Haiti Report, November 18, 2024
A compilation of news about Haiti from the past week.
More than 20,000 people displaced in 4 days last week
More than 20,000 people have been displaced across Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince in just four days, including over 17,000 hosted in 15 displacement sites even as gang violence escalates. The crisis has disrupted critical supply chains and isolated the city. Many of these individuals have faced multiple displacements, repeatedly forced to flee violence leaving behind what little they managed to rebuild. Such a scale of displacement has not been observed since August 2023. The closure of air traffic following the targeted shootings at three commercial aircraft over Port-au-Prince, restricted access to the country’s main seaport, and unsafe roads controlled by armed groups have left the metropolitan area in a state of near-total paralysis, compounding the suffering of already vulnerable populations.
Criminal groups in the capital continue their expansion, taking control of additional neighborhoods and further isolating communities. Previously rival factions, which once clashed over territorial disputes, have joined forces and formed alliances to combat the National Police efforts, which, grappling with a lack of resources, remain overstretched and face significant challenges in containing the escalating violence. Gang-related violence has caused nearly 4,000 deaths in 2024, according to the UN Human Rights Office; gender-based violence, including sexual violence used as a weapon of terror, has reached alarming levels. Women and children are disproportionately affected, with 94 per cent of displaced women and girls at heightened risk of violence. “The isolation of Port-au-Prince is amplifying an already dire humanitarian situation,” said Grégoire Goodstein IOM’s Chief in Haiti. “Our ability to deliver aid is stretched to its limits. Without immediate international support, the suffering will worsen exponentially. With only 20 percent of Port-au-Prince accessible, humanitarian workers face immense challenges in reaching affected populations.” https://www.iom.int/news/over-20000-flee-rising-gang-violence-spurs-mass-displacement-haiti
Week of terror, tension and massive displacement
On Friday, November 15, 2024, Port-au-Prince concluded a week marked by extreme tension, the first of its kind since the turmoil at the end of February. The new reality in Port-au-Prince this mid-November is the establishment of makeshift camps in public buildings and vacant lots, set up by those fleeing gang violence.
In Bourdon, across from the Mickey Mouse establishment, families were seen preparing to settle in the courtyard of the KID party headquarters on Friday, November 15. Armed with machetes, but more so with courage, these families, under the scorching sun, gathered poles found here and there, along with tarps or blankets, to shelter themselves as they wait for the terror of the gangs to subside. At least, that’s what they hope for. Children, young people, and the elderly are all gathered on this vast lot, which is filled with trunks, bags, and other everyday items. They come from neighborhoods like Solino and Nazon, displaced by the gangs of "Viv Ansanm." For them, this land offers a brief respite. This land, owned by the KID, is just one example of the new spaces occupied by internally displaced persons (IDPs). At the République d’Équateur school, just a few meters from the Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation (MPCE), and at the Office of Citizen Protection (OPC), hundreds of families have taken refuge. In its latest update, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported on November 13 that 4,372 people had been forced to flee their homes due to gang violence, with 3,856 of them in Port-au-Prince. According to the IOM, 76% of the displaced have taken refuge in eight sites, including two newly established this week. At the beginning of the week, as the outgoing Prime Minister and the Transitional Presidential Council (CPT) engaged in a new power struggle, gangs from the "Viv Ansanm" coalition announced attacks on several neighborhoods. Audio messages shared by the criminals and spread on WhatsApp forums forced several schools and businesses in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area to close their doors.
On Monday, November 11, clashes between units of the Haitian National Police and gang members were recorded near the Carrefour de l’Aéroport. In Solino, images showing flames in the neighborhood were also shared on social media. At the same time, in Vivy Mitchell, homes were set on fire after the gangs succeeded in penetrating this residential area. The presence of armed individuals was reported in Tabarre and along various roads in surrounding areas. As if to remind the city of the horrors of March, gunfire was exchanged at Toussaint Louverture International Airport. A Spirit Airlines flight approaching Port-au-Prince had to land in the Dominican Republic, while a JetBlue flight bound for the United States only became aware of the incident upon landing in the U.S. Following a series of attacks, U.S. authorities acted swiftly. On Tuesday, November 12, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) imposed a 30-day ban on all commercial flights to and from Haiti. In response to this decision, major airlines canceled their operations to Haiti, with some suspending flights until February 2025.
