Haiti: Food shortage strains aid groups

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, April 17 (UPI) -- The food crisis in Haiti has ratcheted up pressure on international aid groups already feeding the country's poor, a relief official said.

Catholic Relief Services' director in Port-au-Prince, Bill Canny, said his group relies on funding from the U.S. government to feed Haitians unable to afford rising food prices, Voice of America reported Wednesday.

Last week, thousands of Haitians took to the streets of the capital, Port-au-Prince, to protest against food price hikes and called for the resignation of President Rene Preval and his prime minister.

"He (Preval) wants to try to share the burden of the price increase. How sustainable is that? The answer is that it is not sustainable," said Joel Boutroue, deputy special representative of the United Nations' secretary-general.