UNITED NATIONS, Jan 14 (IPS) – The year 2024 marked a transitional period in Haiti’s history marked by widespread political instability, brutal gang violence and widespread civilian displacement. The Caribbean country has been in a state of emergency since the outbreak of hostilities in March 2024. In response, the United Nations Security Council approved a Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti to assist the Haitian government in suppressing gang activity and restoring order. But the support mission has been largely ineffective as gangs continue to take over more areas of Haiti.
On January 7, 2025, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) released a report detailing the worsening situation currently afflicting the Haitian people. At least 5,601 people were killed as a direct result of gang violence in Haiti last year, an increase of more than 1,000 civilian casualties since 2023, according to the report. Some 2,212 people were injured and 1,494 were kidnapped.
The report also documented at least 315 cases of lynching of gang members and people believed to be involved in gang activity. According to OHCHR, some of these lynchings were carried out by Haitian police. Additionally, in 2024, approximately 281 cases of summary executions involving special police units were recorded.
“These numbers alone cannot capture the absolute horror being committed in Haiti, but they do show the unrelenting violence that people are experiencing. “It has long been clear that impunity for human rights violations, abuses and corruption is widespread in Haiti and is one of the main causes of the multidimensional crisis facing the country, along with chronic economic and social inequality.” Volker, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Türkiye.
December 2024 marked the escalation of hostilities against Haiti. On January 3, 2025, William O’Neill, OHCHR’s designated expert on Haiti, detailed the most recent attacks on health workers in Haiti. On December 17, 2024, gang members attacked the Bernard Meves Hospital in Port-au-Prince. “Criminal gangs have murdered and kidnapped health workers, including doctors, nurses and humanitarian workers,” O’Neill said. “Gangs have burned, looted and destroyed many hospitals and clinics, forcing many to close or cease operations.” .
On December 24, 2024, a gang attacked the University of Haiti Hospital (HUEH), killing four civilians. These attacks highlighted the severe level of instability facing Haiti’s healthcare sector. According to O’Neill, only 37% of Haiti’s hospitals remain functional. Gangs also continue to threaten to attack health facilities, making life-saving medical care even more difficult.
“The people of Haiti, including hundreds of thousands of children living in extremely precarious conditions, are once again paying a high price for this violence as their right to health is seriously violated,” O’Neill said. Medical care is desperately needed due to the influx of injured people due to mass violence and the spread of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and cholera.
Throughout 2024, internally displaced people due to gang violence have soared. According to a press release from the Global Center for the Responsibility to Protect, nearly 703,000 civilians will be driven from their homes in 2024, nearly double the number of refugees recorded the previous year. Insecurity is also causing a global hunger crisis, with an estimated 5.4 million Haitians facing severe food insecurity. This represents almost half of the country’s population.
The international community’s response efforts have been greatly hampered by heightened security concerns following this crisis. The UN-backed MSS mission has faced major challenges as gang violence has intensified. In June 2024, Kenya deployed 400 police officers to assist the Haitian government in its crackdown on gang activity. However, they were outnumbered and overwhelmed by the gang.
Himmler Rébu, a retired Haitian Army colonel and former presidential candidate, told reporters that the Kenyan contingent’s response was overall ineffective. “I heard there are Kenyans in that country. Where are they? If it makes no difference, why are they in Haiti? “Since the mission arrived, the gang has taken over several villages and at least seven key cities.”
Turkey has repeatedly emphasized the need to expand its MSS response in the future. “The multinational security assistance mission in Haiti needs the necessary logistical and financial support to successfully carry out its mission,” he said, adding that there should be a stricter arms embargo to prevent gang members from obtaining guns and ammunition. . Turkey also said stronger oversight measures were needed for the Haitian National Police (HNP) to track human rights violations and hold perpetrators accountable.
On January 3, 2025, a unit of 150 Guatemalan soldiers arrived in Haiti as part of the MSS mission to restore security. HNP Secretary-General Normil Rameau told reporters that the most effective way to mitigate gang violence is through a “marriage” between police and Haitian civilians.
It is also important that the MSS mission is adequately funded to respond appropriately to this crisis. The UN Trust Fund for the MSS mission has pledged approximately $96.8 million. But Miroslav Jena, Deputy Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas, Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, and Peace Operations Department, warns that much more is needed, adding that any further delays or gaps in operations could have “disastrous consequences.” “It will be,” he added. “There is a risk of collapse of national security institutions.”
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© Interpress Services (2025) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Interpress Service
