Kenya’s president Ruto and Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry have signed an agreement to deploy Kenyan police to the Caribbean island nation as part of a UN-backed security mission to restore order. In a speech made on Friday at Nairobi’s State House after the signing, Ruto said he and Ariel Henry had discussed ways to fast-track the deployment – even though Kenya’s High Court recently ruled that sending the planned 1,000 officers would be unconstitutional.
Critics of the envisaged mission say it would violate Haitian sovereignty – and is really just a US operation with a Black face. While gang violence is rampant in Haiti, many of the guns used originate from the US, and previous meddling by Washington has fanned instability in the country. Ruto insists sending officers is an act of solidarity, not occupation. But African Stream has done vox pops in both countries and the people disagree.
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