The situation in Haiti It seems to be getting more and more complicated. Recently, it was learned that the prime minister, Ariel Henrywill resign from his position after “the establishment of a transitional presidential council and the appointment of an interim prime minister.”
The decision was adopted after a meeting in Jamaica with representatives of other international partners such as the United States and France, as well as the UN. However, Henry did not attend the meeting, since he has been stranded in Puerto Ricodue to the escalation of violence in Haiti and pressure for him to resign.
Meanwhile, the state of emergency in Port-au-Prince, the capital, was extended for another month and gangs Places such as the airport, maritime posts, public buildings and highways have been taken.
Suspected criminals were killed by the Haitian National Police during an attack on the National Palace in Port-au-Prince, orchestrated by the “Vivre Ensemble” coalition of armed gangs, according to local media published this Saturday. EFE/ Johnson Sabin
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Up to 200 gangs operate in Haiti, from some small groups to organizations that have up to 1,500 men. In Port-au-Prince there are about 20, according to what he indicated. The New York Times.
The aforementioned media indicates that the G-Pèp and the G-9 Family They are the two organizations with the most presence in the poor neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince and, although they sometimes collaborate with each other, they tend to be at odds.
Furthermore, the G-9 is associated with the government party, while the G-Pèp is associated with the opposition.
However, after Henry left the country, leaders of several gangs announced an alliance that they named 'Vivre ensemble' ('Living together' in Spanish), and have carried out attacks on state institutions and called for the president's resignation.
“The feeling on the ground is that the country cannot continue like this. The level of violence to which people are exposed is inhumane,” commented Ulrika Richardson, deputy special representative of the United Nations in Haiti a few days ago.
gang leaders
One of the leaders and the most visible face of the alliance is Jimmy Chérizierknown as 'Barbecue', the 46-year-old former police officer whom the authorities accuse of directing massacres in his country and who, in addition, called for a “armed revolution.”
“We have chosen to take our destiny into our own hands. The battle we are fighting will not only overthrow Ariel's Government. It is a battle that will change the entire system,” Chérizier said in a press conference, showing a different position than the one that characterized him.
Jimmy Cherizier 'Barbecue', the all-powerful gang leader known for his cruelty
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Regarding this, Robert Muggah, in charge of investigations in Haiti for the UN and an expert in geopolitics, told the aforementioned media: “We have seen how Chérizier and the G-9 have evolved in recent weeks towards more political rhetoric.”
In addition to the leaders, experts have mentioned that, for the most part, gang members are young people over 20 years old, originating from poor neighborhoods, but they align themselves with “elite businessmen and politicians,” who pay them.
“In Haiti there is a long tradition of elites trying to create and feed paramilitary groups that, in recent decades, have helped them serve their interests and use violence to maintain a monopoly on some basic product or for some political interests,” said to The New York Times Diego Da Rin, researcher in Haiti for the International Crisis Group.
Images have been released in which you can see it in the streets arsonagents trying to confront gang members, displaced people and completely obstructed roads.
On the other hand, members of the police have been resigning en masse, according to the UN. By 2023, some 1,663 agents left voluntarily.
Besides, the homicide rate doubled in 2023, 41 people will be murdered per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the highest in the world, he noted CNN.
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