor many with doors that closed, let alone locked, and one was doorless. An additional challenge is remembering to bring toilet paper, and clutching it because there is no sanitary place to put it down. I was guarded by a man with a large gun at a bathroom attached to a chaotic convenience store; I am not sure that provided much security in the windowless room without electricity or a lock.
While the public health concerns are mind boggling, intensified more by the diaperless babies who peed on us or other children, the safety issues are even more pressing. Many women and girls are raped in bathrooms in Haiti, especially in the camps where bathrooms are simply a hole, exposed. Often without electricity or doors, even with various systems of women escorting women to the bathrooms, this sexual violence is widespread.
I am so grateful for access to bathrooms that are clean and safe.
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