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A new wave of violence perpetrated by gangs in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, caused this in a matter of days. more than 15,000 people were forced to
A new wave of violence perpetrated by gangs in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, caused this in a matter of days. more than 15,000 people were forced to move to other areasAccording to the UN, which stressed that most of these displaced people were already outside their homes due to previous insecurity crises.
Some of these displaced people moved into pre-existing camps, while others chose to establish new settlements. Conditions in all of them are unstable. and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) noted that their most pressing needs “nutrition, health care, water and hygiene products, and psychosocial support.”
Although some organizations have already begun mobilizing to provide first aid, the situation is complicated by difficulties with movement, either due to gang activity or due to roadblocks set up on roads in and around the capital.
“This violence cannot continue, it must stop,” said UN humanitarian coordinator Ulrika Richardson, recalling that “thousands of people right now without protection, without safety and exposed to all kinds of risks“.
Ulrika Richardson, Special Representative of the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) Photo: X (@UlrikaR_UN).
In Haiti, a country already immersed in “complex humanitarian and protection crisis”Every time a new wave of violence breaks out, “thousands of people are left in a dangerous situation.” Richardson demanded unfettered access to the population and stressed that “at this crucial moment” the country “needs greater international solidarity.”
“Armed gangs forced us to leave our homes. They destroyed our houses and we ended up on the street.“A man who gave his name as Nicholas and lives in the camp said on Tuesday.
“I didn’t have time to take any things with me, even my underwear,” Jasmine, who did not want to give her last name, said at the shelter on Monday. “I do not know what to do”.
Rights group Plan International said many displaced people They flee the capital towards Artibonite.traditionally agricultural region of Haiti, but whose residents now face food shortage as fighting spreads north.
Displaced people flee their homes due to violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti Photo: Reuters.
After evaluating 500 readings, Plan International reported that many families skip meals during the daymore than half of the children do not go to school, and the lack of money has made many feel that They have no choice but to join gangs. On the other hand, according to the organization’s estimates, between 30% and 50% of gang members are minors.
National Director of Plan International Allasan Drabo stated that girls are at particular risk of forced marriagebecause their parents cannot meet their basic needs.
“Widespread violence is robbing too many girls of their childhood, forcing them to trade textbooks and bread for guns and wedding dresses.”
Kwanli Kladstrup, director of aid agency Concern Worldwide, said it was estimated that five out of 11 million Haitisuffer from acute hunger for years.
Displaced people fleeing violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Photo: Reuters.
Following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021 gangs expanded control over their territory.
According to UN estimates, The conflict has forced some 300,000 people to flee their homes. and this was last year the gangs killed about 5,000 people and kidnapped almost 2,500.sometimes using videos of rape and torture for the purpose of extortion friends and relatives of the victims with an expensive ransom.
Hoping to gain public support, gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier stated that An alliance of gangs known as Viv Ansanm (“Living Together”) will soon release their hostages without demanding ransom.according to local media reports on Tuesday.
The UN Security Council is scheduled to discuss the issue this Wednesday, while chaos continues on the streets of Port-au-Prince. The Haitian government has declared a state of emergency, and Prime Minister Ariel Henry has still not returned to the country because the crisis caught him abroad.
A woman who fled her home due to violence looks through a fence at a school used as a shelter in Port-au-Prince. Photo: Reuters.
Henry, who heads an unelected provisional government, He promised to resign in February, but delayed the processciting insecurity.
Henry is located in San Juan, Puerto Rico.where he arrived after being unable to land in Haiti last Tuesday due to clashes around Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince and the Dominican Republic, Haiti’s immediate neighbor, which did not authorize his plane to land on Dominican territory.
The date of Henry’s arrival in Haiti remains unclear. Meanwhile, several embassies withdrew their staff, and the Dominican Republic stated that will never accept the creation of refugee camps.
With information from Europe Press and Reuters.
Source: Aristegui Noticias
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