Haiti Report, February 24, 2025
A compilation of news about Haiti from the past week or so.
Trump administration rolls back extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians
The Trump administration has rolled back an 18-month extension of legal immigration protections for over half-a-million Haitians temporarily residing in the United States, creating uncertainty and anxiety as their homeland continues to veer on the brink of a violent collapse led by armed gangs. The Department of Homeland Security announced on Thursday that Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status, which gives people from countries in turmoil who are already in the U.S. deportation protections and work permits, will now end on Aug 3. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who served in the Biden administration, had previously extended Haiti’s TPS through Feb. 3, 2026.
“Biden and Mayorkas attempted to tie the hands of the Trump administration by extending Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status by 18 months — far longer than justified or necessary,” said a DHS agency spokeswoman in the new administration. “We are returning integrity to the TPS system, which has been abused and exploited by illegal aliens for decades. President Trump and Secretary Noem are returning TPS to its original status: Temporary.”
The gangs have forced more than a million people to flee their homes and neighborhoods, including hundreds of police officers and their families; schools have shuttered and 80% of the hospitals in the capital are not working. Last year, gang violence, including at least four massacres, led to the deaths of more than 5,600 Haitians.
“Haiti doesn’t even have the capacity to receive 50,000 people,” Pierre Esperance, a human rights advocate in Port-au-Prince, said. “A large chunk of the people in the metropolitan Port-au-Prince area forced out of their homes are living on the streets. The gangs occupy more than 80% of the capital.... There is no structure to take care of these people and in many cases, gangs now occupy their homes.” Esperance said given the United States’ investment in the multinational security mission, which is being led by Kenya, “they know that the security situation is not good. Even their embassy isn’t properly functioning. They should have a consideration for Haitians.” https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/immigration/article300685139.html#storylink=cpy
The move means that up to 500,000 Haitians—who either crossed into the U.S. illegally, or came through a Biden-era legal program called humanitarian parole—will lose their deportation protections and work permits in August. After that, they could be targeted for deportation. TPS is meant to be used in situations where a population’s home country is in such crisis, because of war or other instability, that it would be dangerous to deport people there.
President Trump foreshadowed the decision before taking office, when he promised to target the Haitian population living in Springfield, Ohio, after repeating baseless claims that they had been stealing and eating neighbors’ pets. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine has said that roughly 15,000 Haitians immigrated to Springfield over the past several years, the Journal previously reported. Asked in an interview on News Nation in October if he would end protections for the migrants in Springfield, Trump replied: “Absolutely. I’d revoke it, and I’d bring them back to their country.”
It is likely the decision will be challenged in court, as it is unclear whether revoking a TPS extension is legal. Already, an advocacy organization called the National TPS alliance is challenging Trump’s Venezuela decision, saying the move to terminate those protections was done without adequate consideration and was motivated by racial bias.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-haitian-migrant-biden-era-protection-ea27ee6c
DR extends border wall with Haiti
The Dominican Republic said on Monday that it was extending the concrete border wall that separates it from Haiti along their shared island of Hispaniola. Dominican President Luis Abinader has taken a tough line on migration from destitute and violence-plagued Haiti since coming to power in 2020. Abinader told a news conference on Monday that the wall in northwestern Dajabon province had already "reduced thefts of livestock, engines and vehicles in this region by around 80 percent." He also announced a "call to tenders" for an extension of six to 7.5 miles (10-12 kilometers), bringing the total planned length to 109 miles. Abinader has ratcheted up deportations, expelling 250,000 undocumented Haitians in 2023 alone.
The government unveiled a plan in October to expel 10,000 undocumented Haitians a week as part of a crackdown on migration from its troubled neighbor. It expelled 142,378 undocumented Haitians in the first four months of that operation, according to government data. The plan would more than double that number in a year -- more than the 495,815 Haitians living in the Dominican Republic, according to official statistics. The wall is set to cover more than half the 210-mile border between the two countries. https://www.barrons.com/news/dominican-republic-to-extend-border-wall-with-haiti-01cef254
Guterres to propose UN funds mission struggling to fight gangs in Haiti
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said that he would request that the United Nations assumes funding for the structural and logistical expenses of a multinational force in Haiti that is struggling to fight violent gangs. Guterres made the announcement late Wednesday in Barbados, where leaders of a 15-member Caribbean trade bloc known as Caricom gathered for a three-day conference to tackle regional issues, including gang violence in Haiti. “If the Security Council will accept this proposal, we will have the conditions to finally have an effective force to defeat the gangs in Haiti and create the conditions for democracy to thrive,” Guterres said. He added that the salaries for the multinational force would be paid through an already existing trust fund.
