According to Prime Minister Andrew Holness, Jamaica is prepared to send security personnel to Haiti as part of an international effort to stabilize the violently unstable French-speaking Caribbean country.
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In a ministerial statement he made to the House of Representatives on Tuesday, Holness made the assurance.
PM Holness noted, “Jamaica will be willing to participate in a multinational security assistance deployment to Haiti under the appropriate jurisdictional parameters to support a return to a reasonable level of stability and peace, which would be necessary for any inclusive democratic process to take root.”
He continued, “both the JDF (Jamaica Defence Force) and the JCF (Jamaica Constabulary Force) have been alerted to this possible course of support and they would have started to plan for such eventualities as part of their routine situational awareness and response readiness.”
He stated before the House that the Haitian people are “deeply concerned” about the humanitarian and security issues they are going through.
Additionally, he stated that “the people of Haiti continue to have their human rights threatened by powerful gangs and militias which perpetrate heinous crimes, including killings, kidnappings and acts of violence against women and children”.
“These have escalated with the recent murders of policemen,” the PM noted.
The prime minister mentioned that Jamaica firmly denounced the most recent wave of violence in Haiti in a joint Caricom statement.
“Today (Tuesday) I reiterate that condemnation and extend our condolences to the families of the fallen officers,” he noted.
Holness also said that almost 5 million Haitians suffer from severe malnutrition, and that “cases of cholera and cholera-related deaths continue to pose grave difficulties for the country’s public health system”.
He added, “Indeed, there are several emergency-level crises now in Haiti”.
Holness stated that Jamaica continues to work with other countries in order to fulfill Haiti’s need for international aid.
He noted: “While internal deliberations within Caricom remain ongoing, Jamaica restates our preparedness to support a united international effort in response to the persistent and deteriorating emergency in Haiti.
“We note with interest an initiative being contemplated within the OAS (Organization of American States) to strengthen the organization’s response to the increasingly complex and challenging situation in Haiti. Jamaica will remain closely involved in efforts within this body to develop constructive approaches at the hemispheric level”.
Holness emphasized that Jamaica and Haiti are neighbors who have had positive ties and collaborations for a very long time.
“We have long signaled, and here I reiterate our willingness to provide specific bilateral support including in the areas of electoral reform, capacity building, and logistics.
“The Government of Jamaica also stands prepared to host our Haitian brothers and neighbors here in Kingston, for constructive talks and negotiations between Haitian political leaders and civil society actors, should this be an agreed approach,” Holness noted.
He continued by saying, “It is our real hope that Haiti will soon overcome her challenges and embark on a part towards the restoration of stability, longlasting peace and sustainable development for her land and people, with the full backing of the international community”.
