Sean Penn named ambassador for Haiti in ceremony

AAA??Jan. 31, 2012?11:53 PM ET
Sean Penn named ambassador for Haiti in ceremony
AP

U.S. actor Sean Penn, left, Haiti's President Michel Martelly, right, and Haiti's Foreign Minister Laurent Lamothe, center, make a toast as they pose for pictures after a special ceremony at the national palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012. Penn has been named ambassador at large for Haiti in recognition of his humanitarian work since the 2010 earthquake. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

U.S. actor Sean Penn, left, Haiti's President Michel Martelly, right, and Haiti's Foreign Minister Laurent Lamothe, center, make a toast as they pose for pictures after a special ceremony at the national palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012. Penn has been named ambassador at large for Haiti in recognition of his humanitarian work since the 2010 earthquake. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

U.S. actor Sean Penn, right, and Haiti's President Michel Martelly, shake hands as they pose for pictures after a special ceremony at the national palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012. Penn has been named ambassador at large for Haiti in recognition of his humanitarian work since the 2010 earthquake. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

U.S. actor Sean Penn, right, and Haiti's President Michel Martelly, pose for pictures after a special ceremony at the national palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012. Penn has been named ambassador at large for Haiti in recognition of his humanitarian work since the 2010 earthquake. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

U.S. actor Sean Penn, left, accompanied by Haiti's President Michel Martelly, delivers a speech during a special ceremony at the national palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012. Penn has been named ambassador at large for Haiti in recognition of his humanitarian work since the 2010 earthquake. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) ? Actor Sean Penn has been named ambassador at large for Haiti in recognition of his humanitarian work since the 2010 earthquake.

The Hollywood star received the honor from Haitiian President Michel Martelly at a special ceremony Tuesday evening at the National Palace.

Martelly thanked Penn for keeping the spotlight on the Caribbean nation.

The president joked that the "only downside" to Penn's new position is that he can no longer call the actor by his first name. Now Penn will be called "Ambassador."

Penn's J/P Haitian Relief Organization was set up a few months after the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake to oversee a settlement camp where thousands of people displaced by the disaster lived.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-01-31-CB-Haiti-Sean-Penn/id-08ed4dd481824aa7ad4d58c697263781

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