10 Haitian caregivers missing from Jacob's Ladder home

Ten of 16 Haitians who were being housed at Jacob's Ladder as caregivers for Haitian orphans since March have gone missing along with their luggage and other personal belongings, an official from the home has confirmed.

The revelation came in an interview today which followed allegations of maltreatment and abuse made by an executive of HaitiChildren, the organisation which previously housed severely disabled orphans in violence-torn Haiti. Mustard Seed Communities, which operates Jacob's Ladder, has strongly denied the allegations.

“It was a Saturday morning. I can't remember the date right now. But they left in a minibus with their luggage and smartphones and we have no idea where they are. According to the security records at the gate, Cheryl Richie was the person in whose company they departed. No contact has been made with Jacob's Ladder since they left,” Mustard Seed's chief executive officer, Father Garvin Augustine told The Gleaner.

He said Jamaican immigration authorities are aware of the matter and an investigation is underway. By tomorrow the missing Haitians will have no legal right in the island as they would have overstayed their time, which expired Wednesday June 19.

According to him, after the daring rescue operations which removed 59 children and 14 caregivers from Haiti, a request was made for Jacob's Ladder to take more staffers. Father Augustine said they denied the request, as with the Haitian caregivers, local staff, plus an additional 23 workers who were recruited, there was no need for more.

“However a request was made for Jacob's Ladder to take two additional children, and we agreed. When they came to Jamaica we realised that these were in fact able-bodied persons. One of the two is among the 10 who have disappeared and only six are at the facility,” Father Garvin explained.

Among the missing is Christo Romain, one of the 14 adult caregivers who arrived with the 59 disabled orphans. The day after their arrival in Jamaica, Romain described how his country's rapid decline into anarchy had put the lives of his HaitiChildren family at risk.

Romain, who was orphaned when his mother died when he was five years old, said HaitiChildren is the only home and family he knows.

“I came there when I was five years old. When I was 18 years, I got to study a lot of things. I am a chef and I cook very well and after a few months I worked as a chef and then, as a director of the organisation,” he told the Sunday Gleaner then. Speaking of the treatment they had received at the time, he described it as amazing.

“Now, for a start, it is very amazing. I like the way the caregivers helping us, how the Jamaicans are helping us, feeding the children, washing them. I wasn't thinking it would be like that,” he said, expressing more gratitude.

Father Augustine said he has no knowledge of their whereabouts. He also said he has never has never met Richie, but gate records showed that she was a regular visitor to the facility. 

The children and their caregivers were accommodated in Jamaica based on an agreement with the Government of Jamaica for their accommodation at Jacob's Ladder.

Mustard Seed has been in operations for 40 years and has outreach operations in Jamaica, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Malawi and Zimbabwe. It provides lifelong care to more than 700 children and adults with disabilities; children affected by HIV and AIDS, and young mothers in crisis.

- Erica Virtue

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