NAIROBI, Kenya — The chief of the Kenyan police force has refuted claims that officers assigned to the United Nations-backed peacekeeping operation in Haiti have been without payment for the past three months.
During a statement on Thursday, Inspector General Douglas Kanja asserted that the salaries for the officers stationed in Haiti have been disbursed up until the end of October. His comments came in response to allegations from Kenyan media that cited discontented officers expressing concerns about unpaid wages for an extended period.
Kenya is at the forefront of providing a contingent of international police to address the escalating gang violence in Haiti. The deployment of the Kenyan officers in June represents the fourth significant foreign military or police initiative aimed at stabilizing the Caribbean nation.
The reception of the Kenyan police by the Haitian population appears mixed; some locals express support while others remain skeptical due to the controversial history of past interventions. The previous U.N. peacekeeping mission, which lasted from 2004 to 2017, faced scrutiny over issues such as sexual abuse allegations and the introduction of cholera, which resulted in nearly 10,000 fatalities.
Financial disclosures from Kenya’s Treasury indicated that the country has already allocated over 2 billion Kenyan shillings (approximately $15 million) for the operation, pending reimbursement from the United Nations. “The funds being utilized are an advance on our behalf for the U.N., directly sourced from our treasury because these are our officers,” stated Treasury Minister John Mbadi in comments to local media outlets last week.
According to U.N. statistics, Haiti has witnessed over 4,500 fatalities attributed to violence thus far this year, with an additional 2,060 individuals reported injured. The surge in gang violence has also resulted in approximately 700,000 people being displaced as armed groups increasingly raid and devastate communities in their efforts to expand their territories.
Dissatisfaction with the Kenyan-led operation is mounting, with critics highlighting the failure to re-establish control over gang-dominated areas or to apprehend any influential gang leaders. The situation has intensified, as last month saw escalating occurrences of violence. In light of the ongoing turmoil, the United States and other nations have advocated for a U.N. peacekeeping mission, emphasizing the lack of necessary resources and funding for the current Kenyan-led initiative.