On Tuesday, Dr. Déborah Pierre, a urologist, and her father were targeted by armed criminals. Both were attacked in a shooting; Dr. Pierre was killed, and her father, injured, was taken to the hospital. The situation also caused fear among students at the Institute of African Studies and Research of Haiti (IERAH) and the Faculty of Humanities (FASCH), as gunfire and the presence of armed men were reported near these educational institutions. Later that evening, in the locality of Aral, near the La Couronne company, a wave of terror swept through the area. Residents reported that there was a hunt for police officers and their families after a Haitian National Police (PNH) armored vehicle entered the area twice. According to testimonies gathered by the newspaper, individuals dressed in red, part of the Canaan gang led by Jeff “Gwo lwa” Larose, accompanied by criminals from the area, spent the evening brandishing weapons. So far, no official toll has been reported.
Between Wednesday and Thursday, several families evacuated their homes due to gang threats. On Thursday, footage of “kouri” (fleeing) scenes was recorded in Nazon. The few remaining residents of Solino, Nazon, and parts of Delmas 30 fled as gangs approached, fueled by circulating rumors. Meanwhile, in Bellevue and Belvil, gangs have been trying to take control of these areas since Wednesday night.
Throughout the week, vehicle traffic was sparse. On some roadways, such as Canapé-Vert, especially during the early evening, commuters were subjected to searches by vigilance brigades.
Fuel is no longer leaving the Varreux terminal, raising serious concerns about potential shortages. The few gas stations that remained open on Friday saw long lines of waiting vehicles. The same situation was reported outside the Delmas and Pétion-Ville bank branches, where dozens of people gathered. Meanwhile, only a few schools were able to welcome students during the week. https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/251476/port-au-prince-concludes-a-week-of-intense-tension
Masses of residents fled a running battle Thursday between gang members and police in one of the few neighborhoods of Haiti's capital that hadn't already been fully taken over by gangs, as violence flared amid political turmoil. Families frantically packed mattresses and furniture into cars and carried their belongings on their heads as they left the Solino neighborhood, one of a handful of areas in Port-au-Prince where a coalition of gangs, called Viv Ansanm, and police were locked in a violent firefight over the past several days. "We barely made it out," said 52-year-old Jean-Jean Pierre, who carrying his son in his arms as he fled the neighborhood with throngs of people. "I've lived here 40 years of my life and I've never seen it this bad."
The U.N. International Office for Migration reports that since Sunday more than 4,300 people have fled their homes in Port-au-Prince and neighboring towns, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters at the U.N. in New York on Thursday. Gangs like the Viv Ansanm coalition often seize on moments of political chaos to make power grabs like the one seen in Solino in recent days. Gangs also largely shut down the country's main airport by shooting a number of planes, wounding one flight attendant on Monday. The United Nations said that it documented 20 armed clashes in Port-au-Prince in just one day. The U.N. estimates that gangs control 85% of the city. https://www.npr.org/2024/11/15/g-s1-34322/haiti-gang-violence
Internally Displaced People in Lagonav
Three municipal authorities of La Gonâve contacted by AyiboPost say they are concerned about the lack of resources on site to take care of displaced families. The newcomers were received by a member of the Board of Directors of the municipal section of La Gonâve, Luckson Fils-Aime. They were directed to the local National School in the area, now transformed into a refugee camp. More than 1,500 people have already been forced to undertake this journey, according to data collected between October 11 and October 26, published by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Other families continue to arrive on the island, namely in the 11 communal sections of Anse-à-Galets, according to Ernso Louissaint, mayor of this commune, contacted by AyiboPost, adding that a count is underway in the different municipal sections.
