Editor's Review

“This is a very complicated mission, this is not a UN peacekeeping mission it is a different kind." 

US Ambassador to Kenya Meg Whitman on Tuesday, March 26 explained why Kenya’s peace mission to troubled Haiti will be delayed further.

Speaking in Nyeri County, Ambassador Whitman said the Haiti mission is different from a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission.

She noted that the Kenyan police need to be retrained and vetted before being deployed to the Caribbean nation.

The US Ambassador also said the US Department of Defence needs to set up a camp in Haiti where the Kenyan police will go.

“This is a very complicated mission, this is not a UN peacekeeping mission it is a different kind, so the police need to be trained, fully vetted, the department of defence needs to set up a camp in Haiti where this police force will go,” said Whitman.

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File image of President Ruto and Former Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

The US Ambassador further said the UN needs to set up a trust fund where Kenya will access the funds to use in the Haiti mission.

“The UN trust fund needs to be set up so that Kenya can be given the money to undertake this Haiti mission and these things take time. Nothing unusual they just take time to get everything in place and the mission set,” Whitman added.

On March 1 Kenya and Haiti signed an agreement formalizing the deployment of 1,000 police officers to the North American nation.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki signed the agreement with his Haitian counterpart at State House Nairobi.

However, the mission got a setback after Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned after weeks of pressure.

Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei on March 12 said Kenya cannot proceed with the police deployment to Haiti without a political administration on which the deployment can be anchored on.