July 2, 2024, New York – In response to the deployment of Kenyan police to Haiti, the Center for Constitutional Rights released the following statement:

Hundreds of Kenyan police have arrived in Haiti for a U.N,-approved and U.S.-funded “security mission.” The forces include the U.S.-trained and funded Kenyan Rapid Response Team (RRT) responsible for the extrajudicial killings and disappearances of civilians in their own country. The deployment takes place as Kenya’s president, William Ruto, cracks down on protesters opposing policies that favor the country’s ruling elite and cater to U.S. financial interests. The Kenyan military has killed dozens, but the protests forced Ruto to shelve his finance bill, which would have raised the prices of essential goods at the behest of the International Money Fund — a striking victory for a movement led by young people. 

The “security mission” is the latest effort of the United States to impose its will on Haiti, the world’s first Black Republic. For more than 150 years, Haiti has endured relentless interference from the United States, including an invasion in 1915 that led to a 19-year occupation and a coup in 2004 that led to the dismantling of the country’s democracy. While the “security mission” may have the appearance of international legitimacy, the United Nations has, on many occasions, prioritized the economic and political advantages of the Global North over the urgent needs of the Global South. 

The Center for Constitutional Rights stands in solidarity with Kenyans and Haitians as they struggle for liberation and self-determination. The United States and its allies have no interest in solving problems in these countries, only in exploiting them. Solutions must come from Haitians and Kenyans themselves, and an essential step is to throw off the shackles of imperialism and colonialism, just as Haitian revolutionaries overthrew slavery in 1804.