Canadian embassy staff relocated

• The Canadian government has relocated some of its embassy staff in Port-au-prince, leaving a skeleton crew of essential personnel on the ground amid what it called a “volatile situation” in Haiti.

Global Affairs Canada announced Thursday that it was temporarily reducing the number of staff at the embassy due to the “lack of reliable supplies” and the “need to support an effective presence in a volatile situation.”

Sébastien Beaulieu, director general of security and emergency management with Global Affairs Canada, confirmed at a technical briefing that staff had been relocated to the Dominican Republic on Thursday morning via chartered helicopter.

For security reasons, Beaulieu said he was unable to provide staffing numbers, but said that between 10 and 50 per cent of personnel remained at the embassy.

He said that Ambassador André François Giroux remained in Port-au-prince and that a “previously credited” Canadian diplomat from the country’s security team had been brought into the country to work as a “supplement and a complement” to the team in Port-au-prince.

“The embassy in Port-auprince is temporarily closed to the public, and we are providing consular services remotely,” Beaulieu said. “The security situation remains volatile.”

The Haitian government declared a state of emergency in Ouest Department, including Port-au-prince, on March 3. On March 5, the Dominican Republic closed its air border with Haiti, with the land and sea borders between those two countries remaining closed.

Beaulieu said Thursday morning’s operation was done “with the support and co-operation of the Dominican Republic.” It followed similar moves by other countries over the past week.

No assisted departures or repatriation flights are planned for Canadians at this time, said Beaulieu, who noted that the country’s partners weren’t undertaking similar operations, either.

“As part of our emergency preparedness mandate, however, we are working on prudent contingencies with our domestic and international partners,” Beaulieu said, noting that the political and security situations in Haiti were being monitored.

Close to 3,000 Canadians in Haiti are registered with the Registration of Canadians Abroad service, Global Affairs Canada said, with the embassy and the federal emergency response centre receiving fewer than 100 calls since March 3.

The Canadian government’s travel advice for Haiti, last updated Wednesday, urged the public to avoid all travel to the country due to the “threat posed by kidnappings, gang violence and the potential for civil unrest throughout the country.”

A nightly curfew is in effect in Ouest Department, and the Toussaint Louverture International Airport is closed.