HAITI: UN COUNCIL MISSION REPORTS STRIDES IN SECURITY, WORRISOME POVERTY

HAITI: UN COUNCIL MISSION REPORTS STRIDES IN SECURITY, WORRISOME POVERTY
New York, Mar 19 2009 6:00PM

Haiti is making strides in security sector and judicial reform but continues to grapple with widespread poverty and vulnerability to disasters, the leader of a United Nations Security Council mission to the impoverished Caribbean nation said today.

"It does appear that there is a window of opportunity to enable the consolidation of stability and the undertaking of a process of sustainable development," said Ambassador Jorge Urbina of Costa Rica," who had led the four-day fact-finding visit that concluded on 14 March.

"It was evident to the mission," Mr. Urbina noted, on the other hand, "that the current levels of extreme poverty, in which 80 per cent of the people live on under two dollars a day and 50 per cent on under one dollar are incompatible with the goal to establish stability in the short term."

He said that in the last five years, Haiti had reached its goal of putting 14,000 police officers on the streets, and a successful anti-violence programme, carried out in partnership with the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and the UN Development Programme (UNDP), had brought stability to formerly lawless urban areas.

Border security had also been strengthened with the assistance of MINUSTAH, he said, and the country was also moving forward with an ambitious programme of judicial and constitutional reform eight elections scheduled over the next three years, which officials assured would be free and fair.

However, in addition to the high levels of extreme poverty, local governments were limited in their capacity to provide basic services, even though the Government and MINUSTAH, he were working together to expand the country's administrative capacity, Mr. Urbina said.

In addition, he said, Haiti's limited economic, social and cultural rights proved worrisome, a situation that was exacerbated by natural disasters, particularly the hurricanes last year that slammed into the city of Gonaïves, as well as the current food and financial crises.

During the mission, he said, Japan's representative had expressed concern that agricultural production, which employed more than half the population, barely covered 48 per cent of Haiti's food needs. He and other Council members urged Haitian authorities to adopt agricultural policies that would spur production.

On the regional front, Council also met with members of the core group of countries interested in Haiti and had observed a high level of commitment to the country among Latin American nations.

In addition, he said, Haitian authorities had repeatedly noted their growing interest in South-South cooperation, and the importance of the continued involvement of regional and subregional organizations such as the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) for Haiti's hemispheric integration.
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HAITI: DIALOGUE AND SUPPORT CRUCIAL TO AVOID NEW CRISES, UN COUNCIL STRESSES

HAITI: DIALOGUE AND SUPPORT CRUCIAL TO AVOID NEW CRISES, UN COUNCIL STRESSES
New York, Mar 16 2009 4:00PM

As the United Nations Security Council completed its four-day mission to Haiti this weekend, it stressed that national dialogue and international support were critical to meet coming challenges in security, stability, recovery and development.

"A reinforced partnership between the Haitian Government and the international community remains necessary for the success of actions that must be pursued in the future," Ambassador Jorge Urbina of Costa Rica, leader of the delegation, told correspondents at a press conference in the country's capital, Port-au-Prince, on Saturday.

"The country cannot permit new political crises and in that regard the collaboration of all branches of the State constitutes a very important contribution," he added, emphasizing that the Council encourages all political actors to keep the calm and work in a constructive manner toward the next elections.

He said that continued national and international action was particularly important to strengthen the police force, the justice system and the administration of borders, and Council members also encouraged international support for employment in the short term, without forgetting the need to set clear long-term goals.

Haiti, already the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, was devastated by four successive storms in as many weeks last year, leaving 800 people dead and another one million either homeless or badly affected.

The country was also hit hard by the spike in commodities prices last year as it attempted to recover from earlier natural disasters, as well as the high crime and political instability that come under the mandate of the UN mission in the country (MINUSTAH).

Before leaving Haiti this weekend, the Council delegation took part in the reopening of the Port-au-Prince School of Magistrates, a major component in the reform of the Haitian judicial system – one of MINUSTAH's key mandated priorities.

Justice sector reform was also among the topics of discussion between the Security Council delegation and President René Préval and his prime minister, a UN spokesperson added.

In addition, during its mission the Council delegation visited the city of Gonaïves, which was hard hit by last year's storms and where it was briefed by MINUSTAH on its work in security and institution-building.

It saw a rebuilt regional electric plant and also visited a watershed protection project being implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the International Labour Office (ILO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), MINUSTAH said.

During the Gonaïves tour, Hédi Annabi, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative for Haiti and head of MINUSTAH, expressed the hope that the Council would conduct more such visits to better understand the challenges faced by the Mission.

"We hope that this visit of the Security Council on the ground will enable it to have a better perception of the reality and to realize the importance of the presence and the usefulness of the United Nations here," he said.

"We hope equally that this visit allows members of the delegation to communicate what they have seen to their respective Governments and to encourage them to augment their contributions for Haiti," he added.
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