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The head of the United Nations called on the world Thursday to extend a lifeline to Haiti’s people by filling the financial gap for an ongoing $720 million humanitarian appeal and to help the country tackle its ongoing gang violence by contributing uniformed personnel to a multinational force. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres also called on Haiti’s social and political leaders to accelerate their efforts toward a desperately needed political solution, warning that “the Haitian people are trapped in a living nightmare.” “Taken together, these three vital and simultaneous steps are fundamental to breaking Haiti’s cycle of suffering— by addressing dramatic humanitarian and security challenges—and forging a political pathway out of the crisis,” Guterres said.
Guterres’ impassioned appeal came on the eve of the two year anniversary of the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, whose death on July 7, 2021, submerged the country into a deeper political crisis and unprecedented levels of violence by armed groups. It also came hours before the U.N. Security Council was scheduled to meet about the situation in Haiti and discuss the ongoing crisis before deciding later this month whether to renew the mandate for the U.N. Integrated Office in Haiti. The office’s mandate expires on July 15, and supporters, including the government of Haiti, are asking for the U.N. office to be given more resources and strengthened as it works to mediate the ongoing political stalemate that has been exacerbated by the multiple crises hitting Haiti.
Guterres’s special representative to Haiti, María Isabel Salvador, told the Security Council that it is important her U.N. Integrated Office in Haiti, known by its French acronym, BINUH, be adequately resourced so that it can “effectively and efficiently deliver its mandate and help Haiti out of these crises, while ensuring the safety and security of U.N. personnel.” Dominican Republic Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez, who addressed the council, said while his neighboring country supports the mandate’s renewal. “BINUH alone is not a response to the crisis rocking Haiti,” he said. “Without international support, it is inconceivable that we will see the establishment of the security conditions necessary for the emergence of a feasible solution to the Haitian crisis,” he said, noting the coming anniversary of the assassination. “It is not enough to pay a respectful tribute to the departed president. Nor is it enough to mourn the thousands of lives lost. It is vital that we respond favorably to the persistent requests made by the Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry … for a multinational force to support the Haitian national po
Henry’s foreign minister, Jean Victor Geneus, assured the council that the prime minister is working to break the stalemate and put together a government of national unity. The U.N., he said, could help Haiti on its road to peace and “has a moral responsibility to prevent the shipwreck of Haiti.” “The government reiterates its renewed request for a robust international assistance to support the efforts of the National Police of Haiti in their fight against armed gangs,” Geneus said.
While the renewal of the U.N. political office in Haiti appears to have support, the same cannot be said for the deployment of a multinational force. “We have listened to many loud narratives of support. However, regrettably, I have not heard any countries announcing any concrete actions,” China’s permanent representative, Zhang Jun, said. Brazil’s ambassador, Sérgio Franca Danese, said the South American nation “supports further Council discussions aimed at identifying tangible actions.”
Thursday’s debate gave insight into how difficult it will be for a security mission deployment and even a new peacekeeping mission, if no country offers to lead a multinational force. Russia said past deployments have not been well received in Haiti, and China spoke of U.N. sanctions being an important tool for fighting gang violence and should be fully used. Guterres has said that any security mission authorized for Haiti will need to be authorized by the Security Council. A confidential documente circulating among member nations since June, and obtained by the Miami Herald, lays out the parameters for such a force, describing it as being a mix of police and military units with the assets, intelligence capabilities and expertise to take on heavily armed gangs. While the size of the security force to be deployed needs to be assessed, taking into account the violence in country, Guterres said “it must be a robust force with a meaningful number of officers.”
An estimate of between 1,000 and 2,000 uniformed personnel, offered up the day before by independent U.N. human rights expert William O’Neill, following his recent visit to Haiti, “doesn’t reflect an exaggeration,” Guterres said. He also stressed that he is not advocating for a military or political mission of the United Nations. “We are calling for a robust security force deployed by member states to work hand in hand with the Haitian National Police to defeat and dismantle the gangs and restore security across the country,” he said.
The U.S., France and other member countries reiterated their support for the deployment of a security mission. The Caribbean community bloc known as CARICOM also gave its support Thursday. Jamaica Prime Minister Andrew Holness, speaking on behalf of the 15-member Caribbean Community, called for the council to renew the mandate of the U.N. political office in Haiti and to pass a resolution supporting a multinational force. “We underscore the urgency of pursuing multinational security efforts with the appropriate jurisdictional mandate, aimed at restoring peace and stability in Haiti,” he told the council.
The U.S., France and other member countries reiterated their support for the deployment of a security mission. The Caribbean community bloc known as CARICOM also gave its support Thursday. Jamaica Prime Minister Andrew Holness, speaking on behalf of the 15-member Caribbean Community, called for the council to renew the mandate of the U.N. political office in Haiti and to pass a resolution supporting a multinational force. “We underscore the urgency of pursuing multinational security efforts with the appropriate jurisdictional mandate, aimed at restoring peace and stability in Haiti,” he told the council.
In his press conference before the meeting, Guterres noted that he had heard first-hand accounts of the ongoing gang rapes of women and girls and the desperate humanitarian situation where almost half the population is going hungry. After his visit to Haiti, Guterres traveled to Trinidad and Tobago, where he spent an hour and a half discussing the situation in Haiti, hoping to get Caribbean leaders’ support for the deployment of “a robust” international force. He told the leaders that barely 23% of an ongoing $720 million U.N. humanitarian appeal for Haiti had been funded and called it “a tragedy within a tragedy.”
On Thursday, he expanded on the reality and ongoing challenges of Haiti’s 12 million people.
“Brutal gangs have a stranglehold on the people of Haiti” he told journalists. “Port-au-Prince is encircled by armed groups that are blocking roads, controlling access to food and health care, and undermining humanitarian support…. I have heard appalling accounts of women and girls being gang-raped, and of people being burned alive.” In his latest report, Guterres said that the number of homicides in the first six months of this year increased by nearly 70% compared to the same period last year. His U.N. office in Haiti has documented the killings of 264 alleged gang members by vigilante groups since April. Three months after Haitians began taking justice into their own hands with the vigilante killings and mob lynchings, some of the gangs have now started their own movement — “Zam Pale,” or My Gun Speaks — to retaliate. Nearly three dozen police officers have been killed this year at the hands of violent gangs, and 40 out of 412 police stations nationwide have come under attack, including 26 in the region that includes metropolitan Port-au-Prince. The secretary-general called it “a new and alarming cycle of violence which, if not urgently addressed, is likely to escalate through further mobilization, arming, and recruitment, especially of youths.” The report, which details other gang-related attacks against women and children and the prison system, served as a backdrop for the U.N. Security Council’s debates. “The world must act now to stem the violence and instability,” Guterres said. “Predatory gangs are using kidnappings and sexual violence as weapons to terrorize entire communities.”