Manning in Caricom team seeking to broker Haiti deal

Prime Minister Patrick Manning leaves for Kingston, Jamaica today to attend a meeting on Saturday with the Prime Ministers of Jamaica, the Bahamas and St Lucia and Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide. The four CARICOM leaders are also scheduled to meet with the leader of one of the main Opposition groups in Haiti — Andy Apaid. Manning said yesterday they were hoping to broker an agreement aimed at arriving at a peaceful solution to the Haitian crisis.

Saying that Caricom leaders had done better than they expected, Manning said they were under no illusions when they assumed the difficult task. He said Caricom intervention was designed to secure ultimately a development programme aimed at improving the quality of life for the people of Haiti. This was its main concern, he said. The meeting is a continuation of the CARICOM initiative, which was spearheaded by Prime Minister Manning following his meeting with US President George Bush. Manning is scheduled to return to Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday.