A Haitian archbishop says the arrival of UN-backed foreign police forces has not improved the nation’s security situation and the humanitarian crisis is worsening. Source: Vatican News.
Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world, continues to endure a severe security crisis, with 5.4 million individuals struggling daily to secure food for themselves and their families.
This figure represents one of the highest proportions of people experiencing acute food insecurity globally, as highlighted in a recent report by the World Food Program.
The Caribbean semi-island nation, which still hasn’t recovered from the devastating 2010 earthquake, has been grappling with gang violence and political instability for years, with a notable surge in violence following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse 2021.
Despite the various international meetings and the presence of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, the security situation hasn’t improved, Cap-Haïtien Archbishop Launay Saturné said on Saturday.
Speaking to journalists at the Vatican daily briefing on the proceedings of the Synod on Synodality, Archbishop Saturné said that respect for human dignity “is far from being a reality there”.
“Those who should have brought order and peace so far have not been up to their responsibilities,” he said.
The Haitian archbishop recalled the massacre perpetrated by armed gangs on October 3 in the rural town of Pont-Sondé in the Artibonite region that caused at least 70 deaths, many houses set on fire, and forcing over 6000 to flee.
“We are in despair,” Archbishop Saturné said, noting that 70 per cent of the population in Port-au-Prince has been forced to flee the city.
Many Haitians have fled to neighbouring Dominican Republic or further afield to the United States.
In recent days, however, the Dominican Government has announced its decision to deport thousands of Haitians who are illegally in its country, due, it said, to the slowness of the international community in restoring stability to Haiti.
FULL STORY
The humanitarian situation in Haiti “is desperate” (By Lisa Zengarini, Vatican News)
