(Photo: Reuters)
New York (People’s Daily) – With the United Nations Mission for Justice Support in Haiti (MINUJUSTH) in full gear, preparations have begun for the UN peacekeeping operation to institute a new presence focusing on Haiti’s long-term sustainable development.
Ambassador Wu Haitao, Deputy Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, said in a speech at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on Tuesday that China supports MINUJUSTH in helping Haiti reform its national police force, and called on the countries in the region to persist in contributing to the advancement of the island nation.
The main task of MINUJUSTH is to assist Haiti to further develop its foundations, strengthen the rule of law, and promote and protect human rights. Established in October 2017, MINUJUSTH replaced the UN Stabilization Mission, which operated in Haiti for 13 years.
The UN released a strategic assessment of MINUJUSTH, including 11 benchmarks in preparation for a smooth transition to a non-peacekeeping presence, given the stability in the Caribbean nation.
“Haiti has come a long way to achieve the relative political and security stability it is now enjoying,” said Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, in his introduction of the Secretary-General’s report.
Lacroix assured the Security Council that MINUJUSTH is fully operational and actively implementing its mandate with a light, non-intrusive footprint. He reiterated that it is a UN priority to assist the Haitian government in creating a clear-cut road map for reforms, including tackling prison overcrowding and the national human rights issues.
“For instance, the Mission has co-located 135 individual police officers with the Haitian National Police (HNP) in each of Haiti’s 10 departments, and it is dedicated to helping curb prolonged pretrial detention and prison overcrowding through on-site monitoring,” the Under-Secretary noted.
He went on to say, “We have many reasons to be optimistic that this path to progress is irreversible, while we need to jointly — Haiti, the United Nations, international and regional partners — continue investing in the success of the country and United Nations engagement in it.”
Ambassador Wu Haitao emphasized that stability has prevailed in Haiti and the security situation is improving steadily.
Wu declared, “China hopes that all parties in Haiti will safeguard the positive-development momentum of the country, increase efforts to develop the economy, improve people's livelihood, and fully implement the Haitian National Police strategic plan, creating favorable conditions for the thorough improvement of the situation in Haiti.”
Wu also commended MINUJUSTH and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for their contribution to the effective deployment and functioning of the Mission.
Much had been achieved regarding the United Nations efforts to combat the cholera outbreak, Wu declared, stressing that China contributed resources to the UN through the China-United Nations Peace and Development Fund, and called on the international community to respond positively to the Organization’s cholera initiatives in hopes of wiping out the epidemic.
Wu also assured that China is keen on seeing the international community continue to help improve the situation in Haiti through the provision of humanitarian and developmental aid, and that the Chinese government remains ready to cooperate with the Security Council to achieve long-term stability and sustainability in Haiti in a timely manner.
The Security Council is anticipated to renew the United Nations Mission’s mandate which expires on April 15.
