Ja a likely destination for Haitian criminals, warns official
Foreign affairs permanent secretary says country has vested interest in bringing calm to neighbour
Published:Thursday | May 23, 2024 | 12:12 AM
The New York Times has reported that the deployment of the Kenyan-led multinational police force to Haiti is expected to happen in a matter of days.
Jamaica has committed to sending a combined 200 members of the Jamaica Defence Force and the Jamaica Constabulary Force to the French-speaking CARICOM country to assist in restoring calm after it descended into chaos following the 2021 murder of President Jovenel Moïse.
However, it is believed that the stranglehold that the Haitian gangs have on the country’s infrastructure, including police stations and seaports, could pose a significant challenge to the Kenyan-led multinational force.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Ambassador Sheila Sealy Monteith told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that Jamaica has a vested interest in cauterising the effects of the instability in Haiti, given the country’s proximity and the challenges facing law enforcement in both countries.
Appearing before the Internal and External Affairs Committee of Parliament, Monteith said that Haitians have been involved in criminal activities in Jamaica as they represent a significant percentage of foreign nationals arrested and repatriated each year owing to criminal convictions for immigration and narcotics-related offences.
Turning to undocumented migrants, some of whom have subsequently applied for refugee status, Monteith said two groups have been returned to Haiti. Further, she said that one group is currently “under special temporary protection regime being cared for by the State until such time of their return or other measures are prescribed”.
She noted that as the security situation deteriorates in Haiti, Jamaica is a likely destination for criminals, illegal migrants and refugees.
The foreign affairs permanent secretary told the committee that increased infiltration by both documented and undocumented Haitian migrants, some of whom have ill intent or are involved in transnational organised crime, remained a challenge for Jamaica.
Monteith also noted that two of the prime suspects in the assassination of the Haitian president were apprehended in Jamaica following their illegal entry into the country.
“The risk for increased migration is higher due to frequent civil unrest as well as recurring natural and manmade disasters,” she said.
A transitional council has been established in Haiti to pave the way for national elections.