Armed gangs continue to sow terror in Haiti. The phenomenon is not new, but it has increased since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse on July 7, 2021. And since the beginning of 2023, the situation has worsened: in March alone, 195 people were killed by armed groups, according to the Organization of Citizens for a New Haiti (OCNH).
The number of homicides in Haiti has more than tripled in just one month. An increase that Camille Occius, president of the OCNH, explains by the inability of the police to act against criminal gangs: ” The police become powerless, the police cannot deal with armed civilians. As a result, these armed civilians have forces to sow terror. »
The gangs control 80% of the capital Port-au-Prince and are gradually eating away at the whole of Haitian territory. Rape, kidnapping affecting pregnant women, children… No social class is spared.
During the month of March 2023, the OCNH recorded 195 cases of homicide in the country. There is a clear increase compared to the previous month. Gangs continue to kill with impunity. The PNH is overwhelmed. Vigilante groups have emerged. pic.twitter.com/yR9lKPeaVs
– OCNH_Haiti (@OrganisationUne) April 3, 2023
The OCNH recommends, among other things, to provide the police with more sophisticated equipment and calls for the establishment of a state of emergency. A request for the moment remained unanswered. By the end of March, more than 136,000 Haitians had had to leave their homes to flee the violence. Twice as many internally displaced people as in 2021, according to the International Organization for Migration.
On Tuesday April 4, the United Nations Human Rights Council agreed to provide assistance to the Haitian government in its fight to end the violence that is ravaging the country. He wants to provide technical assistance and support for capacity building in the promotion and protection of human rights “.
Justin Viard, Ambassador of Haiti, told the Council that ” gang barbarism has reached a climax » and that his country is « facing one of the worst situations of poverty and terror in the world “.
► To read also: #JeVaisMourirBientôt: in Haiti, the cry of despair of a journalist in the face of insecurity