SECURITY COUNCIL MISSION IN HAITI CONDEMNS MURDER OF PEACEKEEPER IN CITÉ SOLEIL,

REITERATES FULL SUPPORT FOR UN PRESENCE, TRANSITIONAL GOVERNMENT

Following is a press statement issued today by the head of the Security Council mission to Haiti:

The members of the United Nations Security Council’s working mission to Haiti have learned with sadness and indignation of the murder today in Cité Soleil, Port-au-Prince, of a member of MINUSTAH while discharging his duties in pursuit of peace on a mandate established by the Security Council.

The members of the mission express their sincere condolences to the Philippine contingent, the family of the victim and the Government of the Philippines.  They condemn with the utmost vigour both this despicable act committed against a peacekeeper and continued violence against MINUSTAH, representatives of the international community and the people of Haiti.  In this regard, they express their solidarity with the inhabitants of Cité Soleil who face violence and intimidation by armed groups.  The purpose of MINUSTAH’s presence in Cité Soleil is to assist the population to recover stability and social progress.

The members of the mission demand that all efforts be made to arrest and bring to justice the perpetrators.

In conclusion, they reiterate their full support for MINUSTAH and the Transitional Government in carrying out their missions of consolidation, stabilization and development in Haiti.

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