Unrest and Demonstrations Shake Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince woke up under high tension on Thursday, February 20, 2025. Several neighborhoods became the scene of protests as dozens of people, identifying themselves as displaced residents from Solino and Carrefour-Feuilles, took to the streets to demand that authorities regain control of the security situation so they could return home. The protesters set up barricades made of burning tires and large stones on several strategic roads, particularly on Delmas Road and in Bourdon. "At Delmas 40 B, officers from the Haitian National Police’s crowd control units repeatedly used tear gas to disperse the crowd, which kept growing," reported Arnold Junior Pierre of Radio Télé Galaxie from the scene.
In other areas, such as Christ-Roi and Lalue, traffic was nearly paralyzed. Many commuters found themselves stranded, waiting for transportation to go about their daily activities, while others were forced to pay significantly inflated fares, with mototaxi rides increasing by more than 70%, according to witnesses. Some schools near the affected areas remained closed as a precaution. Meanwhile, heavy gunfire from automatic weapons was heard in Lalue and Bourdon in the morning, causing panic among residents and motorists. For now, the reasons behind these gunshots remain unknown.
On Wednesday, February 19, 2025, the Carrefour-Feuilles neighborhood was once again the target of an attack by armed individuals, leading to the forced displacement of several families. The violence forced residents to flee their homes in search of safer areas within the capital.
First Kenyan police officer dies in Haiti in battle with gangs north of the capital
The multinational security support mission in Haiti suffered its first casualty Sunday, after a Kenyan police officer died from injuries he sustained during an anti-gang operation north of the capital, the mission said in a statement. The incident occurred Sunday in the lower Artibonite region in Segur-Savien during one of operations in Pont Sonde.
“The officer was immediately airlifted to Aspen Level 2 Hospital but, unfortunately, succumbed to the injuries,” the mission said in a statement. Hundreds of Kenyan police are in Haiti, along with a smattering of officers and soldiers from Caribbean countries, as part of the Multinational Security Support mission to help the Haitian police combat violent gangs who have gained control of about 90 percent of the capital.
A soldier and two BSAP agents killed in Kenscoff
A soldier from the Haitian Armed Forces and two agents from the Protected Areas Security Brigade (BSAP) lost their lives this Sunday, February 16, 2025 at dawn during an attack by armed bandits. The information was confirmed by the editorial staff of Le Nouvelliste from several concordant sources. "A soldier was killed and two were injured during the attack," a member of the High Staff of the Haitian Armed Forces told Le Nouvelliste. Some observers believe that the number of soldiers deployed to protect the telecommunications antenna site in Obléon at the Téléco base was insufficient compared to the threat from gangs. Questioned on this subject, this member of the FADH High Staff explained that "the situation is more serious than we imagine". "What is happening at the moment is really serious", acknowledged this high-ranking member of the Haitian army.
Le Nouvelliste also learned that two BSAP agents were killed during the criminals' assault. Information confirmed by Dr. Jean François Thomas, Director General of the National Agency for Protected Areas (ANAP) on which the BSAP depends. "Indeed, the BSAP lost two agents who were working with law enforcement officers in Kenscoff. They were attacked by bandits. We had 5 agents who were helping law enforcement officers at this base. We are still in the assessment phase. We do not yet have more details on the attack," explained Dr. Jean François Thomas.
Early on February 16, armed bandits took control of the telecommunications antenna installations called Téléco in Morne Tranchant, where soldiers of the Armed Forces of Haiti (FAD'H) and BSAP agents were housed, in the commune of Kenscoff. Between 2:30 and 3:00 in the morning, the first detonations rang out, marking the beginning of this violent attack. In the early afternoon, the spokesperson for the Multinational Security Support Mission Jack Mbaka announced the recapture of the said base called Téléco. "The PNH and the MSS special team have taken control of Téléco," he announced.
https://lenouvelliste.com/article/253355/un-militaire-et-deux-agents-de-la-bsap-tues-a-kenscoff
Court of Appeals says Presidential Council members can’t be prosecuted
The Court of Appeal of Port-au-Prince issued a favorable ruling on Wednesday, February 19, 2025, in the corruption case involving the National Credit Bank (BNC) and the three presidential advisors, Emmanuel Vertilaire, Smith Augustin, and Louis Gérald Gilles. According to the Court of Appeal's decision, the presidential advisors cannot be prosecuted before regular courts, which highlights the incompetence of Judge Benjamin Félismé in handling their case. As a result, this ruling annuls the summonses issued last December against the presidential advisors. However, the Court of Appeal has instructed the investigating judge, who was challenged by Gilles’ attorneys, to continue the investigation in this case.
