23 November 2004
U.N. Seeks to Extend Stabilization Mission in Haiti to May 2006
Mission extension required to help with election process, Annan says
By Eric Green
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The United Nations has announced it seeks to extend its stabilization mission in Haiti for another 18 months: to May 31, 2006.
In a November 22 statement, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said the stabilization mission, known by the acronym MINUSTAH, should be extended from November 30, 2004, "in view of the timeline established for a series of elections" in Haiti "culminating with the transfer of power to an elected president" on February 7, 2006.
The secretary-general argued that MINUSTAH is urgently needed in Haiti because the security situation in the country has deteriorated over recent months, with a reported surge of violence. This violence, he said, underlines the need to remove all illegal weapons from the streets.
"I appeal to all armed groups to break this cycle of violence in order not to endanger further the transition process underway," Annan said. MINUSTAH was set up in April 2004 to help foster a democratic political solution for Haiti following widespread unrest that led to the resignation of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
Annan emphasized that Haiti needs an "inclusive political process" that goes "hand-in-hand" with an improved security situation in the country.
"Without a parallel political process which involves all segments of society," Annan said, sustainable peace and security cannot be achieved in Haiti.
Annan also emphasized that Haiti's political process should have a job creation element. A political process without job creation or longer-term development "is not credible for a population which has been living in severe poverty for such a long time," Annan said.
The United Nations said latest figures show that more than two-thirds of MINUSTAH's authorized strength of 6,700 soldiers and 1,622 civil police are on the ground in Haiti.
The United Nations' special representative in Haiti, Juan Valdes, said November 19 that the joint participation of troops in MINUSTAH from such nations as Spain, Guatemala, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Ecuador, and Brazil makes the U.N. mission the "first joint effort of regional and multilateral cooperation of its kind." Valdes has indicated that the U.N. Security Council would vote at the end of November on extending MINUSTAH for another 18 months.
Valdes, speaking at the 14th annual Ibero-American Summit in Costa Rica, emphasized the importance of quick implementation of recovery projects in Haiti so that the Haitian people "can observe changes, improvements, and give trust" to MINUSTAH.
For his part, Roger Noriega, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, says the United States and the international community continue to support Haiti, as evidenced by the more than $1.3 billion in committed assistance and the presence of the U.N. stabilization mission, led by Brazil, in the Caribbean nation.
Present priorities in Haiti, Noriega said November 15, include efforts to enhance security, promote economic recovery, and begin preparations for 2005 elections. He added that although the devastation wrought by Hurricane Jeanne in September disrupted these international efforts in Haiti, political elements in the country that sought to take advantage of this disruption to create upheaval and violence have failed.
"We are getting back on track now" in Haiti, said Noriega.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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