Killings, kidnappings and sexual violence perpetrated by criminal groups in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas have increased dramatically since the start of 2023 with little to no state response, Human Rights Watch said in a report published this month.

The 98-page report, "Living a Nightmare: Haiti Needs an Urgent Rights-Based Response to Escalating Crisis," documents abuses committed by criminal groups and state inaction in four metropolitan Port-au-Prince communes – Cabaret, Cité Soleil, Croix-des-Bouquets, and Port-au-Prince itself – between January and April 2023. In Haiti, the state is nearly absent, impunity reigns, and nearly half the population is acutely food insecure. Human Rights Watch also assessed the humanitarian, political, and judicial crises, plus abuses of previous international interventions and the enduring legacy of slavery, exploitation, and abuse by colonial powers.

The United Nations, the US, France, Canada, members of the Caribbean Community, and other concerned governments should act urgently to support Haiti in overcoming its crisis and ensuring a democratic transition. Following a request from the Haitian Prime Minister, the Secretary General of the United Nations should present in the coming days to the United Nations Security Council proposals for the deployment of an international force that achieves consensus in Haiti to help restore security. Kenya has offered to take the lead in this operation [...]

Human Rights Watch interviewed over 100 people, before, during, and after a visit to Haiti in late April and early May, including 58 victims and witnesses of abuses interviewed in Haiti, as well as members of Haitian civil society, human rights and diaspora groups, representatives of the UN and humanitarian agencies, Haitian political actors, and government officials, including Prime Minister Ariel Henry. Human Rights Watch also reviewed data and reports from international and nongovernmental organizations, Haitian civil society groups, and media, and verified and geolocated videos and photographs of violent incidents.

The UN estimates that criminal groups in Haiti killed more than 2,000 people in the first half of 2023, kidnapped more than 1,000, and used sexual violence to terrorize the population. Human Rights Watch documented 67 killings, including of 11 children and 12 women, and more than 20 cases of rape, many of them gang rapes by multiple perpetrators. In response to the violence and state inaction, some Haitians have turned to "popular justice," forming the Bwa Kale movement that gained traction in late April and, as of June, has killed more than 200 suspected criminal members across the country, often in collusion with police officers.

Download the full report (PDF in English) : https://www.haitilibre.com/docs/Living-a-Nightmare.pdf

HL/ HaitiLibre