US to Support Kenya-Led Multinational Force in Haiti

Facts

• The United States on Monday announced plans to, along with Ecuador, introduce a resolution at the UN Security Council to authorize a Kenya-led 'multinational force' in Haiti, which is currently struggling with political instability and rampant gang violence.¹
• The US statement follows Kenya's announcement on Saturday that the nation is ready to lead an international security force, including 1K police officers, to provide training and support to the Haitian police so as to 'restore normalcy in the country.'²
• Meanwhile, UN chief Antonio Guterres welcomed Kenya's proposal to lead 'a non-UN multinational force' and encouraged 'member states, particularly from the region, to join forces' in supporting the Caribbean country in combating violent gangs.³
• In the coming weeks, a Kenyan police assessment mission will arrive in Haiti, where armed gangs now control around 80% of the capital. Guterres alleges that violence is continuing 'to escalate and spread,' citing murders, kidnappings, and rape of women and girls.⁴
• According to UN data, at least 160K people have been displaced, 531 killed, 300 injured, and 277 abducted in gang-related violence in Haiti — primarily in Port-au-Prince — in the first quarter of 2023.⁵
• Last week, Washington ordered the departure of non-emergency government personnel from Haiti and urged US citizens to leave 'as soon as possible' due to the deteriorating security situation in the Caribbean island nation.⁶

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera, ²Dw.com, ³Reuters, ⁴Africanews, ⁵Mercopress and ⁶CNN.

Narratives

• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by San francisco bay view. Blaming armed and supposedly independently operating 'gangs' alone for Haiti's violence and miserable security situation doesn't justify its complexity. The country's crisis primarily results from the destruction of Haitian democracy and sovereignty by US imperialism, with the UN and a corrupt Haitian elite as accomplices. Therefore, intervention by foreign forces will not solve Haiti's crisis. Only when the West stops undermining Haiti's independence can the promise of the Haitian Revolution finally be fulfilled.
• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Voa. It's a significant success for US diplomatic efforts and the UN that Kenya has agreed to lead a multinational force to control Haiti's security situation. Escalating gang violence since former Pres. Jovenel Moïse's assassination has been exacerbated by the already fragile Caribbean nation's lack of democratically legitimized institutions. More UN states must join Kenya, and the UN Security Council must act quickly to alleviate the suffering of the Haitians as soon as possible.

Predictions