The U.S. government is defending the slow pace of U.S. sanctions against Haitian politicians and businessmen for their alleged involvement in financing armed gangs and corruption in Haiti. A senior State Department official, quoted by the Miami Herald, said Thursday that “the U.S. standard of proof is much higher than most countries and any decision must be supported by evidence.
“Each country has its own legal authorities, which can make it a little confusing to keep track of what each country is doing,” the U.S. State Department official said. “We need to bring more evidence to the table and corroborate that evidence,” he justified.
Acknowledging that the situation in Haiti remains incredibly complex, difficult, the official said the U.S. continues to talk with potential partners in the Western Hemisphere, Africa and Europe to support the Haitian government’s request for an international response force. “But there is also an emphasis on the need for Haitian political actors to come together in a more thorough way. And that was part of the conversation that really dominated in Nassau with CARICOM,” the Biden administration official continued.
The U.S. official said he looks forward to the results of the work of a newly appointed UN panel of experts currently in Haiti. “I am encouraged by the work they are doing and will do to identify new targets for multilateral sanctions,” the official said.