HAITI – Countries of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and others such as the United States and Canada, could make a vital contribution to Haiti by helping to train the Haitian National Police, according to Assistant Secretary General Albert R. Ramdin of the Organization of American States (OAS).
Ramdin highlighted the value of such assistance during a panel discussion at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, noting that security and governance issues are among the most pressing challenges facing Haiti.
Ambassador Ramdin stressed that for stability to prevail, the government must be able to deliver short-term results. He cited income generation and job creation, in an environment of less violence, as achievable objectives that could help create confidence in the political process.
Ramdin said that besides security, the OAS would also continue to focus its Haiti support program on democracy and governance as well as development issues such as tourism and reforestation.
The panel discussion – on “Governance and Security in Haiti: Can the International Community Make a Difference?” – also included as panelists Haiti’s Ambassador to the United States, Raymond Joseph, and the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the OAS, Roberto Alvarez. Johanna Mendelson Forman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) moderated.
Ambassador Ramdin also spoke about OAS technical assistance to Haiti to address human trafficking and illegal firearms issues, saying the OAS will also continue with its civil registry project and with its support to transform the Provisional Electoral Council into a permanent body. Ramdin underscored the importance of involving civil society and the private sector in these endeavors and, noting the recently established Haiti Task Force that he chairs, further explained that the OAS was in the process of streamlining its Haiti program.
The Assistant Secretary General said the OAS was gratified at the unprecedented political momentum in the Western Hemisphere in support of Haiti, and urged a more constructive focus on the Caribbean country’s development needs. Too often, he said, the international community’s support fails to adequately take into account Haiti’s needs, being more concerned with “what is available in terms of resources assistance and technical support, from their perspective. It is important to change that paradigm and bring Haiti into the forefront.”
Meanwhile, the Haitian Ambassador presented a detailed historical analysis of the major factors underlying Haiti’s present problems, while the Dominican Ambassador addressed, among other issues, how his country is affected by the situation in Haiti.
