Portia and Preval: different crime-fighting visions
Thursday, January 04, 2007
BOTH Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and Haitian President Réne Preval yesterday agreed that the trafficking of guns and drugs in the region was a threat to security, but offered different responses to the crisis.
According to Simpson Miller, her Government was planning a "surprise" move against drugs and weapons traffickers, operating between the coasts of Jamaica and Haiti, in order to end the trafficking "once and for all".
Said Simpson Miller: "I will not say how it will be dealt with because I believe the traffickers are to be taken by surprise. That is the only way we are going to end it."
She was responding to questions on the issue at a Jamaica House press briefing.
Preval offered no bilateral solution to the problem. He suggested, instead, that the problem was primarily one for the weapons-producing and drugs-consuming countries.
"Neither of these countries [Jamaica or Haiti] are producers of weapons and drugs. We are transit points for the drugs," Preval said.
"So, what we need to work at is not the transit points, but the consuming and producing points," Preval said.
Simpson Miller admitted that the trading of illegal guns from Haiti for drugs from Jamaica was a challenge, but resisted giving any further details about how her Government planned to deal with it.
"If we give away our strategy, then we will never be able to deal with it, once and for all," the prime minister insisted.
But Preval noted that the effort to control the trafficking of weapons and drugs must be led by those who are producing and consuming the products, as neither Jamaica nor Haiti had the resources to deal with it alone.
"I think the consumer countries should be more concerned than Haiti or Jamaica," he continued.
The Haitian president said that despite agreements between the United States and regional countries for American boats to sail into the territorial waters to stop the trafficking boats, none of the boats had been stopped to date. However, boats with Haitians seeking asylum abroad were stopped.
Preval, meanwhile, was not as forthcoming on the issue of the future of former Haitian president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Although asked twice about Aristide's future within Haiti, he did not refer to the former president in his answers.
Prior to the questions, both leaders issued a joint statement coming out of the private talks between their teams.
The statement said that both countries had agreed to strengthen their collaboration and pursue joint activities that could impact positively on economic and social recovery in Haiti.
The Haitian team listed among their priorities for national development, agriculture, tourism and "engagement within the Haitian Diaspora", as well as a potential for co-operation in social infrastructural educational and training improvements. The Jamaica delegation pledged support in these areas.
They also discussed Haiti's return to Caricom.
The prime minister's team also included minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade Anthony Hylton, and his junior minister, Delano Franklyn, as well as junior minister for tourism Dr Wykeham McNeil. President Preval's team included his tourism minister, Patrick Delatour and his foreign affairs and worship minister, Ronald Clerisme.
Preval arrived in the island yesterday and called on Governor-General Professor Kenneth Hall and former Prime Minister P J Patterson prior to the Jamaica House meeting. Today, he will call on the leader of the opposition, Bruce Golding, after which he is expected to spend the next two days vacationing at a private location on the island.
Preval Sees A Haiti Without Aristide 
Linear Mode
Similar Threads 
