Haiti - U17 Football : Haiti and Jamaica will play two friendly matches
Haiti and Jamaica will play two friendly matches of football as a goodwill gesture, following allegations of abuse against the young Haitian U17 footballers. Last week, after Jamaican doctors diagnosed malaria among some team members, the Haitian team was forced to withdraw from the CONCACAF championships.
Some Haitians had seen in these measures, a form of discrimination. Rudyard Spencer, the Jamaican Minister of Health, in a statement to Parliament last Tuesday, said that the Jamaican and Haitian officials have held talks to resolve, what the Minister has described as a misunderstanding on the health policy of his country.
He recalled that the appropriate health protocols were observed about the treatment of the Haitian team and expressed his deep regret. He regretted the circumstances which necessitated the withdrawal of the Haitian team from the CONCACAF tournament. "Jamaica is obliged to maintain heightened surveillance against malaria since the Anopheles mosquito, by which it is transmitted, is endemic to Jamaica, and there's a real danger of the disease if the parasite is introduced among the population"
Prime Minister Bruce Golding, has expressed his regret and deplored the sensationalisation of this issue in Haiti, which he attributed to misunderstandings from language differences. He had assured President Rene Preval during discussions that Jamaica had done everything possible to stem the spread of the disease.
