Meeting of US Secretary of State Anthony J. Blinken with the delegation of Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille at the State Department in Washington
The unelected Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille recently traveled to the U.S. to make his rounds, giving reports to various political leaders and members of the Biden administration.
Originally published in Haiti Liberte.
On Friday, June 28, 2024, just one month after his appointment on May 28, Prime Minister Garry Conille, who should preferably be called the colonial administrator of Haiti, left the country. He took the flight on a plane like so many others had done without saying anything about his trip, except for a press release from the Prime Minister's office indicating that he was going to Washington and New York. To do what? Nobody knows.
The Prime Minister was accompanied by his Chief of Staff, as Minister, Nesmy Manigat, the Minister of Economy and Finance Marie DA Ketleen Florestal, also Minister of Planning and External Cooperation, the Minister of Foreign Affairs also Minister of Haitians Living Abroad Dominique Dupuy to go to the United States of America.
What is the need for such a hasty trip by a head of government who has barely taken office, if not to report to his tutors, his bosses, his real leaders of the American State Department in Washington for whom he administers the country? This does not surprise us since we know well that the current politicians and women who are leaders of the country are not capable of anything without Washington approving it and giving them the green light. In other words, the current policy in Haiti is entirely defined by the so-called political experts and the government is the simple executor of their colonial project.
En route to Washington, DC, Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille made a stop in Miami for a courtesy call on Little Haiti to see U.S. Representative Frederica Wilson who stressed during a press briefing just before the meeting with Conille: "We will come out of this meeting with a list of demands for the Biden-Harris administration to support Haiti." It must be understood that in the political vocabulary of these American representatives, whether they are Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of District 20 of Broward, Yvette Clarke (Democrat NY) and so many others, the word support essentially refers to leading, taking charge and this fits well with the logic of Garry Conille's function.
In Washington, Prime Minister Garry Conille, on the morning of Monday, July 1st, flanked by his ministers, met with donors to beg them for crumbs of charity as usual. The meeting with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) included, among others, Conille and his ministers, the governor of the Central Bank, Ronal Gabriel and Alfred Metellus, Haiti's representative to the IDB. The delegation met with Vice President Ana Maria Ibañez and Amanda Glassman, advisor to the President of the IDB, namely Mohammed Al-Jasser, the former Minister of Economy and Planning of Saudi Arabia. Then the delegation went to the World Bank.
All this indicates that the country is returning to the same old tracks, the same relationships with international financial institutions that behave like bosses and it is with this in mind that Conille, as the master's faithful dog, declared without any shame: "We are trying to gain their confidence, to assure them that the Presidential Council and the government have a clear vision of what they want to do. They can move forward with us. Building this confidence is essential. I left with the feeling that our partners are ready to trust us, as is the case for the population."
On the afternoon of July 1 , the Haitian delegation led by the Prime Minister reported for more than 45 minutes to Jon Finer, deputy national security advisor of the Biden administration. According to Conille, he explained to the deputy advisor on several issues including the Multinational Security Support Mission (MMSS) and the organization of elections, a priority element for the imperialist powers so that they renew their lackeys within the state apparatus in Haiti.
On this subject, Conille simply pointed out that the Americans are very interested and impatient. Because " They wanted to have an update on how we are moving forward with this file. I am certain that in the coming days the CEP will be formed by the Presidential Transitional Council."
Finer, for his part, reiterated to the Haitian delegation the United States' unwavering support for the Haitian people, "who have suffered for too long at the hands of gangs, with nearly 5 million people now in need of emergency food assistance."
Just before the delegation returned, she met on Tuesday, July 2, with U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who welcomed the Haitian delegation in these terms: " This is an important moment for Haiti, an important moment for several countries including the United States that ardently support Haiti. We have the Prime Minister and his government in place, we have the Presidential Council, and we now have the deployment of the multinational security support mission to help the HNP regain full control of several important areas of Port-au-Prince and in the country. All of this to ensure that Haiti finds the path to free and fair elections, and to ensure, as we move forward into the future, that the support of the international community for Haiti can continue in the most robust way."
And Conille continued with an unmeasured platitude to thank his boss: "While we do not underestimate the challenges that await us, we are extremely grateful for the support, the solidarity of the American people and we would like you to also convey our thanks to President Biden who has been a true champion for Haiti. We think that the next few weeks and months will be quite interesting but we believe that with the establishment of the Presidential Council and this new government we are ready to work to meet the challenges that await us. So, thank you again for having us."
The United States colonial administrator in Haiti, Garry Conille, was also received by the Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro, Assistant Secretaries of State Brian Nichols and Todd Robinson, Deputy Administrator at USAID Michael J. Camilleri, the Managing Director of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, as well as members of the American Congress.
It is the American establishment in its most complete form that arranges behind their man and woman in the Presidential Council and the Prime Minister's Office to control the country. And so it was done!
And as former U.S. Special Envoy to Haiti Ambassador Daniel Foote, a Montana Group ally, so aptly put it in an interview with the Haitian Information Network (RHINEWS), “ the presidential council’s selection of Garry Conille was a non-transparent, multinational stunt orchestrated by the United States through CARICOM. According to him, Conille will continue to implement policies dictated by the United States, the UN, and international donors, with little regard for the medium- and long-term needs of the Haitian people.”
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