The resignation of Haiti's interim prime minister, Ariel Henry, which will take effect with the formation, still unfinished, of a presidential council, does not calm the turmoil in the country. American television correspondents reported gunshots this Saturday, March 16, in Port-au-Prince, the capital, while clashes between police and gangs that plague the nation continued on Friday. The crisis is worsening with food shortages and the difficult distribution of humanitarian aid by international organizations.
Tensions and violence increase in Haiti, while the formation of the presidential council remains unfinished.
The resignation of Haiti's interim prime minister, Ariel Henry, did not calm tempers in Haiti. In the capital, some neighborhoods of the city continued to report attacks during the night of Friday.
According to EFE, police units and gangs led by Jimmy Cherizier, alias 'Barbecue', fought clashes at their base at Delmas 6, in the heart of the capital.
Ariel Henry resigned, but political disorder persists
The incident left several dead and injured among the criminal groups, witnesses told the news agency. During the night, bursts of automatic weapons were also heard.
The panorama of the city of Delmas, located in the Port-au-Prince district, was marked by burning tires and barricades.
“Ariel Henry resigned, but political disorder persists,” said Port-au-Prince resident Claude Atilus, quoted by Reuters. And he added: “We must take our destiny into our own hands. I want political actors to rise to the occasion and commit to organizing the country.”
Although Friday's day had been marked by a tense calm, at night a situation was experienced that is similar to that of recent weeks, marked by constant violence between criminal gangs and the Armed Forces.
On Thursday, satellite images showed containers blocking access to the country's main commercial port, which had been closed after a theft.
In recent days, the two main prisons in Port-au-Prince were also attacked, triggering the escape of around 3,000 prisoners. According to reports, several were high-ranking members of armed gangs.
A fragile transition: formation of the presidency council remains unfinished
After resigning, the Haitian prime minister announced a transition council, as agreed last week at the meeting of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), in which the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, participated.
The body that plans to assume power on an interim basis and call elections would be made up of seven voting members and two observers from different political coalitions. Henry assured that once that entity was formed, he would resign.
But his training is not over yet, despite the fact that on Friday, March 15, Blinken assured that the majority of the nine people who will be part of Haiti's political transition council have been appointed by the groups they represent.
The transition council was expected to be named this week, however the process has been delayed.
“This will never be smooth and it will never be linear,” Blinken told reporters during a visit to Austria. He added: “So it's a work in progress, but we've seen it progress.”
On the other hand, Blinken assured that an international force aimed at restoring security in Haiti is also advancing, but that challenges persist.
“Once the new council is fully in place — and again, I would anticipate that happening in the next few days — that process will be able to move forward and then we will have a trajectory that has at least the possibility of putting Haiti in a better place.” stable,” stated the senior diplomat from Washington.
About the advice, The American newspaper 'Miami Herald' stated that five groups had submitted names, but that disagreements persisted.
The body will be responsible for appointing a new prime minister and also paving the way for holding a presidential election.
Hunger and humanitarian alerts
The violence in Haiti has translated into a critical situation in humanitarian terms in the Caribbean country. The AP news agency reports the anguish experienced in the few places where food is delivered.
“Let us in! We're hungry!” shouted a crowd of a hundred people who gathered in front of an improvised shelter in an abandoned school.
A similar situation is what they are experiencing Nearly 1.4 million Haitians are on the brink of famine and more than 4 million need food aidaccording to the UN.
Haiti faces prolonged and massive hunger
Many people are eating only once a day or even failing to find food to eat.
“Haiti faces prolonged and massive hunger (…) It has malnutrition rates comparable to those of any war zone in the world,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, director of the United Nations World Food Program for Haiti. .
Although authorities are trying to bring food, water and supplies to makeshift shelters, the violence complicates their efforts. And there are many people who are trapped in their homes.
In fact, Bauer noted that Gangs are blocking distribution routes and paralyzing the main port, and that the World Food Program warehouse is running out of grains, beans and vegetable oil as it continues to deliver meals.
“We have supplies for weeks. “I'm saying weeks, not months (…) That has me terrified,” Bauer said.
As AP notes, only a few organizations have been able to restart their activities since February 29, when gangs began attacking key institutions and burning police stations. A situation that was aggravated by the closure of the main international airport.
With EFE, Reuters and AP
#Haiti #violence #increases #PortauPrince #formation #presidential #council #remains #unfinished