Effort To Stabilize Haiti Is Fragile, Official Says
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
UNITED NATIONS — The international effort to stabilize Haiti is extremely fragile and becoming even more so because of soaring food prices and declining living standards that have sparked riots, the United Nations envoy to Haiti said yesterday.
Hedi Annabi called for urgent food aid for the Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation, noting close to 80% of Haiti’s people live on less than $2 a day and are affected by the global increase in prices for basic food items.
The unrest began last week when Haitians burned cars and attacked a U.N. police base in Les Cayes, killing at least five people. The protests spread this week to the capital, Port-au-Prince.
“I think we have made progress in stabilizing the country, but that progress is extremely fragile, highly reversible, and made even more fragile by the current socio-economic environment,” Mr. Annabi told reporters after briefing the U.N. Security Council.
