Beleaguered Caribbean country wants international force to combat gangs and cholera, but ambassador also wants more lasting solutions — not just charity.
The Caribbean nation is in the grips of an evolving crisis that has crippled the country’s economic, health and political systems.
Arthus said he discussed his country’s plight with Canada’s Governor-General Mary Simon, and that he has held meetings with officials from Global Affairs Canada who are working up a response to Haiti’s problems, on top of numerous other informal contacts. Gutteres said Haiti’s ability to respond to the cholera outbreak has been hampered by gangs who have taken control of a Port-au-Prince fuel terminal where more than 70 per cent of the country’s fuel is stored.
That includes Canadian soldiers, but not just as part of a rapid-reaction force to bring a sense of order to the streets of Port-au-Prince, Gonaïves, Léogâne and other cities. Maéva Proteau, a spokesperson for Canada’s Global Affairs Minister Melanie Joly, said in a statement that the government is “carefully considering” Haiti’s call for assistance. But she noted that there needs to be a solution to the political crisis to allow for a lasting fix to Haiti’s many problems.