The Court of Appeal justified its ruling by citing the presidential status of the accused advisors, stating that this decision does not align with the 1987 Constitution. This ruling was issued even though the Port-au-Prince Prosecutor’s Office has yet to deliver its final indictment, which is necessary for Judge Félismé to issue his final order. https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/253481/ulccbnc-summons-for-presidential-advisors-canceled
"We consider the ruling of the Port-au-Prince Court of Appeal to be an act of cowardice because it does nothing to help the fight against corruption in public administration," declared Rosy Auguste Ducéna, Program Manager at the Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH) and member of the Ensemble Contre la Corruption (ECC) platform, during her appearance on Panel Magik on Friday, February 21, 2025.
On Wednesday, February 19, the Port-au-Prince Court of Appeal issued a ruling in favor of the three presidential advisors accused in the corruption scandal involving the Banque Nationale de Crédit (BNC). The ruling relied on their status as presidential advisors, stating that they could not be prosecuted in regular courts. The court also ruled that the investigating judge handling the case, Magistrate Benjamin Felismé, does not have the jurisdiction to hear the presidential advisors, thereby annulling the summonses issued against these members of the Conseil Présidentiel de Transition (CPT). "This is a cowardly decision. We expected a ruling with courage, one where the court would affirm that the charges against these individuals—abuse of power, bribery solicitation, and passive corruption—had nothing to do with their official functions and would order the continuation of the investigation while ensuring judicial guarantees for all parties involved," stated Ducéna.
Police in Haiti name former senator among suspects facing arrest over deadly gang attacks
Authorities in Haiti have issued more than a dozen arrest warrants against suspects accused of backing gang members that have been attacking a peaceful community near the capital for the past three weeks. Dozens of people have been killed in Kenscoff this month, including three police officers and one soldier, police spokesman Lionel Lazarre said Tuesday at a press conference. Among those accused of plotting against the government and backing the gangs is former Senator Nenel Cassy and former Kenscoff legislator Alfredo Antoine, Lazarre said. Neither could not be immediately reached for comment. Among the victims of the attacks was a two-month-old baby, according to the Cooperative for Peace and Development, a local human rights group who called for the creation of a special international criminal tribunal to try all those accused of killing thousands of people, including children, across Haiti in recent years. https://www.wral.com/story/police-in-haiti-name-former-senator-among-suspects-facing-arrest-over-deadly-gang-attacks/21865562/
General Hospital set on fire during gang attack
Haiti’s main public hospital, which remains shuttered after multiple gang attacks, was set on fire Thursday in the latest blow to one the country’s largest health institutions. The hospital’s general director, Dr. Prince Sonson Pierre, confirmed the fire in an interview with The Associated Press. He said he called police to see if they could secure the building to avoid a total loss. “It’s very sad in a country where there’s a lack of medical services for the general hospital of Port-au-Prince to be on fire,” he said. The hospital is located in a dangerous section of the capital’s downtown area controlled by a gang coalition known as Viv Ansanm that forced the institution to close last year.
Police eventually drove out gunmen from that area, prompting Haiti’s government to announce in December that it was reopening the General Hospital. It held a press conference on Christmas Eve that politicians, police officers and journalists attended. https://apnews.com/article/haiti-hospital-fire-attack-gangs-81d1df7b1692b3b125f856010dc549f0
Almost 9 in 10 going all day without eating
Haiti’s hunger crisis has reached alarming levels, with almost all families (99%) surveyed by ActionAid regularly skipping meals and 95% reporting that they’ve gone to bed hungry in the past month. The aid organisation warned that US funding freezes are likely to make the situation even worse. ActionAid surveyed almost 200 families (1,499 people) in two Haiti townships, Jérémie and Roseaux, and found that 67% were displaced, having fled their homes to escape Haiti’s escalating gang violence. Of those surveyed, 88% said a family member had gone an entire day without eating in the past month, and almost one in 10 had gone 24 hours without eating at least 10 times.
