6 June 2011 - The Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Guinea-Bissau, Joseph Mutaboba, today highlighted the contribution of seven Bissau-Guinean Police officers who served for one year with the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH).

In a ceremony which brought together the country's Secretary of State for Internal Security and Public Order, General Commissioner of Public Order Police and his deputy, Inspector of Ministry of Interior, Guinean police Officers returned from Haiti, as well as members of Security Sector Reform, UNIOGBIS Chief of Staff and the SRSG.

Mutaboba (here receiving a Haitian flag) stated that the "noble and important work accomplished for Guinea-Bissau and the world, puts your country in a positive map" and also reiterated the need of using the acquired experience, with support of UNPOL from UNIOGBIS, to train more personnel for future accomplishment of missions'.

"Through your mission, the country is back to the positive map and should stay there", the SRSG and Head of UNIOGBIS stressed the need for Guinea-Bissau to contribute with more police officers to the UN peacekeeping missions.

For the Secretary of State for Internal Security and Public Order, Octavio Alves, the deployment of Bissau-Guinean police officers to serve abroad "is part of the State of Guinea-Bissau international commitments."

"As a result of some problems faced until last year, we were not in a position to contribute to the peacekeeping missions and respect the international engagements abroad. But we hope we are at the beginning of a new era", the Government representative said. The Government will do its best to have "another mission in Haiti or somewhere else".