Amid the recent violence and deadly clashes between armed gangs and police in Haiti, over the past week or so, the leader who heads an alliance of gangs, Jimmy Chérizier, also known as “Barbeque,” asked temporarily exiled Prime Minister Ariel Henry to either quit or threatened to plunge the Caribbean country into a civil war.
Who is Jimmy Chérizier?
Since Saturday (Mar 2), armed gang members have stormed Haiti’s largest prisons and released as many as 4,000 prisoners who have wreaked havoc in the capital Port-au-Prince and now control large swathes of the country.
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This was days after Chérizier, a former police officer turned gang leader who heads an alliance of gangs – called on criminal groups to unite and overthrow the PM. The 46-year-old gang leader was once an officer of the Haitian National Police force.
During his time as a police officer, Chérizier allegedly played a role in multiple massacres, including the one that led to the deaths of more than 70 people, in 2018, after over 400 homes in the capital’s La Saline neighbourhood were set ablaze, according to the United Nations.
The 46-year-old is one of the five gang leaders who face sanctions by the UN and the United States. Chérizier, as per Reuters, is originally from the Delmas area of Port-au-Prince.
In 2020, he brought together nine capital area gangs and created an alliance called, G9 Family and Allies, which is headed by him.
The G9 alliance made international headlines after it took control of Haiti’s main fuel port after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, in 2021.
The gang alliance essentially held the country hostage with this move which led to a halt in transport and hospitals losing their energy supplies. The blockade ended over a month later.
Threats of civil war and genocide
Henry, who assumed power after the assassination of Haiti’s last president, was supposed to step down in February. However, when he did not, deadly protests seeking his ouster erupted in the country’s capital last month.
“If Ariel Henry doesn’t resign, if the international community continues to support him, we’ll be heading straight for a civil war that will lead to genocide,” Chérizier told reporters in Port-au-Prince.
He added, “Either Haiti becomes a paradise or a hell for all of us. It’s out of the question for a small group of rich people living in big hotels to decide the fate of people living in working-class neighbourhoods,”
In early February, thousands of Haitians took to the streets to protest the unelected government of the incumbent PM and called on him to resign.
This was after the February 7 deadline when Henry had promised to step down. Notably, Haitian presidents are also traditionally sworn into office on this date.
In December 2022, he signed a non-binding accord to step down by February 7, 2024, but has since insisted that security conditions must be re-established to hold free and fair elections.
“I think the time has arrived for all to put our heads together to save Haiti, to do things another way in our country,” Henry said on February 8 amid protests.
Henry said Haitians need peace, security, work and the ability to move freely around the country and pledged to hold general elections as soon as the country’s security issues are resolved.
What is happening in Haiti?
Over the last six days since the beginning of the fresh wave of violence in Haiti, thousands of inmates released and armed gang members have laid siege to government sites in the capital including two airports, police stations and a port.
Armed gangs also tried to take over the Toussaint Louverture International Airport, on Monday (Mar 4) and again on Tuesday (Mar 5), but it was not clear if they succeeded.
Meanwhile, Henry emerged in Puerto Rico, a US territory, on Tuesday following his brief disappearance after the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, refused permission for his plane to land.
Santo Domingo, on Wednesday (Mar 6) clarified that officials from Washington and Port-au-Prince had informally requested Henry’s plane make an “indefinite stopover” in their territory, which they said would not be possible.
Dominican authorities also said they will help restore normalcy to Haiti but “it is imperative that any action taken does not compromise our national security.”
Meanwhile, Washington has said while they would not pressure the incumbent Haitian PM to leave, they have asked him to quickly come up with some form of plan for transition to a democratic government.
“We are not calling on him or pushing for him to resign, but we are urging him to expedite the transition,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters, on Wednesday (Mar 6).
Humanitarian situation
The humanitarian situation in Haiti has been deteriorating long before the recent wave of violence. The number of people reported killed increased by more than 110 per cent in 2023 with at least 4,789 lives claimed, said the UN in a report released in January.
The UN also reported indiscriminate killings and kidnappings being carried out by gang members as well as abuses including routine rape, torture and arson.
Since the beginning of this year, around 36,000 people have been displaced within the country, some 1,200 have been killed, and nearly 700 injured, according to the UN.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk, on Wednesday, called for the “urgent deployment, with no further delay” of the planned security force, adding that “This situation is beyond untenable for the people of Haiti.”
Earlier this week, Henry travelled to Kenya to salvage the proposed security mission in the country which would be led by that East African nation and backed by the UN.
Meanwhile, the Dominican Republic has strengthened its border and said it will not set up refugee camps for fleeing Haitians.
“Armed gangs forced us to leave our homes. They destroyed our houses, and we’re on the streets,” Nicolas, who is living in a camp, told Reuters, saying that sleeping in such cramped conditions makes him feel like an animal.
Plan International, a rights group, said around 30 per cent to 50 per cent of gang members are estimated to be minors.
“Each passing day brings new deprivations and horrors to the people of Haiti,” said UNICEF chief Catherine Russell. She added, “The Haitian population is caught in the crossfire.”
(With inputs from agencies)
