Thank you, Mr President. And thank you also to our briefers for their presentations.
As we have said before in this Council many times, the people of Haiti deserve an end to the dysfunction that has plagued their state institutions and governance for so long.
I want to start by joining others in calling for free, fair, credible and transparent elections in order to enable a transfer of power in February 2022. This is critical to putting Haiti on a path to stability and prosperity.
The UK remains deeply concerned by the lack of accountability for human rights violations and abuses. While we recognise the challenges, it is frustrating – to say the least – that, after years of international support, this impunity endures. Only political will from Haiti’s leaders can break this cycle.
Mr President, the fact that decades of international support to Haitian institutions has failed to generate durable peace dividends rightly begs questions about the tools and approaches deployed over the years.
The Integrated UN Office in Haiti represents this Council’s conviction that international engagement with Haiti needed to rest on a new model of cooperation, with Haitians firmly in the lead.
Experience has taught us that sustainable peace needs to be built from the ground up. Political processes need to be accompanied by grassroots engagement to promote social cohesion and diffuse tensions. Yes, elections are critical; but the violence and corruption that has long plagued Haiti can only be overcome in the long term by empowering local peacebuilders.
The UK remains convinced that the integrated UN presence in Haiti positions the UN better to support Haiti’s needs on the basis of a more holistic approach. The success of community violence reduction programmes shows what can be achieved. So we encourage the UN Country Team in particular to align their strategies firmly in support of peacebuilding approaches.
Thank you, Mr President.
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