2023-10-04 00:50:54
The president of Kenya, William Ruto, whose country will lead the multinational mission approved this Monday by the United Nations Security Council to support the Haitian Police, today asked that humanitarian resources destined for the Caribbean country be “reinforced.”
“The mission is a foundational intervention to provide the necessary conditions for Haiti to consolidate its development and governance. Therefore, It is absolutely essential that the resources and operational reach of UN teams be adequately strengthenedas well as other humanitarian and development actors,” the president said in a statement on Tuesday.
Ruto made this statement after the Security Council approved this Monday the one-year deployment (extendable) of the multinational force, with thirteen votes in favor, two abstentions (Russia and China) and no votes against.
“The situation in Haiti demands (…) that actions be significantly increased to meet the demands for emergency relief, humanitarian aid, support for livelihoods and important interventions in public health and environmental protection,” highlighted the Kenyan president. .
In this sense, the leader warned about the “serious environmental degradation” in the country, which “has suffered devastating geological and extreme climatic disasters that have left the State and its economy on the edge.”
Ruto also stressed that the new device must leave a “different mark on the history of international interventions in Haiti”after the tragic experience that represented the last blue helmet mission in the country.
After thirteen and a half years, what is known as Minustah withdrew from Haiti in 2017, after a major scandal when it was proven that its members were responsible for a water spill that caused a cholera outbreak that killed more than 7,000 people, in addition to accusations of sexual abuse.
The UN has reiterated that the newly approved mission will not resemble a regular peacekeeping or interposition force, as is usually the case, but will be a mere police support force under the orders of the Haitian Police.
The Kenyan president framed his country’s participation in the mission in “solidarity with the African diaspora”noting that the people of Haiti “have borne the brunt of colonial plunder and repression, as well as post-colonial reprisals and exploitation.”
In addition, he showed his support for the requests for “reparation measures” from Caribbean countries, including debt cancellation.
Haiti is immersed in a deep crisis marked by extreme violence, with armed groups that control the capital, Port-au-Princeand other parts of its territory and are responsible for hundreds of murders, rapes, kidnappings and other crimes.
The resolution comes a year after it was requested by the Haitian Government itself and immediately supported by the UN Secretary General, António Guterres.
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