These two municipalities share commercial relations. Every day, boats go back and forth between Arcahaie and La Gonâve. The risks of encountering bandits during the journey to Port-au-Prince, as well as those linked to traveling to Artibonite, also under the control of armed groups, led these fleeing families to choosing the island. Three municipal authorities in La Gonâve contacted by AyiboPost say they are concerned about the lack of resources on site to take care of displaced families. Arcahaie and Cabaret were targeted by gangs several times in 2023. https://ayibopost.com/la-gonave-a-risky-journey-for-families-forced-to-flee-to-arcahaie-due-to-insecurity/
Nearly 500% increase In gunshot wounds last week
The Ministry of Public Health and Population deplores the difficult situation developing in Port-au-Prince causing many victims and challenges to overcome. Since the escalation of violence by armed gangs, the University Hospital of Peace (HUP) has received nearly 36 people injured by gunshots from November 11 to 14, 2024 in the morning, confirms Dr. Paul Junior Fontilus, Medical Director of the HUP, while previously, the hospital received 2 people injured by gunshots on average per day... an increase of nearly 500% posing many challenges to overcome. https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-43636-haiti-flash-nearly-500-increase-in-gunshot-wounds-in-4-days.html
Air Transit and Amerijet also cancel flights to Haiti; JetBlue waives fees through February 12, 2025; Sunrise announces additional flights
The airline Air Transat has canceled all flights to and from Haiti until January 15, 2025. "Due to the surge in violence in Haiti, we are forced to suspend our flights to/from Port-au-Prince until the situation is deemed safe for our crews and customers. As of now, flights are canceled until January 15, 2025," the company announced on Friday, November 15, 2024. Similarly, Amerijet has temporarily suspended its operations for 30 days. "Due to recent security issues in Port-au-Prince, Haiti (PAP), we have temporarily suspended all flights and will not accept shipments to Haiti at this time. Meanwhile, JetBlue has announced a waiver of reservation change fees for affected travelers. "We are waiving change/cancellation fees and fare differences for customers traveling from Monday, November 11, 2024, to Wednesday, February 12, 2025," the airline said. https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/251480/air-transat-suspends-flights-to-haiti-through-january-15
Sunrise Airways, Haiti's leading airline, is demonstrating adaptability in response to the temporary closure of Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince. To ensure passenger mobility and maintain operations, the airline is introducing temporary flights connecting Haiti to select regional and international destinations. "Starting Sunday, November 17, 2024, we will resume twice-daily connections between Cap-Haïtien and Les Cayes. From Monday, November 18, 2024, we will offer daily flights between Providenciales and Santo Domingo (JBQ). Beginning Wednesday, November 20, 2024, there will be three weekly flights between Cap-Haïtien and Miami International Airport," Sunrise Airways announced in a press release on Friday, November 15, 2024. On November 14, three days after armed attacks on American airline planes led to the closure of Port-au-Prince airport, Sunrise Airways established a connection from Cap-Haïtien to Providenciales International Airport (PLS) in the Turks and Caicos Islands, with two daily flights.
https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/251475/cap-haitien-miami-route-launching-on-november-20
Over 50,000 Haitians deported from the DR in October
According to the latest report from the GARR, 27,336 Haitians were deported through the four official border points between the two countries in October. Due to fear, 16,306 Haitians voluntarily returned to Haiti, while 6,601 others were turned away. The GARR sharply criticized the deteriorating situation for Haitians in the Dominican Republic, especially considering the increase in deportations and the rising violence they face.
“The decision by the Dominican president to deport 10,000 Haitians per week has led to mass expulsions, accompanied by unimaginable abuse, revealing cruelty, racism, and xenophobia toward Haitians,” the GARR observed. It also pointed to the actions of local figures, such as the mayor of Santa Cruz in Dajabón, who gave a five-day ultimatum for Haitian migrants to leave the city. “Such threats only increase fear and despair within the Haitian community on Dominican soil,” the GARR added. During October, the GARR assisted 3,034 migrants at its Belladère office, mostly men, but also women, children, and elderly people, many of whom were victims of violence during their deportation. Among them were numerous pregnant women, one of whom nearly lost her baby due to the mistreatment inflicted by Dominican immigration authorities.
The GARR also condemned the inhumane conditions in detention, including the lack of food and water, physical violence, sexual assaults, and more. “Migrants are crammed into unsuitable transport vehicles, without medical assistance and deprived of their personal belongings,” the GARR denounced in its report.
Despite repeated outcries from human rights organizations, Dominican authorities continue to expel indiscriminately, including pregnant women, children, people with reduced mobility, and even Dominican citizens of Haitian descent. This blatant disregard for the 1999 bilateral agreement and the American Convention on Human Rights has been condemned by the GARR, which also criticized the recent migration measures adopted by the Dominican Republic for violating bilateral agreements and international conventions on the protection of migrant rights.
