The Prime Minister of Haiti, Ariel Henry, presented his resignation as head of Government of the Caribbean country on Monday amid a wave of unstoppable violence that is suffocating the population. Since the crisis worsened in early March with the escape of more than 3,000 prisoners, Henry had not managed to return to Port-au-Prince and was waiting in Puerto Rico, where he landed on his way back from a trip to Kenya. He had assumed command in July 2021 following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, an assassination that plunged the country into chaos and unprecedented institutional instability. Last week, former police officer Jimmy Chérizier, alias Barbecue, the most feared leader of organized crime, threatened to unleash “a civil war” if the head of the Executive did not resign.
The resignation was announced by the interim president of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and leader of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, during the closing of a high-level meeting on Haiti held in Jamaica. But shortly following Henry himself spoke out. “The Government that I lead will resign immediately following the installation of a council [de transición]”, he assured in a speech recorded and broadcast through social networks. “I want to thank the Haitian people for the opportunity they have given me. “I ask all Haitians to remain calm and do everything they can so that peace and stability return as quickly as possible,” the prime minister added.
A senior official in Joe Biden’s Administration indicated in statements to journalists reported by Reuters that the decision on the resignation was made last Friday and that the prime minister has permission to remain in Puerto Rico or travel to other places in the United States. Although Henry has expressed his intention to return to the country, security conditions do not currently allow it, the government source added.
Precisely on Friday, the political heart of Port-au-Prince was the scene of the umpteenth night of violence. A group of bandits confronted security forces at the gates of the National Palace and tried to set fire to the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior until the gang members were killed by the agents. The objective of the revolt was to take over the presidential house at a time of enormous institutional weakness. The country is closed tight, last week connections from Miami and Santo Domingo were suspended and images of large holes in the walls of the capital’s airport were spread on social networks.
Caribbean Community leaders met in Kingston on Monday to address the crisis and discuss the framework to facilitate a transition with the blessing of the United States. In recent days, the State Department had urged Henry to “accelerate” this process while criminal groups demanded his resignation, sowing terror in the streets. Political, religious, civil society and business sector organizations participated in the Jamaica event. The purpose is for all these sectors to be represented in that provisional council in charge of leading Haiti to elections. After the assassination of Moïse, that was one of the central demands of the international community. The country has not gone to the polls since 2016 and the prime minister postponed the date on several occasions, hiding behind serious insecurity problems.
The Secretary of State himself, Antony Blinken, opted, before the resignation was formalized, for an “independent” and “broad-based” council in charge of addressing Haiti’s emergencies. Some “immediate needs” of the population, which in addition to living surrounded by violence, has dealt in recent years with misery and a permanent humanitarian crisis that has triggered mass migration. All Haitians ask for international help. But that mission has never arrived. The United Nations is finalizing the sending of a police support contingent to the country, which, with 11 million inhabitants, has fewer than 10,000 police officers. Kenya offered to lead the plan and pledged to send at least 1,000 agents. Other countries, such as Spain, have also offered human and material support, all under the financial umbrella of the United States, which for the moment has promised a logistical investment of 200 million dollars.
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