STATEMENT BY

AMBASSADOR RAYMOND WOLFE 

PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF JAMAICA TO THE UNITED NATIONS 

TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON BEHALF OF CARICOM STATES

ON “THE QUESTION OF HAITI”

APRIL 6^TH, 2009

NEW YORK

Mr. President,

When I assure you of the pride and satisfaction which my delegation feels in addressing the Security Council in the name of the 14 member states of the Caribbean Community on the Question of Haiti, and express my gratitude for the invitation extended to do so, I do much more than pay homage to a convention of this august body. I feel that I am discharging a family obligation, since Haiti is a member of the Caribbean family. We sit in the same regional Councils, working together toward the same regional goals and objectives, and therefore naturally share a common view of the importance of this consideration by the Council of the situation where Haiti is concerned, and a common expectation regarding its outcome.

 Mr. President,

The Secretary General deserves commendation for the wide-ranging, frank and substantive assessments contained in the Report he has presented in Document S/2009/129 on the progress of the effort to implement Resolution 1840 during the period August 27 2008 to February 27, 2009. In that Report we see clearly the enormous complexity of the situation in Haiti and the many challenges facing the effort to consolidate Haiti’s stability, and lay a foundation for security and sustainable long-term development. These processes were further complicated by the series of tropical storms and hurricanes which ravaged the country during the reporting period, and later by the effects of the global financial and economic crisis.  Mr. President, while there is certainly no room to minimize or downplay the seriousness of the factors that still hobble the stabilization effort in Haiti, in like manner we should be careful to discern, and give their due worth to, the creativity, perseverance and sheer grit through which we see hopeful changes emerging on the Haitian panorama. I refer to the area of establishing political dialogue, the extension and strengthening of the authority and reach of the state, and of the rule of law, for example.

For sure, these are achievements of the Haitian authorities and people, who deserve our recognition. But a great share of the credit also goes to the men and women of MINUSTAH  for their dedicated, patient and constructive involvement in providing assistance and support to the people of Haiti over a wide range of areas critical to the re-establishment of conditions of stability, such as the provision of security assistance to the electoral process, enhancing institutional capacity, promoting and strengthening security, reducing violence, enhancing Police capacity, the enjoyment of human rights among others. The Caribbean Community expresses its sincere appreciation to MINUSTAH for these valuable contributions by them.

But, however encouraging these improvements may be, the Secretary General is careful to note their fragile nature. While the task of making them more robust is the responsibility of the Haitian authorities and people, the international community has a duty to support them in this effort. In this regard, the Caribbean Community supports the convening of the High Level Donor Conference to lend support to the implementation of the National Strategy for Growth and Poverty Reduction Paper. We look forward to strengthened unity and cooperation among the Haitian people, and the creation of conditions of greater security and stability in the country. In our view, these would offer the best promise of a meaningful and productive partnership between the Haitian authorities and the donor community in order to ensure that the country is helped onto a path of sustained economic recovery.

Finally, Mr. President, the Caribbean Community wishes to thank the Secretary-General for his report and for his recent visit to Haiti.  We strongly endorse his appeal for the international community to continue to focus attention on the provision of much needed assistance to Haiti. We also wish to express sincere appreciation to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG), Heidi Annabi, for his leadership of MINUSTAH and for the comprehensive report that he provided to the Council.