Electronic press briefing by Ministry Spokesman
Statements made by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs Spokesman (excerpts)
(Paris, 21 January 2010)
[Please note that only the original French text issued by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs may be considered official. (http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr )]
HAITI: UPDATE ON THE FRENCH EFFORT AS AT 21 JANUARY
Immediately after the earthquake which rocked Haiti on 12 January, France mobilized extensively to come to the aid of the disaster-stricken people and assist the French nationals.
1. Personnel and equipment deployed
Today, 21 January, 920 French personnel are deployed in the relief operations in Haiti: 580 Interior Ministry staff, 321 military personnel, 10 additional Foreign and European Ministry officials and 9 Health Ministry staff.
A further 148 people are in the process of being deployed (127 sécurité civile [emergency services] and 21 medical staff) which will bring the French presence to 1,068 people as from 22 January.
The relief teams, assisted by a helicopter and a sécurité civile plane, have already completed work on 13 sites and are currently working on 4 new ones.
They have extricated 14 survivors from the rubble. A sécurité civile command unit is helping in the supervision of these operations. The organization of the relief is now entering a consolidation phase focused on helping the people and increasing logistical support, reflected by a progressive disengagement of the search-and-rescue/ rubble-clearing units.
A field hospital (70 people, 33 tonnes) has been installed since 17 January at the French lycée and has the capacity for 25 major surgical operations. It is assisted by an advanced medical unit (70 people, 6 tonnes) which is doing the triage and treating the walking wounded, as well as providing additional in-patient capacity. A sécurité civile helicopter is evacuating some patients to hospitals in Guadeloupe and Martinique, depending on the type of treatment required. All in all, 77 French doctors, 75 nurses and a pharmacist, in 50 mobile teams, are deployed on the ground. These medical teams have seen over 4,000 patients.
To address the health challenge of supplying the disaster-stricken people with drinking water, a water purification unit has been installed capable of supplying up to 20,000 people a day.
3 to 5 military planes are making daily round trips between Haiti and the French West Indies.
They have already delivered 100 tonnes of equipment and emergency supplies. In addition, a Defence Ministry C-130 is delivering humanitarian aid and transporting French nationals evacuated from Haiti to the French West Indies.
French capabilities are also being put at the disposal of the NGOs which have 43 workers on the ground. Yesterday, 5 more humanitarian workers and 15 tonnes of aid left Paris for Port-au-Prince.
The light transport and landing ship has unloaded its cargo (vehicles, tents and humanitarian aid). 3 planes chartered by the Foreign and European Affairs Ministry left Paris yesterday with 20 tonnes of equipment and 20 tonnes of humanitarian aid.
The Foreign and European Affairs Ministry’s crisis centre has also sent a team of 6 specialists in consular and humanitarian issues to Haiti. In Paris, the 50 crisis centre staff remain fully mobilized to coordinate the French effort. Since the beginning of the crisis, an “adoption unit” has been set up within the crisis centre, manned by 7 members of the International Adoption Service. In the “telephone answering unit” nearly 150 Ministry volunteers have been working in shifts since 12 January to deal with some 14,500 calls received to date.
2. The effort is continuing
A further 95-strong sécurité civile squadron has arrived in Fort-de-France and is awaiting its deployment to Haiti. The landing platform dock [ship] “Sirocco” will arrive on 24 January with helicopters, medical teams and 800 tonnes of equipment.
The Foreign and European Affairs Ministry is endeavouring to charter another plane by the end of the week to transport NGO staff and freight.
3. French community
Since 13 January, the round-trip flights have evacuated 1,115 people, including 683 French nationals and 391 Haitians. There has regrettably been confirmation of the deaths of 22 French nationals, whilst we are still without news of 11 of our compatriots.
