Why Canada is Hesitant to Join Kenyan Troops in Haiti Despite US Pressure
Despite intense pressure from the United States Government, Canada’s reluctance to deploy troops to Haiti in tandem with Kenya has been the subject of fresh revelations.
According to a report by the Canadian news outlet CBC, the government of the North American nation, led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, did not voluntarily offer to assist in the restoration of peace in the Caribbean country.
Conversely, the impetus to participate originated from the presidency of Joe Biden of the United States Government. According to reports, the United States contended that it was already managing considerably more severe global crises.
Canada, as stated in the report, exhibited a preference for financial contributions and dispatching a fact-finding team rather than deploying personnel on the ground.
Although Trudeau is cautious about repeating errors made by Canada during previous deployments, he does advocate for the Haitian government to assume the primary responsibility for resolving the conflict.
“We have to come to grips a bit with the history of large military interventions, where basically you’re just pushing aside all of the Haitian institutions and (saying), ‘We’ll do this,” the outlet quoted Trudeau.
“And then the pressures come from back home, saying, ‘Well, how long are those troops going to be there?’ Troops come out again, and then where are you? What have you got left?”
Trudeau’s perspective was corroborated by Bob Rae, the ambassador of Canada to the United Nations, who contended that the nation would have promptly extended assistance had Haiti assumed the main role and requested it.
“We think with the appropriate kind of help and assistance, and whatever it is that they ask for and feel that they need, yes, we’re going to do it. But it’s really important for the Haitian political elite to take some responsibility for what’s taking place and what continues to take place,” Rae stated.
“That’s exactly why in all of our discussions in Haiti on the ground … we’re saying to all other leaders, you’ve got to get together, you’ve got to create a path that leads to an election but … also leads to it strengthening all of the institutions that make up a democratic society.”
However, Kenya is making arrangements to dispatch more than one thousand police officers to Haiti in order to spearhead a peacekeeping mission.
The project, which is supported by President William Ruto, was halted weeks ago subsequent to Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s resignation, which disrupted an agreement between the two leaders.
At the local level, Kenyans have remained enraged by the deployment, with the majority arguing that the conflict was veering more towards war and that the deployment of police officers was an attempt at futility.
Longtime Miami Herald correspondent for Haiti Jacqueline Charles told CBC News that the current conflict was more severe than previous ones because of the overwhelming number of gangs involved and their cooperation to thwart the government.
Additionally, she observed that this week, members of a specific gang known as the 5 Seconds gang started donning camouflage fatigues, FAL rifles, assault sidearms, and radios, and organising themselves into a paramilitary organisation.
“In the last two weeks, what we’re seeing is coordinated violent attacks by gangs that normally don’t speak to each other. They’ve orchestrated two major prison breaks. We’ve got thousands of people on the streets, murderers, kidnappers, and other kinds of criminals. They’re still out there. You have a police force that is overworked and outgunned. So I don’t think anybody has seen this in Haiti in recent years,” she explained.
A week ago, President William Ruto and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau engaged in a telephone conversation during which the latter expressed his approval of the news regarding the appointment of a transitional government and a provisional council, as per a political agreement reached among Haitian stakeholders.
“Prime Minister Trudeau expressed his appreciation for Kenya’s leadership of the United Nations-authorized Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission to restore stability in Haiti. The Prime Minister and the President discussed the latest developments and shared their deep concerns over the security and humanitarian crises, reiterating their commitment to supporting the people of Haiti and the MSS mission,” read the statement in part.
A Ksh11 billion contribution was committed by Canada in support of the mission.
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Why Canada is Hesitant to Join Kenyan Troops in Haiti Despite US Pressure
