"Gang violence deprives Haiti of a return to normal and encourages the flight of the nation's vital forces from the country,” declared Monday, December 18, 2023, the President a.i. of the UN General Assembly, Dennis Francis (permanent representative of Trinidad & Tobago) during an informal press briefing on Haiti held in New York.

Francis who visited Haiti on November 20 and 21 to meet members of the Interim Government, including Prime Minister Ariel Henry https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41027-haiti-un-the-president-of-the-un-general-assembly-in-haiti.html recalled "[...] the terror of gangs" affects all aspects of the daily life of the Haitian people, "depriving them of their freedoms and their rights" and stifling the country’s progress towards sustainable development.

Francis spoke of schools being turned into shelters and homes for people displaced by gang violence, as well as parents kidnapped for ransom while walking their children to school.

“I have heard alarming reports of the loss of around 40% of Haiti's health workers, many of whom have left the country in hopes of finding a better future elsewhere."

For her part, Ms. María Isabel Salvador, Representative of the Secretary General of the UN and head of the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), Ms. María Isabel Salvador, speaking by videoconference highlighted the increase in murders, kidnappings and incidents of sexual violence compared to last year. She also indicated that the capacity of the Haitian National Police (PNH) to deal with this growing insecurity is in decline.

"This year alone, more than 1,600 PNH agents have left the country, most in search of emigration opportunities," declared the head of the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti.

Isabel added that the remaining officers face a dire situation, faced with inadequate equipment, training and salaries, which significantly hampers their effectiveness against increasingly heavily equipped armed gangs.

In this context, President a.i. Françis remains hopeful in the deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MMSS), authorized by the Security Council on October 2nd, 2023 https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-40642-haiti-flash-the-security-council-approves-the-intervention-of-a-multinational-force-in-haiti.html

For now, gangs control 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince. According to the UN, their control extends even further to rural areas previously considered safe: "they kill, rape, kidnap and destroy property," he stressed.

Francis urged Haitian political elites to abandon their "selfish concerns" and "prioritize the citizens of Haiti, who have endured too much and deserve to be given a chance to succeed."

Haiti is one of 8 countries in the world facing the risk of famine https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39655-haiti-flash-hunger-in-the-world-haiti-the-sahel-and-sudan-on-high-alert.html . 4.35 million people are food insecure, one of the highest rates in the world as a proportion of the country's population.

"We are seeing a near collapse of basic social services, such as health care and education. It is estimated that one million children are not going to school," said the deputy director of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Victoria Saiz Omenaca.

Hospitals and health staff are now targets of violence: last week, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) announced the closure of its activities at the Turgeau emergency center in Port-au-Prince https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41212-haiti-flash-an-msf-ambulance-attacked-a-patient-executed-by-armed-individuals.html

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41212-haiti-flash-an-msf-ambulance-attacked-a-patient-executed-by-armed-individuals.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41027-haiti-un-the-president-of-the-un-general-assembly-in-haiti.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-40642-haiti-flash-the-security-council-approves-the-intervention-of-a-multinational-force-in-haiti.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39655-haiti-flash-hunger-in-the-world-haiti-the-sahel-and-sudan-on-high-alert.html

HL/ HaitiLibre