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Why Kenya has stopped police deployment to Haiti

Last year, Kenya pledged to deploy around 1,000 police officers to Haiti.

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by Bosco Marita

News12 March 2024 - 18:39

In Summary


  • Korir Sing’oei, principal secretary for foreign affairs, said without a political administration in Haiti there was no anchor on which the deployment can rest.
  • Mr Sing’oei added that Kenya will wait for the installation of a new constitutional authority before further decisions are made.
President William Ruto speaks after the signing ceremony of an agreement on deployment of 1,000 police officers to the Multi-National Security Support Mission in Haiti on March 1, 2024.

A top civil servant in Kenya's ministry of foreign affairs has told the BBC that the planned deployment of police to Haiti is now on hold following the announcement by Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry that he would be stepping down.

Korir Sing’oei, principal secretary for foreign affairs, said without a political administration in Haiti there was no anchor on which the deployment can rest.

Mr Sing’oei added that Kenya will wait for the installation of a new constitutional authority before further decisions are made.

Last year, Kenya pledged to deploy around 1,000 police officers to Haiti as part of an international force in a bid to combat the gang violence.

The deployment had been held up in the courts but earlier this month it seemed as if all the legal hurdles had been cleared.

The UN has backed Kenya's offer to lead a multinational security force in Haiti in response to a plea from the Caribbean nation's prime minister for help in restoring order.

Haiti has suffered from gang violence for decades but the current wave of brutality escalated after the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.

Gangs have taken control of large parts of the country, waging terror on residents and killing hundreds.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said that a "robust use of force" is needed to disarm the gangs and restore order.

Greenlighting the deployment, the UN Security Council resolution approved the mission for a year with a review after nine months.

When this was first proposed in July, Kenyan officials said the officers would guard government buildings and infrastructure, but that plan changed after Kenya sent a fact-finding mission the following month.

Kenya now wants to deploy an intervention force that will neutralise the armed gangs, protect civilians and bring about peace, security and order.

Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua told the BBC that his country would also like to help Haiti rebuild vital infrastructure and establish a stable democratic government.

The Bahamas, Jamaica and Antigua and Barbuda have said they will take part in the mission and the minister added that Spain, Senegal and Chile were also likely to deploy security personnel.

Mr Mutua said he expected the force to be in place by the beginning of next year.


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