EARLIER THIS WEEK a visit to Haiti by a United Nations Security Council delegation coincided with a visit to Port-au-Prince by the Bureau of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community.
Shortly, the United States State Department will also send a team of legal experts to Haiti. All three missions have been separately explained as being in response to specific needs of that poorest nation in this hemisphere, and occurring amid much disquiet among the suffering Haitian masses.
Ravaged by its worst earthquake disaster in January 2010, Haiti was to subsequently fall victim to an unprecedented cholera epidemic – traced to a segment of the UN Peacekeeping Mission (MINUSTAH) – that killed over 7 000 and sickened more than half a million.
And this at a time when international donors are yet to deliver at least 50 per cent of outstanding pledges, firmly promised for post-earthquake rehabilitation and national reconstruction. Also while there are new fears of political interference in the judicial system that could, unless effectively checked soon, result in a return to the dreaded “Duvalierist” era of gross human rights abuses.
A quick summary of the separate UN Security Council mission and that of CARICOM: they would include meetings with President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Gary Conille, as well as consultations with Haitian officials and civic leaders about “the effectiveness” of the UN Peacekeeping Mission.
However, there was not even an indirect reference to recovery from the horrific cholera epidemic.
We must now wait to learn if and how the UN will admit its obligations in combating the cholera epidemic and what new initiatives Haitians should expect to emerge from the meetings held with President Martelly.
As far as the CARICOM Bureau’s two-day visit is concerned, the official Press statement was silent on the current issue of widespread concern – the implications of a High Court judge’s recent decision to excuse former dictator Jean Claude Duvalier from facing trial for murder, torture, false imprisonment and other crimes on the basis that the relevant statute of limitation had expired, a ruling that conflicts with international conventions governing crimes against humanity.
Whether or not the issue surfaced at the CARICOM/Martelly meeting was not revealed in Wednesday’s Press release. The focus was on reaffirmation of the community’s commitment to strengthening relations with Haiti, including help for its health and agricultural sectors, as well as considering removal of visa requirements for some categories of Haitians.
Significantly, the upcoming visit of a United States team of legal experts to Haiti is related to fears about the administration of justice in that country.
• Rickey Singh is a noted Caribbean journalist.
