Above: OAS Special Representative Frederic Bolduc (left) and Haiti Justice Minister Jean Renel Sanon (right) (OAS Photo)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Haiti’s government and the Organization of American States have signed an agreement for the donation of two firearms marking machines to the country.

Haiti is the latest Caribbean nation to sign a pact to receive the machines from the OAS, which are part of a drive by the regional body to fight the illicit trade in weapons.

“The agreement demonstrates a strengthening of the ties of friendship and cooperation between the OAS and Haiti,” said Justice Minister Jean Renel Sanon. “The project is very welcome, because these machines will allow for the modernization of the Haitian National Police and protect society from crime.”

Sanon signed the agreement Friday along with Frederic Bolduc, special representative of the OAS, in Port-au-Prince.

The agreement for the donation, which was funded by the United States government, is part of the “Promoting Firearms Marking in Latin America and the Caribbean” programme, which follows the Inter-American Convention against Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and Other Related Materials.

The firearms marking equipment marks weapons permanently with identifiable information, including the serial number, caliber, model and manufacturing site.

The OAS has said the machines are essential in helping authorities to identify guns recovered at crime scenes, both in determining the weapons’ origins and identifying trafficking routes.

Thus far, 23 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have signed on to the agreement.