I thank SRSG La Lime for her briefing. I welcome the presence of the Foreign Ministers of Haiti, the Foreign Minister of Dominican Republic and other representatives to today's meeting.

Mr. President, the Secretary General's report submitted last week and today's briefing by the Special Representative both painted a picture of an unprecedented crisis in Haiti. The level of complexities, chaos and difficulties may very well exceed our imagination. China is deeply sympathetic about the worsening humanitarian situation and recent outbreak of cholera in Haiti. We are concerned over the inability and inaction of the Haitian government as unbridled gang violence against civilians are rampant and go unpunished. We express our deep sympathy to the Haitian people, especially women and children for their dire misery caused by the chaos.

The political parties in Haiti turn a blind eye to people’s suffering and obsesses on fighting over party and personal interests. This is beyond disappointing. All Haitian political parties and groups should have a sense of responsibility and strengthen dialogue to reach an agreement on state political structure and transition arrangement. 

This will help break the current political impasse and restore the constitutional order. BINUH must take concrete actions to urge and promote Haitian political parties and groups to bridge differences through dialogue and consultation with an effort to come up with a road-map for political process. We welcome the readiness expressed  by CARICOM members to facilitate the Haitian political process and to help the country emerge from the political stalemate as soon as possible.

Mr. President,

Rooting out the scourge of gang violence is both an entry point for any improvement in the situation and a prerequisite for a fundamental solution. Council members and the Secretary General are fully aware of this and consensus exists on their judgment. Resolution 2645 adopted by the Council this past July indicates that the Council is ready to take measures against the gang members and their supporters. United States and Mexico as pen-holders circulated last week a draft resolution on imposing sanctions on criminal gangs and we appreciate their efforts.

China supports targeted sanctions including travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo to be imposed on gangs and their supporters. We hope to see robust and effective measures which will play a role in deterring gang violence, cracking down on violent crimes and cutting off the supply of fund and weapons to gangs. We expect that the pen-holders will hear views of Council members and take on-board all Council members so as to continuously improve the draft and fine tune the text with a view to ensuring sanction regimes be vigorous and get to the crux of the problem. We must prevent gang members from using potential loopholes to evade sanctions. As for the implementation of sanction measures, it’s important to avoid a mere formality with no real effect.

Mr. President,

The recent proposal by the Secretary General on supporting Haiti's security deserves careful consideration. China is ready to have an in-depth exchange of views with others. We have taken note of the call by Haitian Prime Minister for a specialized force to be sent to Haiti. We have also taken note of the opposition from some political parties and groups to the presence of foreign armed forces in Haiti. As the Haitian government lacks legitimacy and is unable to govern, will the deployment of a rapid action force to Haiti receive understanding, support and cooperation from all the parties in Haiti? Will it face resistance or even trigger violent confrontation from the population? These factors need to be considered in an integrated manner and be dealt with caution.

Since the 1990s the United Nations has deployed various UN Missions such as MICIVIH, UNMIH, UNSMIH, MIPONUH, MINUSTAH, MINUJUSTH in Haiti and we now have BINUH in the country. Unfortunately, these efforts did not pay off nor achieve intended objectives. The UN's presence in Haiti over the past 30 years has proven that a rapid solution imposed from the outside will only produce temporary results with no long lasting effect. Without a strong desire, a sense of common purpose and collaborations from all sectors of the Haitian society, external efforts will not be of much help in the end. The key to the Haitian issue is in the hands of the Haitian people themselves. The international community should proceed from a long-term view by supporting Haitian people in seeking a comprehensive, homegrown solution based on their own unique situation.

Thank you, Mr. President.