UNITED NATIONS – The Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Wednesday that escalating armed violence in Haiti has triggered a “profound” humanitarian crisis.
UNICEF said at least 170,000 children are now displaced – double the number from last year – amid a surge in gang-led killings and kidnappings, sexual violence and a severe food crisis.
“In Haiti, children and families are enduring relentless waves of brutal violence, with each day bringing new horrors, the loss of loved ones, homes being destroyed by fire, and an ever-present shadow of fear,” said Bruno Maes, UNICEF Representative in the French-speaking Caribbean country, who visited three displacement sites in the capital Port-au-Prince.
Latest UNICEF data revealed that nearly 314,000 people, roughly half of them children, have been uprooted across Haiti, mainly in the capital and the Artibonite department.
In less than two weeks, nearly 2,500 people, most of them women and children, have been newly displaced following clashes in the Solino and Gabelliste areas in the capital, UNICEF said.
It estimates that three million children across Haiti will require humanitarian aid this year.
The UN agency said it is seeking US$221.7 million to respond to needs.
On Saturday, the Biden administration in the United States said its commitment to the Haitian people “remains unwavering”, even as the Kenya High Court the day before ruled against sending troops to Haiti.
“We reaffirm our support of ongoing international efforts to deploy a Multinational Security Support mission for Haiti, as requested by Haiti and authorized by UN Security Council Resolution 2699, and renew our calls for the international community to urgently provide support for this mission,” said US Department of State Spokesman Matthew Miller.
“The United States acknowledges the ruling by the Republic of Kenya’s High Court regarding the deployment of Kenyan police in support of the Multinational Security Support mission to Haiti and the Government of Kenya’s stated intent to challenge this ruling,” Miller added.
He, therefore, urged the international community respond urgently to the unprecedented levels of gang violence and destabilizing forces “preying upon the Haitian people.”
At the same time, Miller said the US calls for the restoration of democratic order through an inclusive political process in Haiti.
“We continue to urge Haitian stakeholders to reach consensus on power-sharing and inclusive governance,” he said. “The only legitimate path to long-term peace and stability is through free and fair elections.”
On Saturday, the Government of Kenya said it intended to exhaust all legal remedies at its disposal to challenge the verdict of the High Court of Justice prohibiting the deployment of 1, 000 security agents to Haiti.
The deployment was part of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in aid of the Haitian National Police in its fight against gangs and for the restoration of public order.
“Although the Government respects the rule of law, we have nevertheless decided to immediately challenge the High Court verdict,” said Isaac Mwaura, the spokesperson for the Government.
“The Government reiterates its commitment to honor its international obligations as a member of the community and committee of nations […] Kenya has an exceptional record of contributing to peacekeeping missions at the international level in countries such as South Sudan, Namibia, Croatia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, among others…” he added.
On Friday, Justice Chacha Mwita declared that the National Security Council did not have the mandate to deploy police officers in another country.
In October last year, Kenya’s National Security Council had requested Parliament’s approval for the deployment of Kenyan police officers as part of the UN-backed security mission. The National Assembly then approved this deployment.
In its ruling, the High Court said that parliamentary approval was only required for military, and not police deployments.
But it said, for officers to be deployed, there needed to be a reciprocal arrangement with the host government, which the petitioners had argued, with no contest from the government, was not currently in place.
On Thursday, Haiti’s Foreign Minister, Jean Victor Généus, pleaded for the deployment to be sped up, telling the United Nations Security Council that violence in the country was as barbaric as in a war zone.
The United Nations Special Representative to Haiti, Maria Isabel Salvador, also told the UN Security Council that the crisis in Haiti had reached “a critical point”.
“I cannot over stress the severity of the situation in Haiti, where multiple protracted crises have reached a critical point,” said Salvador in presenting the latest report of the UN political office in Haiti, known by the French acronym as BINUH.
She said more than 8,400 people were victims of gang violence in Haiti last year, including killings, injuries and kidnappings, a 122 per cent increase over 2022.
Salvador said the impoverished Caribbean country remains plagued by mounting violence and insecurity at the hands of armed gangs “against a backdrop of political, humanitarian and socioeconomic challenges.”
Haiti has seen years of declining security due to raging gang violence, with its political, economic and public health systems also in tatters. The country has been without a president since the incumbent, Jovenel Moise was assassination in July 2021.
Earlier last week, the United Nations reported that 5,000 homicides were recorded in Haiti last year, more than double that in 2022.
“I am appalled by the staggering and worsening level of gang violence devastating the lives of Haitians, in particular in Port-au-Prince,” said UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres said in the report, adding “gang killings, kidnappings and sexual violence, notably against women and young girls, among other abuses, continue with widespread impunity.”
The UN report said that one in 10 police stations nationwide had been attacked through the year, while many of the police’s armored vehicles were left inoperable after clashes with gang members, who often donned fake police uniforms to carry out kidnappings.
Several Caribbean countries, including Jamaica, The Bahamas and Belize, have indicated willingness to be part of the UN-backed mission.
But Minister of State in the Ministry of National Defense in Belize, Oscar Mira, said an official decision has not yet been made and that Belmopan is waiting for directives from its CARICOM counterparts.