OCHA Issues new Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan
The humanitarian situation in Haiti continued to deteriorate throughout 2024. Armed violence has caused immeasurable suffering, particularly among women and children, displacing more than a million people and plunging almost half the Haitian population into acute food insecurity. Although Haiti was spared during the hurricane season, heavy rainfall in November and December caused major flooding in six departments, demonstrating the country’s high level of vulnerability to natural disasters. https://reliefweb.int/report/haiti/haiti-humanitarian-needs-and-response-plan-executive-summary-february-2025
Amnesty International issues report on Gangs’ Assault on Childhood in Haiti
Based on 112 interviews – including with 51 children – Amnesty International examined the impact of gang violence on children in Haiti. Abuses and violations documented in eight communes of the West Department included: recruitment and use of children, rape and other forms of sexual violence, and killings and injuries. The impact of the violence on children with disabilities was also documented. https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr36/8875/2025/en/
Miami jury finds American founder of Haiti orphanage guilty of sexually abusing boys there
At 73, Michael Geilenfeld could have cut a plea deal to reduce his potentially long prison sentence on federal charges of sexually abusing numerous boys in Haiti. But the American founder of a Port-au-Prince orphanage gambled on a jury trial in Miami federal court — and lost. The 12-person jury found Geilenfeld guilty, after deliberating for only five hours on Thursday, of six counts of engaging in illicit sexual contact with minors in a foreign place and one count of traveling from Miami to Haiti for that purpose. He faces up to 30 years in prison on each of the charges at his May 5 sentencing before U.S. District Judge David Leibowitz. Before trial started with jury selection in early February, prosecutors told Judge Leibowitz that they made a plea offer to Geilenfeld but he rejected it, asking the judge to note that in case the defendant makes any appeals or attacks on his conviction. Geilenfeld faced six of his accusers on the witness stand over the three-week trial. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/crime/article300670584.html#storylink=cpy
National Carnival is Canceled
Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils Aimé has asked Culture Minister Patrick Delatour to cancel the national carnival that was to take place in Fort Liberté this year, a source close to the prime minister revealed to the newspaper Le Nouvelliste. "There will be no national carnival in Fort-Liberté. The government will not finance these festivities. The context does not lend itself to it," this contact explained to Le Nouvelliste.
"Town halls and other stakeholders can organize activities in their cities or municipalities. The Ministry of Culture will be able to help organize these festivities to the extent of its possibilities. But the government will not make any additional investment in the carnival this year," continued this contact. https://lenouvelliste.com/article/253413/le-carnaval-national-2025-est-annule
CARICOM Leaders discuss potential elections in Haiti
As the sounds of automatic gunfire in a central working-class Port-au-Prince neighborhood once more sent desperate residents fleeing for refuge on Thursday, hundreds of miles away in this surf-swept eastern island, Caribbean leaders were debating a key question: Can Haiti hold elections by Nov. 15, as the head of the country’s Transitional Presidential Council recently declared?
A year ago, the Caribbean leaders, meeting in Guyana for the annual meeting of the regional organization known as CARICOM, pressured Ariel Henry, at the time Haiti’s prime minister, to work toward holding elections. But now Haiti is much worse off. More than a million people have been forced to flee their homes. Gangs that once acted separately have joined forces into a coalition, Viv Ansanm, that twice last year closed down the main international airport, burned and pillaged hospitals, shuttered schools and provoked one of the region’s worst humanitarian crises.
Gangs now control as much as 90% of Haiti’s capital and large chunks of the lower Artibonite region, despite the presence of an armed international security mission created to bring them under control.
While Caribbean leaders mulled over the election question behind closed doors Thursday with one of the members of Haiti’s presidential council, Laurent Saint-Cyr, gangs pressed their attack on communities in the mountains above Port-au-Prince and sowing chaos below in the neighborhoods of Carrefour Feuilles.
Haiti last held elections in 2016. Today the country doesn’t have any elected officials and is being led by a nine-member transitional council and a government that at times have been at odds over appointments, security and foreign policy. While tensions are not as deep as they were when the council ousted Prime Minister Garry Conille in November, they are brewing in the ranks of the security apparatus. Haitian police have issued wanted ads for certain politicians even as they have failed to beat back the gangs.
