Ja: Caricom, thinking

CARICOM MAY at its Heads of Government meeting in Antigua in May, consider formally accepting the interim government of Haiti, says K.D. Knight, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

Speaking with The Gleaner on Saturday after returning from a meeting of CARICOM foreign ministers in Barbados, Mr. Knight said: "At the meeting in Antigua on May 4, it is possible that at CARICOM's Bureau of Heads conference may consider the matter." He said they had given their undertaking to certainly consider accepting Haiti's interim government in July at their meeting in Grenada.

The Caribbean Community had made it clear that it would not support or accept any government formed in the aftermath of a series of events which led to ousting of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who went into exile on February 29 after factions in Haiti rose up against him. Gerald Latortue, a former Haitian Foreign Minister, who was living in exile in Miami, was appointed to lead the interim government.

Mr. Knight said that at the meeting of CARICOM Foreign Ministers, member states had reiterated their commitment to assist the United Nations Stabilisation Force in restoring the crisis-torn nation of Haiti. "CARICOM has reiterated that member states will be involved in that process," he said.

He said that CARICOM's participation "doesn't necessarily call for troops. There are a variety of ways in which we can be involved meaningfully and outside of (providing) troops." He said CARICOM could assist with training programmes and health. "There is also the electoral process and the whole matter of institutional development and capacity building."
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Mr. Knight was tight-lipped about when Mr. Aristide would depart from Jamaica and to which country he will be going. "He is going to Africa," Mr. Knight said.