The Dominican Republic is not just deporting Haitians. Citizens arrested without documents have almost systematically been subjected to a violent ritual of beatings and humiliation since the government announced forced departures at the beginning of October. An official from the Repatriated and Refugee Support Group revealed that he had found foreign nationals as well as Dominican citizens of Haitian origin among the 33,320 deportees recorded by the International Organization for Migration over the past eight weeks. The testimonies collected by AyiboPost suggest the existence of systematic violations of human rights and of the legislative framework in force. Read the testimonies: https://ayibopost.com/voici-comment-le-gouvernement-dominicain-viole-le-droit-des-migrants-haitiens-quil-deporte/
Prime Minister Fils-Aimé names new cabinet
Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, sworn in last Monday, unveiled his new cabinet on Friday, excluding former Foreign Minister Dominique Dupuy. Jean Harvel Victor Jean-Baptiste will take over the Foreign Ministry as the government pledges to restore peace and security in the face of escalating gang violence in Port-au-Prince. The cabinet appointments include Paul Antoine Bien-Aimé as Interior Minister, Patrick Pelissier as Justice Minister, and Alfred Metellus as Minister of Economy. Other key appointments are Marie Ketleen Florestal for Planning, Vernet Joseph for Agriculture, and Raphaël Hosty for Public Works, alongside James Monazard heading Trade and Moïse Jean-Pierre overseeing Environment. The new team also includes ministers for Education, Culture, Public Health, Social Affairs, Tourism, and Defense, among others. Pédrica Saint-Jean will lead Women’s Status, and Patrick Sully W. Joseph is the new Secretary of State for Territorial Communities, as the administration seeks to address the country’s social, economic, and security challenges.
Majority of trafficked guns in Caribbean are shipped from Florida
A new report from the U.S. government’s lead investigator on gun trafficking in the Caribbean area is confirming what region leaders have long said: Most of the firearms wreaking havoc in their vulnerable nations and being used in 90% of the homicides are coming from the United States. However, the report from the Government Accountability Office, which was requested by three high-ranking House and Senate Democrats, also shows the lack of political will on the parts of some Caribbean governments and shortcomings in the U.S. to tackle the problem.
The report notes that while 73% of the guns recovered over a five-year period between 2018-23 by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, were traced back to the U.S., some Caribbean governments have shown greater willingness than others to recover and trace firearms. Also, despite their complaining, some countries do not allow sting operations, known as international controlled deliveries, to identify illegal trafficking networks by allowing shipments of inoperable guns to go to the intended recipients. The report also found that the majority of the firearms recovered in the Caribbean were sold in Florida, Georgia and Texas.
Though the acute crisis in Haiti, where heavily armed gangs have the capital under siege, needs greater attention, Democratic U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas said the report shows “how criminal organizations across the Caribbean source their weapons from the United States in a deadly trade that has contributed to the collapse of Haitian society and devastating loss of life across the region. “The most effective way to address violence and instability in the Caribbean is to prevent U.S. guns from falling into the hands of criminals,” said Castro, a ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, who requested the report.
New York Times: Haiti’s Many Problems and Very Few Solutions, Explained
Haiti, a nation rocked by gang cruelty and plagued with political infighting, has — so far this year — had three prime ministers, seen at least 4,000 people killed and experienced brutality from armed groups so intense that it forced an extended closure of its international airport, twice. But despite $600 million spent by Washington on an international police force to restore order, an explosion of violence last week underscored the enormity of a crisis so severe that the Federal Aviation Administration has barred U.S. aircraft from flying under 10,000 feet in Haitian airspace to avoid being shot at by gangs.
With another interim prime minister in place, but gangs gaining territory every day, Haitians are desperate for relief. Efforts to stabilize Haiti are floundering, and the country presents a dangerous and disastrous challenge as President-elect Donald J. Trump prepares to take office. Few people seem to have answers.
“I am at a complete loss,” said Susan D. Page, a University of Michigan Law professor and former United Nations official in Haiti. “Everyone is just kind of astounded.” Several Haiti experts stressed that the United States needs to do more to end the flow of guns from its shores to Haiti. Whether the solution is a full arms embargo or tougher sanctions on people known to finance and control gangs, experts agreed that the crisis will not end until high-powered weapons are off the streets.
