Chile will keep its peacekeeping troops in Haiti until June at
least, Chile's defense and foreign ministers told a press
conference Sunday.
The ministers made the remarks after a meeting with Haitian
president- elect, Rene Preval, who was in Chile to attend the
inauguration ceremony for Chile's new president Michelle
Bachelet.
"We already have permission from Congress to keep our troops in
Haiti until June," said Defense Minister Vivianne Blanlot. However,
she noted, the nature of Chile's participation in the United
Nations peacekeeping force in Haiti had yet to be discussed.
Blanlot said Chile's forces, currently in Haiti as part of the
UN peacekeeping force Minustah, would have an important role in
rebuilding public order in the country.
"We are available to help train Haiti's police: something very
much needed in peace time, but less important in wartime. This
topic must be thoroughly discussed. All the possibilities are still
open," she said.
Foreign Minister Alejandro Foxley also pledged to continue
supporting the efforts at stabilizing the situation in Haiti. He
directed the attention of Chile's legislators to the distressing
situation many Haitians were in, saying, "We are not going to turn
our back on the nation which has the most problems and the worst
poverty in Latin America."
Haiti has been plagued by gang violence since the 2004 overthrow
of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
(Xinhua News Agency March 13, 2006)
