Gang violence and mass displacement plague Haiti

Families staying in a makeshift refugee camp in the central square of Leogane, Haiti. Credit: UNICEF/Le Lijour

UNITED NATIONS, September 21, 2024 (IPS) – Amid ongoing civil unrest in Haiti due to gang violence, internal displacement has increased dramatically. Mass internal displacement in Haiti has led to a wide range of negative consequences. These include disruption of education, increased levels of violence and exploitation, and limited access to essential services such as health care.

Just last week, clashes in the Cité Soleil and Delmas neighborhoods of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area led to the displacement of more than 2,000 people over the course of two days. There are currently more than 170,000 people displaced in Port-au-Prince alone, with more than 300,000 displaced across the country.

On September 11, armed conflict in Port-au-Prince forced more than 103,000 children to flee to the Grand South IDP shelters. This influx of refugees has placed significant pressure on local communities and shelters as they struggle to provide resources to those in need. Additionally, the education system has been severely affected, with hundreds of school closures across Haiti.

“The arrival of 103,000 displaced school children in the Grand South has led to a severe strain on education services, while nearly 919 schools nationwide in the West and Artibonite regions have been closed. Some 156,000 students have been affected and many children have lost a significant portion of their school year due to these closures and ongoing violence,” the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said.

Violence by armed gangs and mass displacement have also led to the diminishing effectiveness of several essential services. Health systems in particular have suffered significant losses. About 40 percent of all health facilities in Port-au-Prince are closed.

Reginald Fils-Aimé, director of strategic planning at the Haiti-based nongovernmental organization Zanmi Lasante, told reporters that ongoing gang violence is hampering the movement of both health workers and patients. Medicines cannot be transported due to fear of violence. Nadesha Mijoba, country director of the Haitian Health Foundation (HHF), added that “patients are traveling increasingly long distances in search of health services, often at very high risk of violence, kidnapping, rape and even murder.”

In addition, access to food is severely limited due to conflict and displacement. Violence and high demand have put severe pressure on the agricultural sector. The World Food Programme says that farmland in the Arbonite Valley, known as Haiti’s “breadbasket,” has been seized by gangs, leading to stolen crops.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has warned that escalating violence and displacement since February have severely reduced agricultural production and disrupted markets, leaving half the population, around five million people, facing acute hunger.

Severe overcrowding in makeshift refugee camps has exacerbated Haiti’s health crisis. These camps are breeding grounds for the spread of disease due to unsanitary living conditions, as well as the large number of people in close contact. UNICEF says that a lack of access to clean water and adequate sanitation has led to the spread of cholera.

Healing Waters International, a nonprofit that works to provide clean drinking water in impoverished communities, adds that contaminated water and dehydration often lead to the spread of deadly waterborne diseases, including typhoid and diarrhea.

Gang violence and high levels of displacement have also given way to abuse and exploitation. The Human Rights Service of the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) has monitored levels of forced recruitment of displaced children, as well as the use of sexual violence by gangs, including rape and mutilation, targeting girls and women. Kidnappings, killings and physical attacks have also increased dramatically over the duration of this conflict.

IPS UN Office Report