Minister of National Security, the Hon. Wayne Munroe is commenting on the interest of The Bahamas in ensuring security in Haiti as unrest continues in that country.
Munroe told ZNS News, “our current offer is to do the same thing train their Coast Guard and in terms of providing maritime security to project the patrols that we carry out in the southern Bahamas nearer to Haiti, off the coast of Haiti, search vessels for contraband going in and to turn back vessels with human smuggling and migrant smuggling coming out. And so you would look at the same thing that the Defence Force does in the southern Bahamas only thing closer to Haiti so it wouldn’t involve necessarily transporting them to The Bahamas and then repatriating them. It would involve turning them around and sending them back to Haiti.”
The Minister said what is happening in Haiti underlines why it is a concern for The Bahamas, why what happens in Haiti affects our national security interest. “We’re all concerned, of course, about outflows from Haiti to surrounding areas inclusive of criminals who would have escaped from their prisons. This was always a possibility so that’s always a reason why we in The Bahamas have to concerned about what is happening in Haiti for our own selfish reasons,” Munroe said.
The Bahamas has committed to sending 150 troops to Haiti as part of a peacekeeping mission led by Kenya. Munroe also gave an update on when officers of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force will be deployed. He said, “some may argue that it’s in our interest now to send our vessels closer to Haiti as the Coast Guard has some vessels in the area to turn people around that is not something that a decision has been made on yet. We still hope to coordinate with CARICOM and if Kenya leads the mission, the Kenyans, in providing that maritime security part of the whole security apparatus for returning peace to Haiti.”
