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Peacekeepers in Haiti Must Not Leave Prematurely, U.N. Warns

24 August 2005

Chief of stabilization mission says premature exits caused previous failures

By Eric Green
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- The United Nations says its peacekeeping force in Haiti must not leave the Caribbean country prematurely to prevent repeating the experience of previous international missions that failed because troops were pulled out too soon.

In an August 23 statement, Juan Gabriel Valdés, chief of the U.N. stabilization mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), said other missions in Haiti "failed because they pulled out their troops prematurely.  MINUSTAH must avoid making the same mistake."

U.N. involvement in Haiti began in 1993 when it joined the Organization of American States in deploying an international civilian mission in the Caribbean nation.  Other international missions were deployed in Haiti from 1994 to 2001, before MINUSTAH began operations in the country in July 2004.

The United States is providing some of the civilian police and military personnel for the approximately 1,000-person MINUSTAH force working to stabilize Haiti.

The United Nations’ Valdés said the international community had to involve itself in Haiti more deeply "for the time necessary," especially in bolstering the country's law enforcement and judiciary systems.  He added that all political parties in Haiti that renounce violence must be given a "guaranteed opportunity" to take part in upcoming Haitian elections in order to form a democratic and legitimate government.

Haiti's elections are scheduled for November and December, with a new Haitian government expected to take charge February 7, 2006.

The United States is providing $15 million to support the Haitian elections -- part of a $44 million commitment from the international community to promote democracy and stability in the Caribbean nation.  The United States provided $8.7 million in 2004 to support Haiti's electoral process.

The United Nations also reported that even though its peacekeeping mission in Haiti no longer needs to patrol the country in armored vehicles, illegal armed groups the mission has been battling in the shantytowns of Haiti's capital of Port-au-Prince have gone underground.

MINUSTAH's André Luis Novaes Miranda said the mission's operations in the Caribbean country have moved to a new phase.

The illegal armed groups "now function in a clandestine fashion," said Miranda, adding that MINUSTAH's civilian police force and the Haitian national police must work together to bring order and security to the country.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)