A Kenyan court on Friday blocked the government's “unconstitutional, illegal and invalid” decision to send a thousand police officers to Haiti, which has been plagued by gang violence, as part of a United Nations-backed mission.
• Also read: Haiti is a victim of “barbarism” similar to war zones
• Also read: Kenya says it is ready to lead a multinational force in Haiti
The decision marks the halt of the much-anticipated multinational force trying to contain growing chaos in this small Caribbean nation, where gang violence has claimed nearly 5,000 lives, including more than 2,700 civilians, in 2023, according to a report by the U.N. secretary on Tuesday – General Antonio Guterres.
Facing increasingly urgent demands from the Haitian government and the United Nations, Kenya agreed to lead this force of 2,500 to 2,600 men, which is hoped to happen “in the first quarter of 2024,” according to the UN deputy special envoy.
But this decision, confirmed by the Kenyan parliament on November 16, sparked strong protests in this East African country.
Opponent Ekuru Aukot had notably appealed to the Nairobi High Court, arguing that this mission was unconstitutional as it was not based on any law or treaty.
“The National Security Council has no mandate to deploy national police officers outside Kenya,” said Justice Enock Chacha Mwita.
“Such a decision violates the constitution and law and is therefore unconstitutional, illegal and invalid,” he added.
The Haitian Foreign Minister again called for reinforcements to be sent to the island quickly on Thursday. “Every day that passes without this much hoped for support is one day too many to live in gang hell,” Jean Victor Généus told the UN Security Council.
“Mission for Humanity”
Kenya has already participated in several peacekeeping operations in neighboring countries (Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia) and in other parts of the world (Liberia, East Timor, former Yugoslavia, etc.).
Authorities in Nairobi have faced intense criticism since their decision to send police to Haiti, a highly unstable and dangerous country.
The Supreme Court's decision is a setback for the Kenyan authorities.
President William Ruto said the deployment was a “mission for humanity” in a country he said was ravaged by colonialism.
According to the UN Security Council resolution adopted in October after difficult negotiations with 13 votes in favor and 2 abstentions (China and Russia), this non-UN “multinational security assistance mission” was planned for “an initial twelve-month period” and was reassessed after nine.
The resolution also called on the future mission to “take appropriate wastewater management measures” to prevent the spread of disease.
A recommendation presumably intended to reassure Haitians who have very bad memories of the last international force stationed on their territory.
Blue helmets from the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (Minustah), stationed from 2004 to 2017, actually transmitted cholera and led to an epidemic that claimed more than 10,000 lives. This episode partially explains why the future force will not be formed under the United Nations flag.
In a context of terror in which residents are forced to flee or hide, the country is experiencing one of the “worst” food crises in the world, the UN report lamented on Tuesday.