(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-04-10 09:43

MEXICO CITY - Haitian President Rene Preval Wednesday appealed for calm in a message to his people, saying violent acts will not decrease the soaring food prices in the Caribbean country, according to reports reaching here.

This was Preval's first public statement since violence triggered by food price hikes killed at least five and injured several people in Haiti.

Preval said the solution to Haiti's food price problems "must come from within the country," adding that increased domestic production and consumption of national products would be especially important.

The Haitian government will subsidize the production of essentials like rice, milk and eggs, and will decrease the average salary of officials earning over 30,000 gourdes (857 US dollars) per month by 10 percent, the president announced.

On Wednesday, demonstrations were carried out in some neighborhoods of the capital Port-au-Prince, where dozens of protesters stoned private residences and public offices in protest against soaring food prices. Food prices have risen 50 percent over the past few months in Haiti.

On Tuesday, tens of thousands of Haitians took to the streets of the capital and tried to storm the presidential palace to protest food price hikes.

The United States on Wednesday suspended embassy operations in Haiti because of continuing violence in the country.

The same day, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern over Haiti's situation and called for calm. He also voiced regret over the loss of life in the violent protests.