The UN Security Council on Friday unanimously approved a sanctions regime for Haiti, targeting gang leaders and those who finance them, in the hope of easing months of violence and lawlessness which has fuelled a major humanitarian crisis.
Criminal gangs have been blocking access to the main fuel terminal in the capital Port-au-Prince, bringing critical services to a standstill, as Haiti grapples with a widening cholera epidemic, amid political and economic meltdown.
‘Catastrophic’ hunger
“Catastrophic” levels of hunger have been recorded this month for the first time, in the gang controlled Cite Soleil neighbourhood, and 4.7 million people are facing acute hunger, with many losing access to jobs, markets, health and nutrition services.
Resolution 2653, drafted by the United States and Mexico, is the first sanctions regime adopted since that of Mali, just over five years ago. It establishes a committee which will be responsible for designating the individuals and entities to be sanctioned.
Enemy of the people
The resolution specifically sanctions notorious gang leader, Jimmy Cherizier, an ex-police officer who is reportedly the most powerful gang boss in the country, known by his alias “Barbeque”.
He heads the so-called “G9 Families and Allies”, and the annex notes that he has engaged in “acts that threaten the peace, security and stability of Haiti”, having planned or directed acts that amount to “serious human rights abuses.”
Asset freeze, travel ban, arms embargo
Sanctions include an assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo, against those engaging in or supporting criminal activity and violence, involving armed groups and criminal networks.
Designated activity includes recruiting children, carrying out kidnappings, trafficking, murder and sexual and gender-based violence.
Crucially, the resolution also designates the obstruction of humanitarian assistance to and inside Haiti, and any attacks on personnel or premises, of UN missions and operations.
Speaking in the Council chamber following the vote, US Ambassador and co-pen holder on Haiti, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said the unanimous vote represented “an important step to help the Haitian people”, and was “truly reflective of Council consensus.”
‘Clear message’ to the gangs
She said the Council was “sending a clear message to the bad actors, that are holding Haiti hostage. The international community will not stand idly by, while you wreak havoc on the Haitian people.”
She said clear measurable and well-defined safeguards were also in place to review the effectiveness of the targeted sanctions, but the challenge now remained of restoring security and alleviating the humanitarian crisis.
Non-UN force in the pipeline
Ms. Thomas-Greenfield reminded that the US-Mexico are working on a resolution which will authorize a “non-UN international security assistance mission” to address security issues to facilitate humanitarian aid. This was not only in response to a request from the Haitian Government, but also an option suggested by the UN Secretary-General, she added.
SOURCE: UN News. Headline photo: Stock image.
Haiti have nothing except poverty so countries like America and the others don’t see a need to waste their time going in there. no oil no gold or diamond
…….and that’s where you are wrong grasshopper, Haiti’s Wealth below is of enormous wealth, but the powers that be, (US/ France) does not want Haitian’s to have this wealth, the same way they fought Guyana from obtaining theirs for so many years. Do you not find it strange two countries sit on the same rock, share the same equation, are divided by just a river, but one is more prosperous than the other ? Hurricanes and earthquakes only ravish just half of that island but never the other half, all disasters stop at the border ?? Rational well thinking minds would go hmmm interesting, where the pessimist such as your self only see’s doom and gloom without a rational thought behind it. Haiti is been kept in turmoil deliberately, violence is fostered to keep the people in suppression for it’s revolution stance, for taking their freedom by force, all other countries had it given to them. Very few know of Haiti’s connection to New Orleans and the establishment of Emancipation Proclamation in The United States, of which in turn brought about the war of 1812 and the Louisiana Purchase . Let me tell you something, Haiti’s History is two hundred times richer than St Lucia’s History. We don’t have history, they have history
It’s not about the natural resources this crisis is not only in Haiti when black people will stop the killing each other especially the innocent ones and stop blaming the white man for their shortcomings just may be things will get better
Help or don’t help the US is always the bad guy. If we leave this situation to fester, Haiti could become a rogue state controlled by criminals, if it isn’t already. This will be an issue for all of us in the region.
Haiti has been the victim of racist Europeans and Americans since they rebel against slavery and its associated ills. In 1791 Haiti under the leadership of Toussaint l’Oveture, Henry Christophe. Bookman, Desaline led the people of Haiti in a revolution against the French institution of Slavery and were successful and became an independent state in January 1804. An embargo was placed on the people of Haiti denying them of access to basic goods, material etc in order to prevent them from succeeding in building the infrastructure of the country to include health, education, finance and economic growth. Napoleon Bonaparte said that they cannot allow the blacks to succeed because if they do there will be nothing to stop them. As a result the French charged the Haitian people a large sum of money for what they claimed as payment for damages done to their property including lost of their slaves. That was a huge amount of money that had to be paid back and that crippled the Haitian economy. Haiti once known as the pearl of the Caribbean supplied the French country with all the goods and services needed through slave labour, since that was not forthcoming anymore the French angered by the rebellion decided to punish the Haitian people. The mulatto class a mixture of white and black people in are enjoying the best of life in present day Haiti whereas the slave descendants continue to suffer from lack of basic food, health and education. The U.S continues to install their poppet governments against the wishes of the majority of the people except the mulatto class who benefits greatly from those decisions. Haiti an agriculture base country had to stop their rice production because of decisions taken in Washington by the pussy eating man who was there at the time, that decision rob the country from its economic growth and benefited the US farmers. President Aristeed, the people’s president requested the French to pay compensation and returned all the money and goods stolen from Haiti but this resulted from his removal from Office spearheaded by the US. What is going on in Haiti today is as a result of the oppression by the Europeans against a Black former slave society that dears liberate themselves from the French and English wicked institution of slavery. The wealth and prosperity that they obtained through slavery were enormous and they are continuing the process through colonializations and unfair trading practices. The people of Haiti have been traumatized over the years and are yet to recognized for their efforts in bringing an end to the institution of slavery both in the French and English-speaking countries of this hemisphere. Reflect on the reason why the people of Haiti are going through this crisis, its a wound that has yet to be healed, and would only be healed when the powers that be do the needful and rightful thing for the country that gave them the wealth and prosperity that they are enjoying today.
……hmmmmm if people don’t know the history they will not know what’s happening today…..the trickle down of systemic racism of a race of people for decades and country……the country is a beautiful, but the media never shows that side only the wars in the Getto, they have their Cape Estate’s it would freak you out. Love Haitian Art, I have my own collection, they love to paint with oils
@The Most Honorable Lucian Highgrade: Your participation in this forum bears the hypocritical hallmark of the professional management class (modern-day house negroes).
You are remarkably well-informed of black history, but you are equally invested in sustaining & profiting from massa’s legacy of tribal politics, instituted to divide modern-day field negroes.
Do not let their 😈 evils becomes your burden,and do not help them to carry their heavy loads !!