Some Haitians look at Canada for help as they face loss of protected status in the U.S.
| Autor | Rodriguez, George |
Tens of thousands of Haitian nationals in the US are at risk of losing the Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which might force them to return to a country that is in no condition to take them back.
The status was initially granted to more than 50,000 Haitians immediately after the catastrophic earthquake of 2010 and has since been extended for successive 18- to 24-month periods. It gives Haitians who were in the US prior to 2011 the right to stay and work in the country, among other benefits.
The extensions have responded to successive social and economic blows suffered over the past seven years by Haiti, including a cholera epidemic and a devastating hurricane. About 80% of Haiti's population of 10 million people are affected by poverty and, on average, survive on less than US $2.00 a day (NotiCen, Oct. 20, 2011, Jan. 10, 2013, Oct. 20, 2016).
During last year's election campaign, at a rally in Miami, US President Donald Trump assured Haitian immigrants: "Whether you vote for me or you don't vote for me, I really want to be your greatest champion. And I will be your champion, whether you vote for me or not." But the Trump administration's Department of Homeland Security announced in a May 22 press release that the TPS July deadline for Haitians had been extended only until January
"Haiti has made progress across several fronts since the devastating earthquake in 2010, and I'm proud of the role the United States has played during this time in helping our Haitian friends," then-Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly said in the press release. Kelly has since been promoted to White House chief of staff.
"The Haitian economy continues to recover and grow, and 96% of people displaced by the earthquake and living in internally displaced person camps have left those camps," Kelly said. "Even more encouraging is that over 98% of these camps have closed."
Kelly also cited, as indications of the recovery in Haiti, the Haitian government's plans to rebuild the Haitian president's residence at the National Palace in Port-au-Prince, and the planned withdrawal of the Mission des Nations Unies pour la Stabilisation en Haiti (UN Mission for the Stabilization of Haiti, MINUSTAH) in October. MINUSTAH will be replaced by the smaller, basically police, Mission des Nations Unies pour l'Appui a la Justice en Haiti (UN Mission for Justice Support in Haiti, MINUJUSTH) (NotiCen, May 11, 2017).
According to the press release, "Secretary Kelly was particularly...
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