Wednesday, January 31, 2024 - President William Ruto has said he will ignore a court order that suspended his government from sending police officers to Haiti for a peacekeeping mission.
A high court sitting in Nairobi last
week ruled that it would be unconstitutional to deploy officers abroad unless
there was a "reciprocal arrangement" in place with the host
government.
But in an interview with Reuters
on Tuesday, Ruto said Haiti had asked for help months ago, and he expected a
request would come shortly that would satisfy the demands of the court.
"So that mission can go
ahead as soon as next week if all the paperwork is done between Kenya and Haiti
on the bilateral route that has been suggested by the court," Ruto said
following an Italian-Africa summit in Rome.
Asked if discussions were
underway with Haiti to get the necessary request, Ruto said: "Absolutely.
Haiti has written formally, not today, several months ago."
Haiti first sought help in 2022
as gang violence surged but was unable to find anyone willing to take charge,
with many foreign governments wary of supporting the impoverished country's
unelected administration.
Kenya, which has a long history
of taking part in international peace-keeping operations, stepped forward last
July and committed 1,000 police officers, saying it was doing so in solidarity
with a brother nation.
The Kenyan DAILY POST.
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