United Nations Security Council Resolution 2243 – Haiti

Resolution 2243 (2015)

The Security Council,

Reaffirming its previous resolutions on Haiti, in particular its resolutions 2180 (2014), 2119 (2013), 2070 (2012), 2012 (2011), 1944 (2010), 1927 (2010), 1908 (2010), 1892 (2009), 1840 (2008), 1780 (2007), 1743 (2007), 1702 (2006), 1658 (2006), 1608 (2005), 1576 (2004) and 1542 (2004),

Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity of Haiti,

Recognizing that, over the past year, Haiti has taken important steps towards stabilization, that paved the way for the completion of the legislative elections and for the presidential, municipal and local elections to take place in 2015,

Welcoming the organization of the first round of the legislative elections on 9 August 2015 in a relatively peaceful environment, and acknowledging the steps taken by the Haitian institutions to take corrective measures to address irregularities and improve the upcoming rounds of elections,

Noting the importance of the Government of Haiti, the Electoral Council and political parties to ensure that the upcoming rounds of elections are conducted in a free, fair, peaceful and democratic manner and in accordance with the electoral law,

Recognizing that the overall security situation remained generally stable with some improvement since the adoption of its resolution 2180 (2014),

Recognizing the importance of condition-based security-related decisions about the future of MINUSTAH and noting that there were incidents of sporadic violence during the first round of elections while there was no increase in levels of insecurity or violence in the Departments from which the military component withdrew,

Recognizing the important role of MINUSTAH in ensuring stability and security in Haiti, and commending MINUSTAH for continuing to assist the Government of Haiti to ensure a secure and stable environment, and expressing gratitude to the personnel of MINUSTAH and to their countries and paying tribute to those injured or killed in the line of duty; commending also the wide range of reconstruction efforts in Haiti and the successful work achieved by MINUSTAH’s military engineering units,

Underlining the need to further strengthen Haitian judicial and correctional systems, in order to support a more integrated and cohesive Haitian security sector, and noting the commitment by the Government of Haiti to strengthen the rule of law, and to make further progress in security sector reform, and encouraging Haitian authorities to continue to pursue efforts in that regard,

Recognizing also the interconnected nature of the challenges in Haiti, reaffirming that sustainable progress on security, the rule of law and institutional reform, national reconciliation and development, including the combat against unemployment and poverty, are mutually reinforcing, and welcoming the continuing efforts of the Government of Haiti and the international community to address these challenges, in line with the government’s priorities,

Reiterating the critical role of the Haitian National Police (HNP) to Haiti’s security and stability; welcoming the ongoing strengthening, professionalization and reform of the HNP; noting the partial progress made in the implementation of the five-year 2012-2016 Haitian National Police Development Plan and reiterating the importance of maintaining support for it, especially in the area of recruitment and retention,

Underscoring the importance of adequately funding the Haitian National Police to enhance its logistic, administrative and operational capacities, and encouraging the Government of Haiti to take advantage of the support being provided by the international community to guarantee the provision of adequate security for the Haitian people and calling on all international partners to strengthen their coordination in this regard,

Recognizing the steps taken by the Superior Council of the Judiciary, including important appointments in 2015 that contributed to the strengthening of its capacity and the adoption of its internal rules of procedure in June 2014, to carry out its mandate and promote the strengthening of judicial independence, and expressing the need to further address human rights concerns that still remain in the corrections system, such as prolonged pretrial detentions, prison overcrowding and inhumane conditions,

Noting with concern that the humanitarian situation in Haiti has deteriorated significantly since the Secretary-General report on MINUSTAH released in March 2015 while also noting reduced funding has limited the ability of the United Nations system and its partners to provide an adequate response to the multiple challenges,

Noting with concern that food insecurity, as a result of drought and the consequent decrease in the harvest during the period from March to June, could impact the humanitarian situation and stability,

Acknowledging that while important progress has been made, Haiti continues to face significant humanitarian challenges, with approximately 60,801 internally displaced persons, whose living conditions in the remaining sites, which are characterized by malnutrition, uneven access to water and sanitation, affecting especially women and children, must be further addressed, underscoring that funding to provide basic services and relocation subsidies for the remaining IDPs is no longer available,

