A high-level Kenyan mission arrived in Haiti’s Port-au-Prince yesterday, accompanied by members of the Biden administration, for further discussion of the deployment of a Kenyan-run Multilateral Security Support (MSS) mission to Haiti to combat violent gangs. The Kenyan delegation met with Prime Minister Ariel Henry, leaders of the National Police, and other government and security officials. A high-level Haitian delegation, including representatives of the National Police and the Justice Ministry, and other government officials, is expected to travel to Nairobi soon for a more extensive briefing on details of the planned police deployment.
The Kenyan Parliament and cabinet have approved the mission, whose numbers have now increased to 5,000 police officers instead of the 1,000 originally proposed. While the mission was mandated by the UN Security Council in a resolution passed on Oct. 2, it will be run by Kenya, not the UN. As a condition for deploying the police, the Kenyan government is demanding guarantees for the mission: Adequate training for troops involved and funding to the tune of $600 million a year to cover all costs, plus $225 million more for Kenya. Funding for this mission has not been pinned down, despite offers of cooperation from several countries.
But nothing will move forward until Kenya’s High Court rules on a petition submitted by former presidential candidate Ekuru Aukot, claiming that a police deployment overseas violates Kenya’s Constitution. Consideration of that petition has now been postponed three times by Chief Justice Chacha Mwita who has set Jan. 26 as the next time the court will meet to consider it. Aukot argues that a UNSC resolution mandating the Kenyan mission “cannot supersede the provisions of the Constitution.”