“This is what Haitians have been consistently saying: ‘We do not produce guns,’” said Nathalie Frédéric Pierre, a Haiti expert at Howard University. “This is what is choking our society.” Several Haitians interviewed expressed disappointment that the United States had spent so much money on the international force rather spending more on the Haitian National Police, which is vastly understaffed and ill-equipped. “We wasted a lot of time money and energy that could have been invested in to our own Haitian solution,” said Vélina Élysée Charlier, a human-rights activist in Port-au-Prince. Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/17/world/americas/haiti-problems-gangs-crimes.html?unlocked_article_code=1.a04.B8U2.bi3ucVG4lIlq&smid=url-share
Haitian immigrants are fleeing Springfield, Ohio since Trump election
From a tiny office behind a Haitian grocery store on Springfield’s South Limestone Street, Margery Koveleski has spent years helping local Haitians overcome bureaucratic red tape to make their lives in the Ohio city a little bit easier. But Koveleski – whose family is Haitian – has noticed a major change recently. Haitians are now coming to her to figure out how to leave.
“Some folks don’t have credit cards or access to the internet, and they want to buy a bus ticket or a plane ticket, so we help them book a flight,” she told the Guardian recently. “People are leaving.” Koveleski, leaders in Springfield’s Haitian community, and others have relayed reports of Haitians fleeing the city of 60,000 people in recent days for fear of being rounded up and deported after Donald Trump’s victory in the 5 November presidential election. “The owner of one store is wondering if he should move back to New York or to Chicago – he says his business is way down,” Koveleski remarked.
Trump has repeatedly said he would end immigrants’ temporary protected status (TPS) – the provision through which many Haitians are legally allowed to live and work in the US – and deport Haitians from Springfield once in office. For many, the threats are real. A sheriff in Sidney, a town 40 miles (64km) north-west of Springfield that is home to several dozen Haitian immigrants, allegedly told local police in September to “get a hold of these people and arrest them”. “Bring them – I’ll figure out if they’re legal,” he said, referencing Haitian immigrants in the area.
As Jacob Payen, a co-founder of the Haitian Community Alliance who runs a business that includes helping Haitians in Springfield to file tax returns, said: “People are fully aware of the election result, and that is why they are leaving; they are afraid of a mass deportation. Springfield’s Haitian community has been in the spotlight since Trump falsely accused immigrants here of eating pets during a presidential debate in September. Since then, the city has seen false bomb threats and marches by neo-Nazi groups after having experienced a revival in recent years in large part because of Haitians who took jobs in local produce packaging and machining factories that many previously there found undesirable. Unofficial results from the presidential election found that Trump beat Harris by fewer than 150 votes in Springfield despite his making false claims about immigrants in the Ohio city a cornerstone of his anti-immigration election campaign.
A policy that has been around since 1990, the TPS program currently sees more than 800,000 immigrants who have fled conflict or humanitarian emergencies in 16 countries to live and work legally in the US for a limited time. About 300,000 Haitians fleeing widespread violence in the Caribbean country have been authorized to remain in the US through TPS until at least 3 February 2026. But while it once enjoyed support from both sides of the political aisle, Trump’s first term saw a California court rule in 2020 that his administration could end TPS for citizens of Haiti and three other countries.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/17/haitian-immigrants-springfield-ohio-trump-election
Trump denigrates Haitians: how will US policy change?
Conditions in Haiti are deteriorating — fast. The week began with the country’s ruling council firing the prime minister it had appointed not even seven months earlier. By week’s end, police and vigilantes had ambushed a Doctors Without Borders ambulance and executed several of the patients inside, gangs had emptied out more neighborhoods in the capital and gunmen had fired on commercial airliners, leading authorities to shut the international airport down for the second time this year.
Now comes Donald Trump, who has repeatedly denigrated Haiti and Haitians, bristled at allowing them into the United States and letting them stay, and claimed falsely they were eating family pets in Springfield, Ohio. While Trump has made his opposition to migration from Haiti clear, it’s less certain what his election might portend for U.S. aid to the beleaguered Caribbean nation or continued support for the U.N.-backed, Kenya-led policing mission there to beat back the gangs. The poorly resourced force, set up and funded mostly by the United States, has made little impact.
