Canada is sending its ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, to Haiti to try to bring order to the stakeholders who are trying to resolve the current crisis through a democratic process.
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Mr. Rae is expected to be at the scene Wednesday through Friday.
“As part of this diplomatic mission, Ambassador Rae will also consult with high-level political figures, members of civil society, the United Nations and other key actors on options to support Haitian-led efforts. to deal with humanitarian and security crises, and on the role that Canada could play in the international response,” said a press release from Global Affairs.
The Caribbean country has not had a general election since 2016. Elections were due to take place in 2019, but have been postponed several times since, notably due to the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse a year ago.
Haiti is grappling with a crisis that is unfolding on the social front, but also on the political and humanitarian front. Criminal gangs have taken control of certain sectors of the economy, in the face of police forces that are struggling to regain the upper hand.
Canada, which maintains a close relationship with Haiti, is one of the countries most involved in stabilization operations.
The Trudeau government sent specialized armed vehicles in October to reinforce the official police, in addition to having sanctioned more than a dozen members of the country’s economic and political elite.
According to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, the mission announced Wednesday “is another example of Canada’s support for the solutions proposed by Haitians to the violence that is raging in the country”.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in November that no military intervention is being considered unless all political parties approve of it and there is “Haitian consensus” to that effect.
The United States believes that Canada should play a leading role in Haiti’s recovery.