The first UN-backed foreign police contingent arrived in Haiti on Tuesday, nearly two years after the troubled Caribbean nation called for urgent help to curb gang violence.
A few hundred police officers from Kenya landed in the capital Port-au-Prince, whose main international airport reopened at the end of May after gang violence forced it to close for almost three months.
KENYAN POLICE GO TO HAITI TO DETERMINE GANG VIOLENCE
It was not immediately clear what the Kenyan’s first task would be, but he will face violent gangs that control 80% of Haiti’s capital and have left more than 580,000 people homeless across the country while looting neighborhoods in an attempt to control other areas. . The gang has also killed several thousand people in recent years.
The arrival of the Kenyans is the fourth foreign military intervention in Haiti. While some Haitians welcomed him, others viewed the force with caution, as the previous intervention – the 2004-2017 UN peacekeeping mission – was marred by accusations of sexual assault and the introduction of cholera, which killed nearly 10,000 people.
Policemen from Kenya stand on the tarmac of Toussaint Louverture International Airport after landing in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. The first foreign police contingent supported by the United Nations arrived almost two years after the Caribbean country asked for help. to reduce the rise in gang violence. (AP Photo/Markinson Pierre)
Romain Le Cour, senior expert at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, called on the international community and government officials to share details, including mission rules and concepts of operations.
“What will happen vis-a-vis the gang,” he said. “Is the mission static? Is the mission moving? All those details are still missing, and I think it’s time for some transparency.”
Hours after the Kenyans landed, Prime Minister Garry Conille thanked the East African country for its solidarity, as gangs have destroyed homes and hospitals and burned libraries, making Haiti “unlivable.”
“This country is going through a very difficult time,” he said at a press conference. “That’s enough. … We’re going to start working a little bit to reclaim the country.”
Conille said the Kenyans would be deployed in the next few days, but he did not elaborate. He was accompanied by Monica Juma, Kenya’s former foreign minister who is now national security adviser to President William Ruto. He said Kenya would “be an agent of peace, stability, hope.”
“We are united in our commitment to support the Haitian National Police to restore public order and security,” he said. “Hopefully this won’t be a permanent mission.”
The deployment comes nearly four months after the gang launched coordinated attacks, targeting key government infrastructure in the Haitian capital and elsewhere. They seized control of more than two dozen police stations, set fire to the main international airport and stormed two of Haiti’s largest prisons, freeing more than 4,000 inmates.
“We have been asking for security for the longest time,” said Orgline Bossicot, a 47-year-old mother of two who sells carrots and charcoal as a wholesale distributor.
Gang violence has stymied her sales, and she tries to stay out as late as possible before sunset to make up for the losses despite her fear.
“You never know who’s waiting for you around the corner,” he said, adding that he hoped the Kenyan police would join forces with local authorities.
Critics say the gang offensive that began on February 29 could have been prevented if foreign troops had been sent in sooner, but several setbacks – including a legal challenge filed in Kenya and political upheaval in Haiti – have delayed their arrival.
The attack prevented Prime Minister Ariel Heny, who was in Kenya at the time to push for the deployment, from returning to Haiti. He resigned in late April as violence escalated. After that, a nine-member transitional presidential council appointed former UN official Conille as prime minister and appointed a new Cabinet in mid-June.
However, gang violence persists, and experts say it will continue if the government also addresses the socioeconomic factors that contribute to the presence of gangs in an impoverished state with understaffed and under-resourced police departments.
Le Cour said the gang’s reaction to the mission was difficult to predict. “Some people may fight. Some people may want to negotiate and open dialogue with the Haitian government,” he said.
In a new video, Jimmy Cherizier, a former elite police officer who now leads a powerful gang federation known as the G9 Family and Allies, speaks to the new prime minister for the first time.
“Don’t play into the hands of traditional politicians and businessmen, who use violence for political and economic purposes,” said Cherizier, better known as Barbecue. “The current problem can only be resolved through dialogue.”
When asked about Barbecue’s comments on Tuesday, Conille responded with a message of his own: “Put down the guns and recognize the authority of the state, and then we’ll see where it goes.”
The UN Security Council authorized Kenya to lead a multinational police mission in October 2023, a year after Henry requested direct assistance.
President Joe Biden praised the arrival of the first contingent, saying the mission “will bring much-needed relief.”
“The people of Haiti deserve to feel safe at home, build a better life for their families, and enjoy the freedom of democracy,” he said. “While these goals cannot be achieved overnight, this mission provides the best opportunity to achieve them.”
Rights groups and others have questioned the use of Kenyan police, pointing to years of allegations against officials of abuses, including extrajudicial killings. On Tuesday, police were again accused of opening fire in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, where thousands of protesters stormed parliament.
Kenyan police in Haiti will be joined by police from the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Chad and Jamaica for a total of 2,500 officers. They will be deployed in stages at a cost of about $600 million a year, according to the UN Security Council.
So far, the UN-managed fund for the mission has only received $18 million in donations from Canada, France and the United States. The US has also pledged a total of $300 million in support.
“While gang violence appears to have receded from its peak earlier this year, the country’s security situation remains difficult,” the UN Security Council said in a June 21 statement.
More than 2,500 people were killed or injured in the first three months of this year, an increase of more than 50% from the same period last year.
Many Haitians are afraid, including Jannette Oville, a 54-year-old mother of two university-aged boys. He sells crops like bananas and green peppers, and gangs have robbed him several times when he travels on public buses with his goods. They put money under their armpits or underwear to try to keep it safe, he said.
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“I need security. I need a job. I need a way to open so I can support my family,” he said. “Being a business woman in Haiti is not easy. There are many risks. But we take risks to make sure the family is well.”
About 1.6 million Haitians are on the brink of starvation, the highest number recorded since the devastating 2010 earthquake, according to the UN.