“I don’t expect too much from Trump,” said Pierre Esperance, director of Haiti’s National Human Rights Defense Network. In his first term, Esperance said, “he didn’t really care” about Haiti. But analysts said the worsening crisis 800 miles off Florida might be impossible for the U.S. government to disregard — and could prompt conflict between the America First president-elect and Cabinet nominees who have signaled openness to a more interventionist approach. “It’s a very combustible situation,” said Luis G. Moreno, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti from 2001 to 2004. “And I think it may become so big and so terrible that the incoming administration is going to be unable to ignore it.”
A spokeswoman for the Trump transition did not respond to questions about whether he would back the international mission or the Biden administration effort to transform it into a U.N. peacekeeping mission.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/11/16/haiti-crisis-trump-administration/
US Steps up campaign for peacekeeping force
The United States has stepped up its campaign to transform the Kenya-led multinational force in Haiti into a U.N. peacekeeping force, spurred by escalating gang violence that shut all air traffic to the capital of Port-au-Prince this week. The U.S. proposed a U.N. peacekeeping mission in early September as one way to secure regular funding for the U.N.-backed multinational force that is trying to help Haiti’s national force control the gangs which faces a serious funding crisis. The United States tried to get all 15 members of the U.N. Security Council to sign off on a draft resolution this week that would start the wheels rolling to transform the Kenya-led force. It asks U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “to undertake expeditiously contingency preparations and planning” tor a transformation, which would take many months to accomplish.
The U.S. set a deadline Thursday for objections to the draft resolution, and two diplomats said Russia and China, which have publicly raised concerns about moving to a U.N. force, refused to give a green light.
Russia said it wanted an open Security Council briefing from the U.N. Secretariat followed by closed council consultations on the latest situation in Haiti -- and that has been scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, the diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity because contacts have been private. The force was supposed to have 2,500 international police but the head of the U.N.’s political mission in Haiti, Maria Isabel Salvador, told the council late last month that just around 430 are deployed -- some 400 from Kenya and the rest from the Bahamas, Belize and Jamaica. Last month, Kenya’s President William Ruto said another 600-strong contingent would be sent to Haiti in November. Salvador said the U.N. trust fund that finances the multinational force and relies on voluntary contributions, “remains critically under-resourced, which could impact deployment and impede it from carrying out its tasks in support of the Haitian National Police.”
The U.N. said Friday that the trust fund has received $85.3 million of the $96.8 million pledged. The United States agreed to contribute $300 million to the multinational force. But that’s still far below the $600 million cost to deploy a 2,500-strong force for a year, according to the Security Council. And whether President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration would continue voluntary funding for a multinational force remains in question. Haiti’s leaders have asked for a U.N. peacekeeping force, and the U.S. draft resolution notes that the permanent council of the Organization of American States adopted a resolution on Nov. 13 entitled “In Support of Haiti’s Request for a United States Peacekeeping Operation.”
The arrival of the first Kenyans in June marked the fourth major foreign military intervention in Haiti.
Diesel-Carrying Boat Adrift in the PAP Harbor
Amid a shortage of petroleum products caused by violence around the Varreux terminal, the Association of Petroleum Professionals (APPE) has informed the two associations of petroleum distributors about the presence of a ship, Syrma, carrying a diesel shipment that "does not meet the quality standards approved for the Haitian market," according to Le Nouvelliste. In a press release received on Friday, November 15, 2024, Randolph Rameau, president of the APPE, stated, "The Association of Petroleum Professionals (APPE) draws the attention of Haitian authorities, the National Association of Petroleum Distributors (ANADIPP), and the National Association of Gas Station Owners (ANAPROSS) to the presence of a vessel named 'Syrma' in Haitian waters. The ship is carrying a cargo of diesel (gasoil) whose specifications do not meet the quality standards approved for the Haitian market." The release further noted, "Unable to dock at the Port-au-Prince terminals, the importer is attempting to take advantage of the temporary fuel shortage caused by the inaccessibility of transporters to the Varreux terminal (TEVASA), by delivering its cargo to other unauthorized ports, thus evading government oversight." The APPE emphasized, "The five officially registered companies have sufficient stock to meet market demands. They have also committed to working together to ensure regular imports that comply with industry standards, thereby preventing any shortage." https://lenouvelliste.com/en/article/251472/diesel-carrying-boat-adrift-in-the-harbor