UN Calls for Arms Embargo on Haiti

Facts

• A UN human rights official on Wednesday said that a specialized international force and immediate weapons embargo are required to help deal with gang violence in Haiti.¹
• Haitian police departments — reportedly understaffed and under-resourced — have struggled to control warring gangs since the July 2021 assassination of Pres. Jovenel Moïse. Reportedly, up to 80% of the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince is controlled by organized gangs.²
• A vigilante movement — known as bwa kale — has emerged in response to the surge in gang-related killings, rapes, and kidnappings. It’s also reportedly behind a series of lynchings that have killed non-gang members.³
• At the end of a 10-day trip to Haiti, William O’Neill said that the force “is essential to restore the freedom of movement,” and that an embargo on arms, especially those from the US, is crucial given that no weapons are produced in the country.⁴
• O’Neill claimed that the lack of government response affects Haitians’ access to water, food, health, education, and housing. “Entire neighborhoods are left to their fate, without access to any public service,” he said.⁵
• According to the Haitian Centre for the Research and Analysis of Human Rights, at least 204 presumed gang members were killed by bwa kale (meaning 'peeled wood') between April 24 and June 24, sometimes with the complicity of Haiti’s police force.³

Sources: ¹Jamaica Observer, ²US News & World Report, ³Guardian, ⁴ABC27, and ⁵Associated Press.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Washington Post. The fate of the Haitians is at stake as extreme violence continues to spiral out of control in the nation, putting millions at risk. However, the West has refused calls nor shown any interest in organizing an armed intervention, thus indirectly contributing to an impoverished Haiti. It’s shameful that the byproduct of the world’s callous apathy is a country struggling to fend for itself and on course to collapse.
• Narrative B, as provided by Al Jazeera. Confronting gangs with an international force will not work if the Haitians fail to establish effective democracy. It’s essential the international community first aids the country in transitioning to political stability, before making Haitian police more equipped to respond to the crisis, stemming the flow of weapons to the country, and sanctioning officials profiting off the violence.

Predictions