HAITIAN POLICE ACADEMY GRADUATION SPEECHES

UNCLAS PORT AU PRINCE 001852

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SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/EX AND WHA/CAR
INL FOR KEVIN BROWN AND ANGELIC YOUNG
S/CRS
INR/IAA
STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CAR
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
WHA/EX PLEASE PASS USOAS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV SNAR SOCI KJUS HA
SUBJECT: HAITIAN POLICE ACADEMY GRADUATION SPEECHES
HIGHLIGHT NEED FOR JUDICIAL REFORM


1. (U) This message is sensitive but unclassified -- please
protect accordingly.


2. (U) On November 6, the 19th class of recruits of the
Haitian National Police (HNP) Academy graduated. The class
consisted of 627 cadets, including 86 women. This is the
largest number of women to ever enter the HNP, the result of
a recent push by the HNP to actively recruit women. The
class has been almost entirely assigned to the Motorized
Intervention Brigade (French acronym BIM),for deployment
throughout the hotspot areas of Port au Prince. The USG
supported the class with equipment, clothing, training
instructors, vehicles and food supplements. This class
brings the official total number of HNP officers to 8,949,
against an estimated need for 14,000 officers nationwide.


3. (U) The three-hour ceremony was heavily attended, with
the Academy Director, the Director General (DG) of the HNP,
the Minister of Justice, the Prime Minister, and the US
Charge all speaking. The US Charge, Minister of Justice and
Prime Minister all referred to the need for the judicial
sector to play its part in coordination with the HNP to
create a well-functioning justice sector. The Charge likened
the two sectors to pillars supporting a building, that each
could not support the structure alone or remain upright
without the other. He symbolically presented the DG of the
HNP with a set of keys, representing the 30 pickup trucks, 40
ATVs, 200 motorcycles and one tow truck donated by the USG
through the NAS program for use by the BIM. The Minister
emphasized the need to reopen the National Magistrate School,
and to create a functioning, efficient, and effective
judiciary. The Prime Minister emphasized that the recent
improvements in the HNP needed to go hand-in-hand with
similar improvement in the prison system and reform of the
judicial system. He thanked the HNP for their service,
remembered the fallen from their ranks (including a police
commissioner gunned down earlier that week) and also thanked
the people for their support of the police. He announced
that the salaries of the HNP were under review, with an eye
toward increases ranging from 20-35 percent. (Note: the
average HNP officer makes the equivalent of less than 400 USD
per month). Following the speeches, some HNP cadets
presented a show of motorcycle skills on the new bikes and
all passed in review for the dignitaries.


4. (SBU) Comment: It is noteworthy that the highest ranking
GOH officals to speak emphasized the need for progress on
judicial reform. This tracks with the frustration Post has
heard expressed by HNP, GOH and international contacts on the
lack of significant progress on reforming the judicial
system. The judicial system is the missing piece in the
justice system. While progress is being made on police
reform, the courts are exacerbating massive prison
overcrowding due to the glacial pace at which cases are heard
(if at all). The judicial system is also widely viewed as
deeply corrupt, with arbitrary prisoner releases undercutting
the efforts of the police to curb violent crime in the city
and to combat gangs in areas such as Cite Soleil.
SANDERSON