A year ago, Caribbean governments, at both the urging of Canada and the Biden administration, took the lead on mediating the crisis in Haiti and pushing for the funding and deployment of a multinational security mission to fight the gangs. But despite deploying 31 police officers and soldiers from Jamaica, Belize and The Bahamas, the Caribbean leaders have fallen short on their own promises. Jamaica has yet to deploy additional officers after announcing an advanced team was headed to Port-au-Prince, and Barbados’ foreign minister recently announced that the situation was too dangerous to send its defense-force members. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article300730809.html#storylink=cpy
$60 million available in fund for electoral operations
"For the past few years, we have made budget forecasts and proceeded to feed a fund to carry out electoral operations, the referendum and others... There are now 60 million US dollars available in this fund," said a senior official of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) during the meeting, last Friday, between the said ministry and the private business sector as part of the presentation of the main points of the amended budget.
According to this framework, there are approximately four billion gourdes in the amended budget to finance the elections, the referendum, etc. "According to the instructions of Minister Alfred Fils Metellus, before the month of June, the fund must already be replenished to reach 100 million US dollars," he declared without specifying the total amount that will be allocated to the electoral, referendum and other operations...
If the elections are to be held this year, to date the security conditions necessary for the smooth running of the electoral contests. The last time elections were organized in Haiti dates back to 2016. These electoral operations were financed solely by the Public Treasury. https://lenouvelliste.com/article/253536/60-millions-de-dollars-disponibles-dans-un-fonds-pour-les-operations-electorales
Peace requires transformation: the fight against corruption in Haiti
The ongoing violence in Haiti impacts nearly every aspect of society, making it harder to access healthcare, do business and live safely, with certain sectors increasingly coming under gang control. The UN Human Rights Office reports that in 2024 over 5,600 people were killed, which represents an increase of over 1,000 killings compared with 2023.
One of the key drivers of Haiti’s escalating crisis is corruption. Corruption corrodes the system at every level and in every sector, including the justice sector, and it fuels the existence of criminal armed actors in the country. When basic services fail and criminal justice systems are shuttered, communities become more susceptible to the influence and control of armed groups that exploit the state’s weaknesses. Amidst these challenges, the Anti-Corruption Unit of Haiti (ULCC) continues to lead the fight against corruption in the country. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) sat down with Joseph Hans Jacques Ludwig, General Director of ULCC, to talk about the pursuit of justice and fostering a culture of accountability and transparency in Haiti. UNODC works closely with ULCC to enhance Haiti's anti-corruption framework. https://www.unodc.org/unodc/frontpage/2025/February/peace-requires-transformation_-the-fight-against-corruption-in-haiti.html
Universities in Jérémie Severely Affected by Insecurity
Due to a lack of human resources, particularly among faculty members, universities in Jérémie are doing their best to maintain class hours. The blockade of the national road and the high cost of the few flights operated by private airlines remain a major headache. Le Nouvelliste sought to understand whether any alternatives exist. For three years now, the Université Nouvelle Grand’Anse (UNOGA) has been trying to compensate for lost class hours caused by the security crisis. According to agronomist Vladimir Potgony, rector of the institution, which trains future agronomists and managers, most of their professors come from the West or the Greater South.
As a result, due to ongoing disruptions and the blockade of land routes by armed gangs—currently the most frequently used and least costly travel option—the situation is becoming increasingly difficult. "Sometimes, we resort to other solutions," said Mr. Potgony. For example, in terms of transporting professors, a United Nations aircraft that provided interdepartmental flights was a great help to us. But the problem is that this type of operation was discontinued months ago," he explained. "Still, some of the most determined professors, motivated by the good treatment they receive from the administration, brave the dangers to come and teach," the agronomist added. Aware of the difficulty of maintaining a smooth academic schedule under these conditions, Mr. Potgony announced the implementation of online courses for students. Some UNOGA students have been forced to abandon their studies due to the unavailability of courses.
Like UNOGA, the Université Publique de la Grand’Anse (UPGA), located in Château, a southern suburb 1.3 km from Jérémie, is seeking alternatives. "Courses taught by professors from the West or the Greater South are delivered in two-week seminar formats. At the end of the seminar, at the dean’s request, professors conduct an initial evaluation (intra) immediately. In some cases, both the intra and the final exam are prepared at the same time. However, to ensure students retain the material covered, they are given a one-month gap before the final exam," explained Fasnet Bon Courage, dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Sustainable Construction at UPGA. https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/253505/universities-in-jeremie-severely-affected-by-insecurity
Frankétienne: The Departure of a Brilliant Megalomaniac
Writer Franketienne died on Thursday, February 20, 2025, in Port-au-Prince. Frankétienne presented himself as a brilliant megalomaniac. And that is exactly what he was. He was extraordinary, and everything related to his art and his person was hyperbolic, abundant. His civil name was Jean-Pierre Basilic Dantor Frank Étienne d’Argent. He was born on April 12, 1936, in Ravine Sèche.
