MIAMI (HCNN) – Haiti’s Prime minister Laurent Lamothe reiterated this weekend his government’s commitment to working toward fulfilling the Haitian Diaspora’s will to fully reintegrate their homeland’s social, economic and political life, during a meeting held on Saturday in Miami with the attendance of Haitians who came from different parts of the US and elsewhere.
Lamothe said Haitians living abroad are no less Haitian than those living inside Haiti, while underlining the importance of the Haitian Diaspora for the Caribbean country’s economy.
“We are not here to talk only with Haitians living in Miami, but it is a signal that we send to to Haitians living everywhere to say how much we care about them and how much we respect them,” Lamothe said.
Lamothe announced a series of measures to ensure that better services are provided to members of the Diaspora in the Haitian consulates and in Haiti, such as the establishment at the Customs office of a special bureau to deal with issues raised by members of the Diaspora.
Consulates will remain open until 5 PM and will now open on Saturday to allow more Haitians in the Diaspora to have better access to consulate services, while Lamothe announced that fees paid to obtain certified copies of birth certificates from Haiti’s National archives will pass to $100 US, compared to the $170 US paid now by members of the Haitian Diaspora.
“We want to make things easier for the Diaspora in terms of the services we are required to provide to them,” Lamothe. “We decided to close our consulate later on week days and open their doors on Saturdays as well so that people who have difficult work schedule can access our services and at lower costs,” he explained.
The Haitian Prime minister also urged members of the Haitian Diaspora in different countries to organize to a broad conference of the Diaspora to elect a representative or representatives of the Diaspora who will be tasked with coordinating with the Haitian government and other public entities on ways to make services more accessible to Haitians living abroad and ensure they play a greater role their homeland’s economic and political development.
The meeting in Miami was part of a series of community meetings, called in Haitian Creole “Gouvenman Lakay ou”, organized by the government to openly discuss issues with communities throughout Haiti and provide immediate solutions when possible, while a follow-up committee is established after each meeting to bring solutions to problems that require some more time to remedy.
The meeting held on Saturday in Miami was the 9th, but the first of the kind organized in the Haitian Diaspora. Haitian President Michel Martelly also made a surprised appearance at the meeting, which took place at the North Miami Senior High.
