Conflicts & War

As political transition in Haiti remains elusive, hunger grows and the sick are abandoned

Port-au-Prince, Mar 26 (EFE).- Pharmacies, clinics and schools were raided and burned in downtown Port-au-Prince by armed gangs on Tuesday, as even the police are unable to enter the city center.

The surroundings of the Haitian State University Hospital have been targeted by armed groups belonging to the Vivre Ensemble (Living Together) coalition, led by the powerful Jimmy Cherizier, alias Barbecue.

The public hospital has been abandoned for nearly a month, since the latest round of violence erupted in Haiti, but there are still some patients there, left to fend for themselves without the care of doctors.

“I am here. I am sick. We can’t find a doctor to treat us. They have abandoned us,” one of the patients told EFE.

In the area, a school, clinics, pharmacies, and dozens of houses were looted and even set on fire by the gangs, as well as an art school and dozens of cars in the city center, leading to increased tension and the flight of residents.

Meanwhile, Haiti’s interim presidential council remains in limbo, with internal debates and no date set for the election of a president.

In addition to the resignation of the only woman chosen for the council, Dominique Dupuy, in the face of sexist remarks, criticism, and death threats, and her replacement by the diplomat Smith Augustin, one of the observers, René Jean-Jumeau of the Rassemblement pour une Entente Nationale et Souveraine (Rally for a National and Sovereign Agreement), has now also withdrawn.

Access to food is becoming increasingly difficult

On Tuesday, Unicef issued a statement saying that the ongoing armed violence in Artibonite Department and Ouest Department, which includes Port au Prince, has restricted aid deliveries and collapsed an already fragile health system, posing an imminent threat to the lives of more than 125,000 children at risk of severe acute malnutrition.

“Thousands of children are on the brink, while life-saving supplies are ready to be delivered if violence stops and roads and hospitals are opened. This malnutrition crisis is entirely human-made,” warned Unicef Executive Director Catherine Russell.

Unicef denounced that earlier this month, one of its containers in Port-au-Prince’s main port was looted, and “essential items for maternal, neonatal, and child survival, including resuscitators and related equipment” were stolen.

Curfews extended

According to the Haitian National Police, operations between Feb. 29 and Mar. 26 have resulted in the deaths of 17 suspected criminals (including gang leaders Ernst Julmé, alias Ti Greg, and Makandal), the seizure of 17 weapons (including 12-gauge rifles, AK47s, 9-millimeter pistols, and M4s), and the confiscation of one vehicle.

The nightly curfew, which can only be renewed for 72 hours at a time, was extended until Friday, from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. local time. EFE

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