Haiti’s Transition of Power Predicted to Worsen Gang Violence

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Nov 12 2024 – Gang violence has ravaged Haiti, causing thousands of civilian deaths, displacements, and violations of international humanitarian law. Turmoil is expected to escalate following the removal of Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille from office on November 11.

On November 10, the Haitian government announced plans to replace incumbent prime minister Conille, with entrepreneur and former senate candidate Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. Conille responded by describing his termination as “illegal”, stating that the transition council of Haiti only has the power to appoint a prime minister, rather than dismissing one from office. Conille informed reporters that “this resolution, taken outside any legal and constitutional framework, raises serious concerns about its legitimacy.”

Since the beginning of Conille’s term, his efforts to eradicate gang violence, boost the nation’s economy, and eliminate hunger have been largely unsuccessful. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), Haiti remains one of the poorest countries in the world, with approximately half of the country facing acute food insecurity. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) states that approximately 5.5 million people require humanitarian assistance for survival. Basic services such as access to food, clean drinking water, healthcare, education, shelter, and psychosocial support are severely limited.

Shortly after the beginning of his term on June 3 of this year, Conille launched the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission in Haiti, a contingent mission backed by Kenya. However, following the deployment of 400 Kenyan officers in Haiti, nationwide gang violence surged and shifted to more vulnerable areas, like the Artibonite River region.

In an October 22 address to the United Nations (UN) Security Council, María Isabel Salvador, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the U.N. Integrated Office in Haiti, remarked that the MSS mission is severely underfunded, leading to 700,000 Haitians to be internally displaced.

“The security situation remains extremely fragile, with renewed peaks of acute violence. The situation in Haiti has regrettably worsened,” said Salvador. She added that the violence was once relatively contained to the Port-Au-Prince region but has escalated and expanded throughout the nation. Murders, kidnappings and sexual violence of “unprecedented brutality” remain frequent occurrences.

Georges Fauriol, a Haiti specialist and senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., opined that efforts by Conille to soothe tensions and remove gang activity have only aggravated brutalities committed by gangs.

“So here we are nearly mid-November and the Kenyans are nowhere near what was promised earlier in the summer and the gangs appear to have in some cases mutated to cartel-like operational ambitions, with an increasingly worrisome stream of arms and financing,” said Fauriol.

The recent transition of power is predicted to further destabilize the political and social climate of Haiti. Due to increased political instability, humanitarian organizations fear that armed groups will exploit Haiti’s state of vulnerability. Currently, the Haitian government lacks a Parliament and has not had a democratic election in years, creating a significant political vacuum.

As Fils-Aimé was sworn into office on the morning of November 11, armed gangs targeted Haiti’s international airport in Port-Au-Prince. The flight was diverted to the Dominican Republic. However, in other areas of Haiti, fights between gangs and police engulfed the capital, with some gangs setting homes on fire.

According to the U.S. Embassy, the attacks were “gang-led efforts to block travel to and from Port-au-Prince which may include armed violence, and disruptions to roads, ports, and airports”. With Haiti facing a lack of proper governance and political structure, gang violence will continue to escalate.

IPS UN Bureau Report

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