UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned yesterday of a “nightmare situation” in Haiti and again appealed to the Security Council to send an international military force to face the humanitarian crisis.
At the same time, in the capital Port-au-Prince and in other regions of the country, hundreds of Haitians took to the streets to protest against the deployment of a military force by the United States and Canada, justified by the increase in insecurity and the activity of armed groups.
“The situation is absolutely dramatic. The port is blocked by the ‘gangs’ that do not let the fuel out (…). Without fuel, there is no water. And there will be cholera”, the treatment of which requires good hydration, Guterres told the media.
“It’s a real nightmare situation for the people of Haiti, especially in Port-au-Prince.”
The Varreux oil terminal, the most important in the country, has been blocked by armed groups since mid-September, bringing the entire country to a standstill.
In this context, Guterres recently appealed in a letter addressed to the Security Council to “urgently examine the request of the Haitian Government to deploy without delay a specialized international armed force to face the humanitarian crisis”.
The UN Security Council is due to debate this afternoon (New York time) the situation in the Caribbean country.
Hundreds of protesters meanwhile started protests across the island, particularly in the capital, against the deployment of US and Canadian military forces.
The protesters, convened by the Pitit Desalin party, gathered in Campo de Marte, the capital’s largest garden, and then headed to the airport, according to the Gazette Haiti news portal.
Amid barricades and shouts of protest, they called for the resignation of the Haitian prime minister, Ariel Henry, for the “intervention” of foreign armed forces, the high cost of living and the serious economic conditions.
