PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti – Former Haitian interim president, Jocelerme Privert Tuesday said for approximately five years, Port-au-Prince has been under the threat of armed gangs, resulting in its complete isolation from the rest of the country as he called for restoration of constitutional and institutional legitimacy in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.
Former interim Haitian president, Jocelerme Privert (File Photo)In a statement marking the 222nd anniversary of the wars of national liberation, Privert, who served as the 57th head of state, said that November 18, like May 18 and January 1, is at the heart of Haiti’s national identity and the country’s aspiration for freedom.
“It reminds us of our history, our dignity, our sovereignty, and our collective responsibility. More than a memory, it remains a source of inspiration in our quest for peace, stability, justice, and progress.”
But he said that for approximately five years, Port-au-Prince has been under the threat of armed gangs, resulting in its complete isolation from the rest of the country and to escape attacks by bandits and protect their staff, government institutions have had to flee the city center where their offices are located.
He said the Toussaint Louverture International Airport, the only airport connecting Port-au-Prince to other world capitals, was attacked with heavy weapons by bandits and has been abandoned by airlines for over a year.
”The National economy is in complete decline. For the past six years, it has recorded only negative growth rates. Investments that create wealth and jobs are becoming scarce, while the population continues to grow at a sustained pace.”
Privert said that the situation is alarming with more than 60 per cent of the population, nearly six million people, live below the extreme poverty line and are food insecure.
“Approximately 1.4 million of them, fleeing the violence of armed groups, have been forced to abandon their homes, which have been looted and burned, and take refuge in precarious shelters, in conditions completely incompatible with human dignity.
“Millions of our children and young people, particularly those living in areas controlled by armed groups, are deprived of their legitimate right to education and training”.
He said that faced with this reality, “our compatriots’ hope for a peaceful and prosperous future is severely compromised.
“The collective happiness enshrined in the preamble to the 1987 Constitution seems out of reach. Yet, Haiti can still recover, provided that these three essential pillars—peace, security, and stability—are urgently restored.”
Privert, who served as interim president from 2016 to 2017, said since the collapse of the Legislative branch in January 2020, the constitutional order has been broken.
“By the beginning of the new year (January 2026), the country will have gone six years without a functioning Parliament. The assassination of President Jovenel Moïse plunged the nation into a confused transition, which some have preferred to perpetuate in order to enjoy its privileges, rather than overcome the obstacles to its resolution.
”The restoration of constitutional and institutional legitimacy is now more imperative than ever. Haiti needs credible, transparent, and honest elections to provide itself with legitimate leaders capable of guiding the country toward recovery.”
Privert said that the Haitian people must, with “clear-sightedness, vigilance, and patriotism, reject demagogues, reckless amateurs, opportunists, and those who glorify crime and corruption.
“Our country deserves better than those who transform violence and plunder into political arguments, or worse, into a model of governance,” he wrote, adding that “on this November 18th, let’s remember that nothing has ever been given to our nation: everything has been won through the will, courage, and sacrifice of our ancestors.
“Today, history calls us once again to become that people who stand tall, determined, and indomitable, who refuse fatalism and choose greatness. The time for action, boldness, and transformation is now. Haiti awaits neither a providential savior nor a miracle from elsewhere: it awaits its children, united and responsible, determined to break with fear, division, and resignation.”
He said that November 18 must remind all Haitians “that our national destiny depends on our collective effort to transform our country into a stable, prosperous, competitive, and united democratic Haiti.
”May this November 18, 2025, be a solemn call to all the sons and daughters of Haiti : a call to civic responsibility, courage, dialogue, and unity.”
