Haiti’s government is set to seek the assistance of foreign security forces, amid compounding crises that have plunged the country into deepening chaos, two Haitian officials told The Washington Post.
Haiti set to seek aid from foreign forces amid crises, officials say
The government intends to ask “international partners” for “a specialized armed force” to shore up basic services, according to a resolution signed Thursday by a council of top ministers, sent to The Post by Jean-Junior Joseph, a communications adviser to Prime Minister Ariel Henry. The resolution authorized the prime minister to ask for such assistance.
The goal is to “achieve a secure climate that should make it possible to fight cholera effectively, promote the resumption of the distribution of fuel and drinking water across the country, the functioning of hospitals, the restarting of economic activities, the free movement of people and goods, and the reopening of schools,” the resolution reads.
Joseph did not say what manner of forces would be sought, or which partners would be asked.
A State Department spokesman told reporters on Friday that U.N. officials in Haiti have called for a humanitarian corridor to facilitate the distribution of fuel throughout the country and that the Biden administration, in consultation with Henry and U.S. partners, is considering the request. He declined to say whether those discussions entail the potential deployment of any military assets. He did not say how the request would interact with any additional request from the Haitian government. The U.S. Defense Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The involvement of foreign military forces would be a fraught topic in Haiti, met with deep skepticism: The country has a long history of destabilizing foreign interventions.
“We are not requesting for an occupying force,” Bocchit Edmond, Haiti’s ambassador to the United States, told The Post. “We’re just requesting national assistance as a member of the international community who is facing such a tough time.”
“That’s why we have international organizations like U.N., like OAS. It’s to come to the rescue of the members states when there is an issue,” he added. “The situation, if we leave it that way, that can lead us to human catastrophe.”
Béatrice Nibogora, a spokeswoman for the United Nations in Haiti, said that the U.N. had not received a request from the government as of Friday.
A foreign government official with knowledge of a meeting at the Organization of American States (OAS) on Haiti that took place Thursday, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter, said Haitian officials made no request then.
OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro tweeted in French Thursday that Haiti “must request urgent assistance from the international community to help resolve security crises, determine the characteristics of an international security force.”
In recent weeks, the situation has grown increasingly dire, as the cabinet resolution released Friday indicates.
The U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince said Friday that the State Department has authorized U.S. personnel and their families to leave the country immediately.
Looters last month stormed a warehouse in the city of Gonaïves, stealing enough food to feed 100,000 schoolchildren through the end of the year, the World Food Program said. Even as the government seeks aid abroad, its support at home is eroding swiftly: Critics are accusing Henry of delaying new elections, and protesters, enraged by his announcement that the government could no longer afford fuel subsidies, and by the general chaos and lack of access to necessities, are calling for him to step down.
Amanda Coletta contributed to this report.
Source: WP
