The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

UNDER heavy security detail, 112 Haitians will be deported to Port-au-Prince, Haiti this morning, the Department of Immigration announced yesterday.

This will be the first reparation flight to Haiti since the country began experiencing civil unrest.

“The 112 deportees includes the 18 survivors of the recent Abaco tragedy, 64 Haitian migrants recently apprehended in the Exumas with remaining 30 having been arrested at New Providence and throughout the Family Islands,” the department said.

“The Department of Immigration stands resolute in its mission to regulate the movement of people across our borders ensuring its security whilst promoting the harmonious social and economic development of our country.”

For about 12 days, widespread looting and protests rocked Haiti.

The country’s Tourism Minister Marie-Christine Stephenson said the unrest has now ended after unexpectedly flaring up.

According to the Straits Times, Haiti’s tourism industry suffered from the unrest, with hotels “reporting cancellation of reservations and many empty rooms.”

The government announced the temporary closure of the Bahamian embassy in Port-au-Prince last weekend, but operations resumed in recent days.

This recent round of violence in Haiti occurred after months of anti-corruption demonstrations over the disappearance of almost $4bn.

The funds, set aside through the controversial Petrocaribe deal between Haiti and Venezuela over the last two-plus decades, was earmarked for social development before going missing.

The protest was championed under the slogan “Kot kob Petrocaribe a?” translated “Where is the Petrocaribe money?”.

The demonstrations shutdown several business and administrative districts in Port-au-Prince, including the neighbourhood Haitian President Jovenel Moise calls home

Earlier this month, protesters stoned President Moise’s home, resulting in a clash with police that left at least one demonstrator dead.