Frankétienne once told René Philoctète that Haiti could hardly contain him, so grandiose and immeasurable he was. At the Collège Franck Étienne, which he founded and directed in Bel-Air, he taught all subjects: from literature to chemistry, including mathematics. Frankétienne was a genius, a versatile artist, a multipotentialist. He painted hundreds of canvases and wrote nearly seventy works blending poetry, novels, and plays that he staged and performed himself with great success. He sang and recited, notably on an album recorded with the Scottish artist Mark Mullholland. He was seen dancing, performing at book fairs, which he would end by completely undressing to reveal a red slip. Frankétienne could not stand banality or the ordinary and made it his mission to do what other writers, painters, and playwrights did not.
Frankétienne’s literary career began in 1964 with the publication of a poetry collection titled Au fil du temps. He was the Republic’s first Minister of Culture in 1988, and he wrote the first Haitian novel in Creole, Dezafi, in 1975. Frankétienne had a massive influence on poetry, particularly in the 1990s and 2000s. In most of the young authors publishing at that time, one could hear, like a background noise, the words and phrases of Frankétienne. They dared, they embraced their own language, assimilating themselves to the giant who proclaimed his genius and his difference everywhere, unwavering in his choices and convictions. Frankétienne, this great interpreter of life and the world, dreamed of winning the Nobel Prize in Literature, which he believed he deserved. The artist left us this Thursday, February 20, 2025, but his work will continue to sparkle in the hearts of his readers for a long time—until the end of the world, we are tempted to add. Infinity had always been within reach for Frankétienne. https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/253546/franketienne-the-departure-of-a-brilliant-megalomaniac
Information about changing immigration policies
Atansyon Moun TPS, Moun Azil, CBP-ONE, REZIDANS HFRP, CHRV Pwogram Imanitè Biden yo with Atty Nicole Phillips, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dRmLip1o6Y
Meeting on improvements needed for Cap-Haitien airport
Faced with the numerous criticisms expressed by passengers on social networks against the Cap-Haïtien international airport, an emergency meeting was held on Monday, February 17, 2025. Several entities concerned took part in the discussions to find solutions to the problems raised. Patrick Almonor, member of the Cap-Haïtien municipal commission, took the opportunity to take stock of the situation.
This meeting was initiated by the regional coordinator of the airport, Édouane Pierre, in response to complaints from travelers denouncing abuses suffered during their stay at the airport. Several stakeholders were present, including representatives of the National Police, Immigration, travel agencies - in particular those organizing flights to Brazil and Chile -, the National Office of Civil Aviation (OFNAC), the Cap-Haïtien city hall and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the North (CCIN). Patrick Almonor explained his commitment: "Faced with messages circulating on social networks criticizing the inhabitants of Cap-Haïtien, I wanted to be present in order to further the investigation and verify whether certain travel agencies are complicit in the practices denounced."
The meeting was an opportunity to consider sanctions against travel agencies guilty of deception and embezzlement with regard to passengers. Particular attention was paid to cases of false passports and visas. "Some agencies sell round-trip tickets when they are in fact only booking a one-way ticket. These practices harm passengers and cannot go unpunished," stressed Patrick Almonor. https://lenouvelliste.com/article/253401/rencontre-autour-des-critiques-des-passagers-de-laeroport-du-cap-haitien
OPINION/ANALYSIS
Locked in Transition: Politics and Violence in Haiti
International Crisis Group
Efforts by Haitian politicians and their foreign partners to quell surging gang violence have yet to bear fruit. A transitional government drawn from the country’s main political forces took office in April 2024, promising to hold the first elections in nearly a decade. Soon thereafter, the first contingent of Kenyan police disembarked, part of an international security mission tasked with loosening the gangs’ stranglehold on the capital Port-au-Prince and its vicinity. But the hopes invested by Haitians in the transitional government and the foreign mission remain unfulfilled. Partisan infighting and corruption allegations have prolonged political dysfunction. Violence rages, with gangs perpetrating some of the worst massacres ever as the understaffed, underfunded foreign mission struggles to rein them in. With safe elections looking improbable in the near term, transitional authorities should get past their internal disputes to plot a realistic course to polls and constitutional reform. The UN Security Council, for its part, must decide how best to respond to Haiti’s request for support in fighting the gangs. https://www.crisisgroup.org/latin-america-caribbean/caribbean/haiti/107-locked-transition-politics-and-violence-haiti
From Ariel Henry to the CPT: A Continuity of Failure
Frantz Duval in Le Nouvelliste
Days go by, and the news remains grim on the security front. In three different areas of the metropolitan region of Port-au-Prince this week—Kenscoff, Nazon, and Carrefour-Feuilles—peace has been targeted. Images of residents of Carrefour-Feuilles rushing through the streets to escape yet another wave of gang attacks are circulating widely on social media. No, these are not last year's images but new ones, taken in this month of February 2025.
