Haiti, the country is in utter chaos choked in bloody war between various rival gangs

ROME – The chaos in Haiti seems to have no end. President Jovenel Moise was assassinated in July 2021 and since then the country has been in the grip of armed gang violence, which vie for territory sowing death, hunger and destruction. In October the gangs had blocked the main oil terminal of Varreux in Port-au-Prince, thus cutting off the possibility of obtaining oil supplies and causing huge problems for the supply of electricity and water distribution. The terminal remained under the control of the bandits until November, when the police managed to free it after days of armed clashes. People still struggle to obtain basic necessities: food, water, medical and health services. Some hospitals have closed their doors, most of the schools as well, while since October cholera has returned to affect above all the most vulnerable sections of the population. The work of the various NGOs that historically operate on the island is therefore partially effective: from Terre des Hommesto ActionAidfrom Cesvi to Avsiit’s still Coop, Save The Children…

The social insecurity fueling the crisis. Armed gangs have taken control of large areas of the country, isolating entire neighborhoods and cutting off connections with the capital. In this way people can only move within the areas where they live, but where often they can’t even find essential goods. In Port-au-Prince people live in fear, under the control of armed men who resort to atrocities such as gang rape to conquer new slices of territory. According to United Nations data, about 1.5 million people in the capital live in areas under the influence of gangs. A few days ago the police paralyzed the streets of the capital to protest against the wave of murders of their colleagues by criminal gangs.

Food insecurity. Nearly one in two Haitians face problems related to food insecurity every day. 7.7 million people, or half of the population, are experiencing acute hunger and it is the first time in Haiti’s history that families have struggled with such severe food shortages.

The story of little Elisna. Elisna was only three months old when a powerful earthquake struck southern Haiti on August 14, 2021. Her family lost their stone house in Beaumont and all their possessions. Her mother is struggling to feed her today, while her father is ill. Seven months after the earthquake, Elisna lost weight and she could no longer walk or speak. She recovered with the intervention of Save the Children, because she received the opportunity to be fed. Today Elisna’s parents still struggle to get food, to the point that they are forced to eat only one meal a day.

The displaced. In Haiti there are more people displaced by gang violence than by natural disasters, despite the fact that it is a territory often threatened by earthquakes and by the passage of hurricanes. In the metropolitan area of ​​Port-au-Prince alone in August 2022 there were more than 87,000 internally displaced persons, distributed between neighboring neighborhoods and new spontaneous settlements that have also sprung up in the capital. Many also try to flee the country to the Dominican Republic, but are almost always rejected, creating a vicious circle that further increases the number of displaced people.

Prostitution to buy food. Lack of access to basic goods and services is having a devastating impact on women, exacerbated by alarming levels of sexual and gender-based violence. United Nations field research has shown that many women are also resorting to prostitution to be able to buy food, others are skipping meals to feed their children. They give birth without medical assistance. Malnutrition is reaching worrying levels, so children are becoming more fragile and sicker. Under these conditions, schools are closed for safety reasons, but the consequence is that four million children are deprived of the right to education.

Cholera. The cholera epidemic is mainly affecting children under the age of 10, with one in three confirmed cases. In Cité Soleil, a neighborhood in the capital Port-au-Prince, up to 8,000 children under the age of 5 are at risk of dying from acute malnutrition or the consequences of cholera. Limited access to clean water is further exacerbating the epidemic as six out of ten water pipes in the capital are damaged and have not yet been repaired.