Welcoming the ongoing efforts by the Government of Haiti to control and eliminate the cholera epidemic, the progress made in reducing the incidence of cholera in Haiti, and urging the United Nations country team in coordination with other actors to continue to support the Government of Haiti in addressing the structural weaknesses, in particular in the water and sanitation systems, and underscoring the importance of strengthening the Haitian national health institutions, and recognizing United Nations efforts to combat cholera, including through the Secretary-General’s initiative to support the National Plan for the Elimination of Cholera; stressing the importance of adequate and sustainable support with particular attention to rapid and targeted medical responses to outbreaks designed to reduce the threat, recalling the visit that the Secretary-General undertook in July 2014 to Haiti, and taking note that he, among other things, launched jointly with the former Prime Minister the “Total Sanitation Campaign” as a key initiative against cholera, and the creation of the High-Level Committee for the Elimination of Cholera,

Welcoming the first meeting of the High Level Committee on Cholera since the change of Government in January 2015, co-chaired by the Prime Minister Evans Paul and the Special Representative of the Secretary General Sandra Honoré, and noting that the increase in cholera cases reported at the end of 2014 and in the first four months of 2015 began showing signs of reversal in May, although the situation remains of concern in the West, Centre, Artibonite and North departments which account for more than 80 percent of the total number of cases between March and August 2015,

Emphasizing that progress in the reconstruction of Haiti, as well as in Haiti’ssocial and economic development, including through effective, coordinated, commendable international development assistance and increased Haitian institutional capacity to benefit from this assistance, are crucial to achieving lasting and sustainable stability, and reiterating the need for security to be accompanied by social and economic development, including efforts in risk reduction and preparedness that address the country’s extreme vulnerability to natural disasters, efforts in which the Government of Haiti plays a leading role,

Welcoming the continued development of the Government of Haiti’s Framework for the Coordination of External Aid (CAED) as its preferred donor coordination mechanism and venue for supporting the Government of Haiti’s development priorities and welcoming also the increased joint programming of the United Nations country team in Haiti in alignment and coordination with the Government-endorsed Integrated Strategic Framework, and welcoming also the commitment to foster greater alignment of international assistance with national priorities, increase transparency and strengthen mutual accountability, as well as the need for stronger coordination,

Welcoming the review and the revision of the integrated strategic framework between the United Nations country team and MINUSTAH, which culminated in the signature of the revised framework on 28 May 2015, that serves to reinforce cooperation among the different elements of the United Nations presence in Haiti, and has allowed MINUSTAH and the United Nations country team to identify specific areas for enhanced collaboration, subject to the availability of additional financial resources,

Urging donors to complete their pledges in order, inter alia, to help promote access to services and jobs for the most vulnerable, and underlining the Government of Haiti’s responsibility to provide clear guidance to donors on its priorities and to facilitate delivery of assistance to those most in need,

Emphasizing the role of regional organizations in the ongoing process of stabilization and reconstruction of Haiti and calling on MINUSTAH to continue to work closely with international financial institutions, regional and subregional organizations, and other stakeholders, in particular the Organization of the American States (OAS), Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM),

Welcoming the continued efforts of the HNP to patrol and enhance its presence and engagement directly with the population; recognizing MINUSTAH’s continued community policing efforts, in close coordination with camp committees, in sites for internally displaced persons, and welcoming their engagement with the population,

Expressing serious concern that sexual and gender-based violence, especially against women and children, remains a substantial problem, particularly in marginalized districts of Port-au-Prince, remaining internally displaced persons sites and remote areas of the country,

Recognizing that strengthening national human rights institutions as well as respect for human rights, including of children, and due process and combating criminality, sexual and gender-based violence, and putting an end to impunity and ensuring accountability are essential to ensuring the rule of law and security in Haiti, including access to justice,

Reaffirming the authority of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the coordination and conduct of all activities of United Nations agencies, funds and programmes in Haiti, and reaffirming also its support to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General’s role in ensuring optimal coordination and collaboration between MINUSTAH and the United Nations country team in connection with the aspects of their respective mandates that are correlated particularly as part of MINUSTAH’s condition-based consolidation plan,

Taking note of the Secretary-General’s report S/2015/667 of 31 August 2015,

Mindful of its primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security under the Charter of the United Nations,

Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, as described in section 1 of operative paragraph 7 of resolution 1542 (2004),

Adopted by the Security Council at its 7534th meeting, on 14 October 2015.