A few days earlier, it was the Nazon area that was at the center of our tragedies. The neighborhood, tormented like Solino, has been emptied of its residents, but that did not satisfy the gangs’ violence. They took it out on the properties instead. Circulating images show houses burning without any response from emergency services.
It was in Kenscoff that this bloody week began, on Sunday, February 16, 2025, with an attack on the antenna zone. Defenders of the commune, members of law enforcement and affiliates, lost their lives in the clashes. It will soon be a month since Kenscoff has been under gang fire. A month since the security forces’ response has been inadequate—just as it is every time the gangs launch an offensive.
Symbolically, the situation is catastrophic. The images of a police armored vehicle set on fire by gang members are evidence that something is not working. The explanations provided by the institution’s public relations service have not eased the unease.
The feeling of abandonment among the populations of Nazon, Carrefour-Feuilles, Kenscoff, and the entire Western department, who know they are not safe from anything, is immense. This third week of February adds to the long list of days reinforcing the belief that Haitian authorities are incapable of finding solutions to change the situation.
A year ago, Ariel Henry, a prime minister without a plan, left power. Soon, it will be a year since the Transitional Presidential Council took his place. Who would have thought it would be impossible to do better than Ariel Henry? Who would have thought it was possible to do worse than Ariel Henry?
As the weeks pass and the news remains unchanged, Haiti is faced with an undeniable reality: from one leader to the next, power continues to be marked by inefficiency and failure with the same consistency.
https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/253592/from-ariel-henry-to-the-cpt-a-continuity-of-failure
In 30 years of work in Haiti, I’ve ‘never seen such suffering.’ US must reconsider TPS
Opinion By William G. O’Neill in the Miami Herald
I have visited Haiti three times during the past 18 months as the United Nations Designated Expert on Haiti. On each visit I saw a serious increase in human rights violations and abuses. In over 30 years of working on Haiti, I have never seen such suffering.
Rampant gang violence is the No. 1 reason for this human rights catastrophe. According to figures verified by my colleagues of the U.N. Human Rights Office, over 5,600 people were killed, mostly by violence perpetrated by Haiti’s ruthless gangs in 2024. This marked a significant increase from the previous year.
Victims of injuries by gangs also increased, as did the amount of territory they control. Rape and sexual violence have grown to such an extent that the U.N. Human Rights Office has stopped providing statistics because they know whatever figure they give will be misleadingly low. Gangs use sexual violence as a way to terrorize the population and show who is in control.
The number of internally displaced persons, IDPs, has quintupled since my first visit to the country in June 2023. Now the figure is well over a million people forced to flee their homes because of the violence. One in 10 Haitians is now displaced, among the highest percentages in the world. Half of the displaced are children. One young girl I interviewed in a camp for IDPs in Haiti said she had not gone to school for two years and another girl said she had not eaten for two days.
The government of Haiti has limited capacity to support these people who live in overcrowded and unsanitary sites. Access to food, clean water, toilets and showers is minimal to non-existent. Sexual violence and abuse is rife in the camps with women and girls subject to collective rape, forced prostitution and trading sex for access to humanitarian aid.
The violence has also affected children’s ability to attend school. In many gang-controlled areas, most schools are closed because it’s too dangerous for children and their teachers to travel. Schools are no longer schools but have become camps for the displaced. According to UNICEF, an estimated 1.2 million children live under the constant threat of gang violence.
Gangs’ attacks on hospitals, clinics and other medical facilities have further eroded what was always limited access to health care for Haitians. Close to 70% of all medical facilities in the capital are not functioning. Doctors, nurses and medical technicians have been kidnapped and held for exorbitant ransoms or murdered.