4. European response
At its 18 January meeting, the EU Council announced a three-phase financial effort:
short-term humanitarian aid of €122 million (€30 million from ECHO and €92 million from Member States). France has announced a contribution of €14 million, including €10 million in response to the UN appeal and €2 million for emergency food aid.
medium-term rehabilitation: the European Commission has announced €100 million (€40 million of budgetary aid, €40 million for restoring essential infrastructure and €20 million under the Stability Instrument).
long-term reconstruction: the European Commission has announced €200 million.
5. Security
To address the United Nations’ request for help with security in Haiti, France is in favour of the European Union rapidly setting up a European police/gendarmerie unit to assist MINUSTAH for six months.
France is prepared to contribute up to 100 gendarmes to this unit for this period to provide it with the temporary reinforcements the United Nations has asked for.
The Foreign Affairs Council of 25 January will provide us with the opportunity, under Mrs Ashton’s chairmanship, to take a collective decision to this end.
This concrete contribution to security will supplement the massive rapid European assistance put in place to come to the aid of the Haitian people.
(…)
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO/ATTACKS BY THE LRA
We utterly condemn the massacres and brutal acts of violence perpetrated by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), and urge it immediately to lay down its arms.
The rendering incapable of causing harm and arrest of a number of LRA leaders over the course of 2009 is a positive development. We must put an end to the activities of this armed movement, whose crimes against civilians, particularly women and children, have gone on for too long.
We are committed to ensuring the effective protection of vulnerable civilians. That is why we are encouraging the operations being carried out against the LRA in the DRC by the Congolese security forces, with the support of the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC), in accordance with UNSCR 1906 adopted by the UN Security Council on 23 December 2009 on France’s proposal.
CHAD/SUDAN
France welcomes the N’Djaména agreement on normalizing relations between Chad and Sudan, signed on 15 January by Chad’s Minister of External Relations, Mr Moussa Faki, and Sudan’s Special Envoy, Mr Ghazi Salaheddine.
This agreement is a vital step forward which we welcome and demonstrates the willingness shared by Chad and Sudan to engage in direct and constructive dialogue.
The mutual confidence-building measures provided for in the agreement must now be implemented according to the set timetable. We support, in particular, the implementation, as swiftly as possible, of a joint mechanism to secure the borders.
France also welcomes the appeal launched by the two countries to the armed groups. We have always believed in the impossibility of a military solution in the region: these groups must renounce armed combat and engage in negotiations with their country’s authorities as quickly as possible.
France, like her partners in the international community, remains very committed to improving relations between Chad and Sudan, deeming that this will pave the way for a regional political settlement and lasting peace.
Q. - The Chadian government asked the United Nations not to renew MINURCAT’s mandate which will expire in March. What is your reaction?
MINURCAT’s mandate, established by UNSCR 1861 of 29 January 2009, is due to expire on 15 March. We have noted the Chadian authorities’ desire to look at ways of concluding this mission.
Discussions should take place very soon between the Chadian authorities and the United Nations on the future of MINURCAT; the Secretary-General will then present recommendations to the Security Council.
At this stage, we are keen to ensure that MINURCAT’s missions set out in UNSCR 1861 continue to be carried out: protection of civilians in danger, in particular refugees and internally displaced persons; facilitation of the delivery of humanitarian aid; free movement of humanitarian personnel. In a security context that remains difficult, it is important that all parties keep this imperative in mind.
We would like, in particular, to work on strengthening the activities carried out by the Chadian Integrated Security Detachment, which is responsible for the security of the refugee and displaced persons camps and is currently trained and supported by MINURCAT.
(…)
VENEZUELA
Q. - What is France’s reaction to President Hugo Chavez’s decision to order the expropriation of the French-Colombian hypermarket chain Exito (Casino Group), accused of having increased its prices for “speculative” purposes?
France is concerned about the accusations of speculative practices and by the measures taken against the Exito and Cada stores, which belong to the French group, Casino. This group employs 5,000 people and has been present in Venezuela for 10 years; it has always made sure it complied with the Venezuelan legislative and regulatory framework.
France has confidence in the Venezuelan authorities to clear up the misunderstandings with the French company as swiftly as possible. (…)./.