Florida governor visits Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, June 17 (UPI) -- Florida Gov. Jeb Bush traveled to Haiti to visit projects with ties to his home state, news sources reported Thursday.

Bush went to the troubled Caribbean nation at the invitation of U.S. Ambassador James Foley.

The Miami Herald reports the details of Bush's visit were kept secret until he left Florida's capital Tallahassee on Wednesday.

The Florida governor and brother of President Bush was accompanied on his trip by U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Andrew Natsios and Adolfo Franco, assistant administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Bush was scheduled to meet with several Haitian leaders including President Boniface Alexandre and Prime Minister Gerard Latortue and members of the business community.

Haiti is in the midst of recovering from its latest political upheaval which culminated in the Feb. 29 departure of then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide following weeks of pressure from armed rebel groups and members of the international community.

The Florida governor said his visit was "meant to demonstrate that Florida stands with its friends in times of peace and prosperity, as well as in times of distress and uncertainty," the Herald reported.

Many Haitian refugees make their home in southern Florida fleeing the island nation's political and social upheaval.