Because the gangs have a stranglehold on all the major access roads in the capital, medical supplies, drugs and equipment are in short supply and expensive. On my visit to the southern peninsula, far from gangs, I met hospital officials who told me they have no supplies: patients must bring everything needed for a procedure, assuming the hospital has fuel for its generator because there has been no electricity for over two years.
The World Food Program has found that half the population faces acute hunger, one of the highest per capita proportions of food insecurity in the world. Some areas of territories controlled by gangs have endured levels of hunger never before seen in the Western Hemisphere.
Port-au-Prince is a large open-air prison. Cut off by air, land and sea, people are at the gangs’ mercy, which is in short supply. The Haiti National Police are outnumbered and outgunned by the gangs. The Kenyan-led Multinational Security Support, MSS, mission does its best but does not have the logistical and financial support it requires to implement its mandate successfully. Neither force has combat helicopters or attack drones, essential to dislodging the gangs from their well-entrenched redoubts. Given the acute level of violence in Haiti, no country can guarantee that Haitians can be returned in a safe, dignified or sustainable manner. Haitians, wherever they are in the world, require protection. I urge the U.S. administration to reconsider its decision to shorten the period of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians.
William G. O’Neill was designated as an independent expert on human rights in Haiti in 2023 by U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. O’Neill previously headed the legal department of the U.N./Organization of American States Mission in Haiti and helped establish the Haiti National Police in 1995. O’Neill lives in Brooklyn.
https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article300724284.html#storylink=cpy
What Does U.S. Policy Success Look Like in Haiti?
Georges Fauriol in USIP
As of early 2025, Haiti is still suffering from a multifaceted national crisis that has all but dismantled the country’s political governance, security and economic stability. This dismal result is frustrating, most certainly for Haitian themselves. It is also, in varying ways, an indictment of the international community’s considerable and well-intentioned efforts, often led by the United States. In fact, the new Trump administration runs the danger that U.S.-Haiti policy dynamics could fail to satisfy the core elements of its three-tiered definition of policy success: Does it make America safer, stronger and more prosperous?
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Haiti’s spiraling crisis could impact U.S. security interests throughout the Western Hemisphere.
To address it, U.S. leadership can encourage regional actors to broaden their engagement.
In Haiti, U.S. policy should surge to improve security and help Haitian leaders on the road to elections.
https://www.usip.org/publications/2025/02/what-does-us-policy-success-look-haiti
Rethinking Aid: Can Haiti Stand on Its Own?
Johnny Celestin on LinkedIn
The ongoing debate about foreign aid often lacks critical nuance. While many associate aid primarily with USAID or international organizations, the reality is broader. "Capital ''A Aid" in my view encompasses three streams: international assistance, nonprofit organizations (many of which are Haitian-led), and remittances from the diaspora. While the literature does not officially count remittance as "aid," its impact is similar on the receiving society is the same.
As the Trump administration works to dismantle USAID and freeze almost all funding, some argue that this presents an opportunity for Haiti to rid itself of aid and achieve self-sufficiency. But is such a transition truly feasible? What would the consequences be for Haiti’s stability and security? My friends at Haiti Renewal Alliance are hosting a webinar titled Haiti Without AID on February 25th (register here). It will be a conversation aimed at providing people with a better understanding of foreign assistance to Haiti. I hope that the panelists will give participants, especially Haitians, the facts about foreign assistance but also provide an opportunity to discuss what would happen if (all) aid stopped completely.
This conversation must move beyond a binary debate of dependency versus self-sufficiency and consider all forms of aid while acknowledging a harsh reality: without a well-planned transition, the risks of deeper instability, suffering, and collapse are too great to ignore. This does not mean change should not happen, but Haitians must confront these challenges head-on.
The current foreign aid model provides short-term relief but has entrenched dependency. To break this cycle, Haiti must prioritize building strong institutions, diversifying its economy, and strengthening governance. My hope is that the Haiti Without AID webinar will be a platform to explore alternatives and discuss how Haiti can move toward a sustainable, self-reliant future.
The real challenge is not whether Haiti should receive foreign aid but how to reshape it in a way that fosters long-term economic resilience rather than perpetual reliance on external support. I believe a transition is necessary, but if mishandled, Haiti risks a deeper crisis instead of progress. Now is the time for serious, fact-based discussions on what an effective aid transition should look like. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/rethinking-aid-can-haiti-stand-its-own-johnny-celestin-ym0ye/