Kenyan parliament votes for police deployment to Haiti

Kenyan parliament has approved sending a contingent of police officers to help quell gang violence in Haiti, despite a court order barring the sending of the officers pending the hearing of a case.

The MPs’ decision came on Thursday, just as the court was hearing a petition on the legality of the deployment.

The parliament has approved the sending of 1,000 police officers to Haiti to help quell gang violence despite a court order that has barred the deployment pending the hearing of a case.

MPs supporting the motion said the country was part of the global community and could not ignore when other countries were in need.

They also argued that Kenya has a history of peacekeeping missions such as in Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone.

Those opposed said the country is facing its own security challenges and cannot afford to spare any of its officers.