Image copyright AFP Image caption A small contingent of Brazilian troops will remain in Haiti until the UN mission ends in October

Haiti's government has launched a campaign to re-establish its army, dissolved more than 20 years ago.

It wants to recruit about 500 men and women to help deal with natural disasters and to patrol borders.

The recruitment drive follows the announcement by the United Nations mission that it would be leaving Haiti in October.

But critics say the island's small budget should be spent on the national police force of about 15,000 officers.

A Ministry of Defence statement said the recruitment drive is open to both men and women between the ages of 18 and 25, who have passed their secondary education exams.

The UN Security Council agreed in April to withdraw their security forces, the blue helmets, and leave only a small police presence to support the Haitian police.

The UN departure has sparked a debate over whether Haiti should or should not form a new army.

Many politicians support the idea arguing it would provide jobs for young people.

But the government's critics say a military force could quickly become politicised, becoming a weapon in the hands of whoever is the president or prime minister.

For much of Haiti's history, the army has been used to crack down on political dissent by a series of authoritarian presidents.

During the 29-year family dynasty founded by Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier in the 1950s, the army was pushed aside and replaced by the Tonton Macoutes, a feared private militia famed for its savagery.

But when Duvalier's son, Jean Claude, was ousted and fled to France in 1986, the army high command - notorious for its repressive tactics and packed with Duvalier appointees - remained in place.

Image copyright UN Image caption The UN mission played a big role in helping the country to overcome the devastation caused by the 2010 earthquake

After Haiti's first democratically-elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, was ousted in a 1991 military coup, soldiers and paramilitary forces committed countless atrocities and are estimated to have killed about 4,000 people over the next three years.

Haiti's leaders argue the new army would have different kinds of military duties, providing help after natural disasters and fighting smuggling.

Many international donors have been unenthusiastic, after having poured billions of dollars into developing the Haitian National Police which now has about 15,000 trained members.</s>Today in Media Files, the Walkley Foundation has put its foot down, saying it will not reinstate the international Walkley award category despite protests from the industry, as its arts award finalists have come under fire.</s>An unlikely catch in the Derby last fall has turned into a fundraiser for Haiti. Margaret Penicaud won a motorized fishing kayak after reeling in a 40-inch, 23.8-pound bass. “I thought it would be a miracle to catch anything from a kayak. It towed me in circles,” she said recently. “It was the Vineyard sleigh ride.”

Instead of taking it out onto the high seas, Ms. Penicaud saved her prize kayak to raffle off. The proceeds of the raffle will go to the Daughters of Queen Mary Immaculate in Haiti, who will put the money toward supporting children’s education.

Ms. Penicaud also helped establish a fish farm in Haiti, whose profits support the school. She got the idea for it in 1998 on her first trip to the country. “I’d never experienced Third World poverty, so I was praying to God, ‘What can I do?’ and fish farming came to me out of the blue.” The fish farm now has five ponds, which help support a school that enrolled 427 students last year. The farm supports 60 of those students.

There have been numerous setbacks since the farm’s establishment. Two years ago they had their solar panels stolen, which provided all of their power, and last year, Hurricane Matthew hit.

Ms. Penicaud had been having a good Derby before her big catch. She’d already gotten a Grand Slam, the distinction awarded when a contestant catches all four types of fish in the Derby, consisting of bluefish, bass, false albacore, and bonito. When she heard about the hurricane, however, she said, “I was thinking, ‘What can we do for Haiti?’’ Winning the kayak seemed like the perfect thing.

The raffle tickets are $25 per chance and can be purchased on the fish farm website, fishfarmhaiti.org, or by mailing the check to “Fish Farm Haiti” at P.O. Box 1803, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568. The drawing will be on July 29.
Haiti will reinstate its armed forces after 20 years of having none.