UN: Displaced Haitian Women Face Alarming Violence

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Facts

• The UN agency for gender equality, UN Women, has warned that displaced women and girls in Haiti are facing an 'unprecedented' spike in insecurity, including sexual and gender-based violence, amid ongoing political instability.¹
• In a report published Wednesday, UN Women pointed out that poor living conditions and lack of security in makeshift camps have exposed most of the women — who comprise about 54% of the 580K internally displaced Haitians — to violence — notably rape — daily.²
• According to the agency, at least 300K women and girls are displaced in Haiti. Over 88% of women interviewed have no source of income, and more than 10% of them have at least considered turning to prostitution to meet their needs.³
• Meanwhile, in a televised speech to the nation late on Wednesday, Prime Minister Garry Conille urged gangs to drop weapons as he pledged to take back all gang-controlled zones in Haiti's capital.⁴
• This comes as a second contingent of 200 Kenyan police officers arrived in the country on Tuesday to reinforce the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission designed to tackle escalating gang violence in Haiti.⁵

Sources: ¹UN News, ²UN Women, ³HaitiLibre.com, ⁴Independent and ⁵The Haitian Times.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Washington Post. The international community is finally fulfilling its responsibility to protect civilians in Haiti, as the dire situation there has shown the world that effective humanitarian intervention remains important despite previous misapplications elsewhere. Hopefully, the MSS mission will restore peace and security in the Caribbean country and tackle violence against displaced women.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Real Clear Defense. Given the country's past experiences with foreign assistance, it's hard to believe that Kenyan police officers can do more good than harm. Even if this so-called 'foreign stabilization mission' has the best intentions, it still lacks the legitimacy to win local support and help create lasting democratic institutions.

Predictions