By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, October 18 -- When reports emerged Monday morning about UN peacekeepers in Haiti putting down a prison riot, in which three inmates died, some viewed it as a rare affirmative act by UN Peacekeeping, accused this summer of inaction in the face of mass rapes in the Congo, and the killing of civilians in Darfur.
One aspect of the Haiti prison riot seemed incongruous: that there were five UN personnel, and two “guests,” inside the jail even before the rioting or escape attempt began.
Inner City Press asked acting Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq what the UN personnel had been doing inside the jail, if the UN was now in the business of running prison systems.
Haq didn't directly answering, saying instead that there were “five UN staff and two guests” and that everything the UN Mission MINUSTAH does is “in support of local authorities.” Video here, from Minute 12:05.
So is the UN running prisons or not?Click here for Inner City Press previous coverage of the UN and Haitian prisons. Also, what was the role of UN Peacekeeping in the deaths of three inmates, if any?
We note that, despite a follow up question, the investigation of the death of a young Haitian who did odd jobs for the Nepali formed police unit in Haiti is either still ongoing, or its results covered up. Inner City Press asked first, then a follow up was put in last week.
In this incident, six of the seven inside the jail were from Sweden, one from the UN. It appears that Sweden had contributed police wardens, through the UN, to Haiti. While a training function could be helpful, one wonders what exactly the Swedes were doing in this jail, and who their visitors were. Watch this site.
