RP mulls sending more troops to Haiti

Despite the security risks, the Philippines is considering sending more troops to Haiti as part of United Nations peacekeeping forces in that war-torn Caribbean nation, diplomatic sources said yesterday.

Philippine Army S/Sgt. Antonio Batomalaque was shot dead by a sniper while on duty with UN troops in Port-au-Prince, Haiti last month.

Diplomatic sources said the Philippines was among the first countries to pledge troops after UN Secretary General Kofi Annan called for an increased presence of UN forces in Haiti.

"We don’t know how many troops we are going to provide, but its already being worked on," a ranking Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)official said yesterday.

"Definitely, we will provide more peacekeepers," the official said.

Sources said details of the troop deployment are already being discussed by officials of the DFA and the Department of National Defense.

Apart from 135 troops, the Philippines has two military staff officers and 10 policemen serving with the UN mission seeking to restore peace and order in Haiti.

The Philippines is the 26th largest contributor of troops to UN peacekeeping operations, with 42 troops and 426 policemen deployed in missions in Afghanistan, Burindi, Cote d’Ivoire, East Timor, Haiti, Kosovo and Liberia. — Pia Lee-Brago