Violence

As the UN-Approved Gang Supression Force (GSP) takes shape, many Haitians are unsure whether it will be able to reclaim Port au Prince, which is 90% controlled by gangs, let alone areas outside it.  Many questions remain.  Will the GSF reach the anticipated 5,500 police and military officers hoped for? How will the force interface with and protect civiians? How long will it remain and how will it transition if there is not a competent central government prepated to invest in its own people and their security?  The full article by Milo Milfort for the New Humanitarian follows. 

Unchecked violence continues to spread like a cancer in Haiti, with over 10,000 displaced from their homes in the north.  Suspected gang members attacked a police station in Saut-d'Eau and the Zanmi Lasante (Partners in Health) Facility in Mirebalais has also been attacked.  The Kenyan-led peacekeeping force is still more idea than reality and despite the violence, the United States continues to deport Haitians.  The peacekeepers will face a much worse security situation than any previous peacekeeping force.  More information follows in the Reuters article below. 

Gangs in Port au Prince thrive when there is an absence of governance, no rule of law, and economic stagnation.  The UN has described current levels of gang violence as unprecedented and affecting all aspects of life - for example, 11 medical centers and 442 schools have closed.  National roads connecting Port-au-Prince to the rest of the country are dangerous, limiting the movement of people and goods.  While the security situation continues to deteriorate Haiti's developmental issues remain unaddressed - environmental degradation, lack of infrastructure and investment, poor basic services, and unrelenting brain drain.  Security is not enough to address these underlying problems but it is a prerequisite - and the gangs will not give up territory willingly. The full CNN article follows. 

The Haitian President has been killed in his home and his wife wounded.  He came into power in 2017 and has been ruling by decree since January 2020.  While he did little to address Haiti's underlying issues, and may in fact have made them worse, neither he nor his wife deserved this.  The former president's seventh prime minister had not been nominated yet, the President of the Supreme Court died of COVID, and the path ahead for replacing the President is unclear.  Amongst all of Haiti's problems, the government is now in disarray.  The full article by Miami Herald Journalists Jacqueline Charles and Johnny Fils-Aime is below with updates to follow.