UN calls for immediate action to tackle 'cataclysmic situation' in Haiti

LONDON

The population is severely deprived of enjoying its human rights in Haiti, where state institutions are close to collapse, warned a UN report on Thursday.

"Corruption, impunity and poor governance, compounded by increasing levels of gang violence, have eroded the rule of law and brought state institutions... close to collapse," according to the UN Human Rights Office report.

Haiti has been under siege internally since mid-2021 when gangs took over infrastructure and violent upheaval saw battles for turf. Medical help has evaporated and starvation looms as food supplies are almost non-existent.

"The impact of generalised insecurity on the population is dire and deteriorating ... and the population is severely deprived of enjoying its human rights," added the report, covering the period from Sept. 25, 2023 to Feb. 29, 2024.

A rampage by gangs March 18 targeted previously peaceful upscale neighborhoods in the country’s capital, and at least a dozen people were killed.

Thousands have been killed in the conflict while hundreds of thousands have fled the country.

The UN study said the number of people killed and injured due to gang violence significantly increased in 2023, 4,451 killed and 1,668 injured.

Separately, the number of victims skyrocketed in the first three months of 2024, 1,554 killed and 826 injured up to March 22.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said tackling insecurity must be a top priority to protect the population and prevent further human suffering.

"It is equally important to protect institutions essential to the rule of law, which have been attacked to their very core," he added.

According to the report, enhancing security alone "will not bring long-lasting solutions" and calls for policies aiming at the restoration of the rule of law and the prevention of violence to be pursued.

"It is shocking that despite the horrific situation on the ground, arms keep still pouring in. I appeal for a more effective implementation of the arms embargo," Turk said.