Caribbean News
Kenya will lead 1,000 Member Team into Haiti, UNSC approves Intervention
Rashaed Esson
Staff Writer
#Haiti, October 4, 2023 – The Multinational force to be led by Kenya to Haiti was on Monday October 2, 2023 approved by the United Nations and now the East African Nation can deliver on its promise to deploy 1,000 police officers to the republic.
Reports say the force will not be under UN rule, according to the resolution which was acquired over the weekend by the Associated Press. Also, it stated that it will be funded by voluntary contributions, ABC reports.
The force will run for 12 months as authorized under the resolution and will undergo a review after nine months within its one year period.
Now that the mission is approved, as reported, the Haitian National Police will receive operational support from the multinational force especially in its underfunded and under-resourced state carrying just about 10,000 officers, not to mention their losing battle against the gangs.
The Special Force will work towards a number of things to help revive Haiti. As stated by the Resolution, it will help build the capacity of the local police “through the planning and conduct of joint security support operations as it works to counter gangs and improve security conditions in Haiti.”
And, it will aid in securing “critical infrastructure sites and transit locations such as the airport, ports, and key intersections,” which would be crucial move as the gangs have taken control of key roads leading from Haiti’s capital to the country’s northern and southern regions, disrupting the transportation of food and other goods.
As previously pointed out in reports, Kenya will not be left alone in their endeavor as it will be backed by other nations that have pledged to support Haiti such as Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas and even non Caribbean nations such as Italy as well as the United States which committed about $200 million in support, including logistics and equipment will participate in the stabilization of the embattled Republic.
Of the Security Council, 13 of the 15 members voted for the mission; China and Russia abstained.
Jean Victor Geneus, Haitian Foreign Minister spoke about the voting as reported by Voanews saying, “The vote on this text represents significant progress towards resolving the multidimensional crisis that Haiti is going through,” adding that it’s a glimmer of hope for the people that have for too long been suffering the consequences of a difficult political, socioeconomic, security and humanitarian situation.
On behalf of Haiti, Maria Isabel Salvador, representative, UN representative in Haiti, had open arms welcoming the approval of the mission, expressing that it’s “positive and decisive step to bring peace and stability to the country,” further pointing out that it's not under the UN saying, “It is important to emphasize that, unlike recent international missions deployed in Haiti, the MSS mission is not a U.N. mission.”
This brings to attention the fact that Haiti has had issues in the past with UN peacekeepers deployed in the country.
For instance, in 2004, when the UN approved a stabilization mission which was vitiated by a sexual abuse scandal and the introduction of cholera.
Considering this, there has been concern regarding Kenya’s promise to lead the security force to the nation especially since critics say Kenya's police have long been accused of using torture, deadly force and other abuses.
But the Resolution aims to keep the deployment in check, explicitly stating every effort to repeat any offence against Haiti must be thwarted and if suspected, the necessary action must be taken in order to ensure sexual exploitation and abuses are absent from the intervention. This includes better scrutiny, the Resolution demands that participating personnel be thoroughly vetted.
The UN Security Council endorsed agreement also demands swift investigations of any allegations of misconduct.
The resolution warns that those involved in the mission must adopt wastewater management and other environmental controls in order to prevent the introduction and spread of water-borne diseases.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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