An independent expert mandate on Haiti had been created by the Council in 1995 but then discontinued in 2017. The current resolution, calling for “coordinated and targeted international action”, was sponsored by Haiti itself. Country-specific abuses As a subsidiary body of the UN General Assembly, the Council examines human rights violations in specific countries as…
“Haiti can’t wait,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, World Food Programme (WFP) Country Director for the country. “We cannot wait for the scale of the problem to be expressed in deaths before the world responds, but that is where we are heading.” Half the population – 4.9 million people – are now struggling to access food, according…
“We are gravely concerned that extreme violence continues to spiral out of control in Haiti,” said Marta Hurtado, spokesperson for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Volker Türk. In the first two weeks of March alone, clashes among gangs left at least 208 dead, 164 injured, and 101 kidnapped. Mirroring those grave concerns, UN…
The call comes amid reports that the situation in Haiti is deteriorating by the day, with citizens facing spiralling violence, human rights, and food emergencies, as well as a cholera epidemic. The influence of armed gangs is growing exponentially in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and beyond, reaching the Department of Artibonite, the country’s breadbasket. Armed violence…
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report, Haiti’s criminal markets: mapping trends in firearms and drug trafficking, warns that a recent increase in arms seizures alongside intelligence and law enforcement reporting, suggests trafficking of weapons is on the rise. ‘Volatile situation’ “By providing a rapid assessment of illicit firearms and drug trafficking, this…
“The findings of this report are horrifying,” said Volker Türk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, during a visit to Haiti this week. “It paints a picture of how people are being harassed and terrorized by criminal gangs for months without the State being able to stop it. It can only be described as…
“Violence continues to take a heavy toll on children’s lives in and around Port-au-Prince, and schools are no longer spared,” said Bruno Maes, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) representative in Haiti. “As children reel from the effects of armed violence, insecurity in Haiti shows no sign of abating.” ‘Huge impact’ on children “The targeting of…
“Years of hard-fought recovery gains are being undone, and Haitians are grappling with setting the country back on a path to democracy,” said Helen La Lime, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Haiti. Turf wars Briefing the 15-member Council, Ms. La Lime said more than 2,100 murders and some 1,300 kidnappings were reported in 2022,…
