Migrants come ashore from the Chucunaque River after crossing the Darién jungle.
A rising number of migrants are attempting the dangerous journey across the Darién jungle spanning the Colombia-Panama border. For Etzaida Rios, 35, the impact of providing hope and help runs deep.
She works as a Community Officer with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in a temporary migrant reception centre in San Vicente, one of the first points of arrival for migrants, who are often exhausted, malnourished, dehydrated, or injured.
“People arrive with pressing needs and many questions,” she said, after attending to Zuleybis, who fractured her leg while crossing the Darién with her husband José and four children. The Venezuelan family received treatment at the centre before continuing their path north.
“The biggest challenge is witnessing suffering and hearing heartbreaking stories,” she said. “While we see terrible things on television or read about them, it is even harder and more frustrating to see it with your eyes as it unfolds before you.”
In line with this year’s theme of accelerating change, innovators have been part of ongoing efforts to address the needs of some of the world’s 3.5 billion people living without safe toilets.
So is a group of young people who are driving sanitation innovation in Kisumu, Kenya.
Award-winning eco-toilet
Saniwise Technologies, a firm made up of a team of young entrepreneurs, designed an award-winning eco-toilet that also produces manure and chicken feed.
“Having been brought up by a single mum in a low-income area, I understand the challenges,” said Chelsea Johannes of Saniwise. “Toilets are hard to maintain, and no one wants to contribute money to empty them properly. That’s one of the reasons we set up Saniwise.”
UN News
The UN marks World Toilet Day on 19 November.
Using its blue, well-ventilated prototype, the Saniwise team aims to make many more toilets for the community, she said.
It has already won seed money to do so, after its prototype took second prize at a global competition held by Generation Unlimited, which was founded by UNICEF, Microsoft, IKEA and other partners to foster innovations like these.
Green prototype
Made of recycled materials, including plastic waste, the prototype is well ventilated and uses dry toilet technologies. After visiting the toilet, black soldier fly larvae churn human waste into manure.
“This is the black soldier fly larvae,” she said, pointing to several white grubs in the toilet pan. “They’re digesting the waste. You can see that it already looks more like soil. In four days’ time, it will be ready to sell as manure.”
‘Young people helping themselves’
Saniwise Technologies also sells the by-products to local farmers, like 77-year-old John Ochieng.
On a hot, humid morning on Mr. Ochieng’s farm, he strides through the fields in bare feet. Along the way, he collects a bag of manure from Ms. Johannes and her colleagues, after meeting them at a nearby lagoon.
“I was curious about the toilet they had built,” he said. “They told me that it makes manure and chicken feed, so I bought some samples from them.”
Chelsea Johannes (right) explains how the Saniwise Technologies eco-toilet works.
The manure is already helping his farm.
“I like the products,” he said. “The manure helps my crops grow very green and fruitful. When I gave my chickens the feed, they enjoyed it. It’s good to see young people helping themselves.”
Find out more about how the UN is helping to accelerate progress on improving clean water and sanitation around the world here.
Achieve universal and equitable access to safe, affordable drinking water and adequate, equitable sanitation and hygiene for all
Improve water quality by reducing pollution
Increase recycling and safe reuse globally
Increase water-use efficiency across all sectors
Support and strengthen participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management
According to the UN, 2.2 billion people currently lack safely managed drinking water and basic handwashing facilities, and 3.5 billion lack safely managed sanitation.
The Oscar-winning actor helped the UN amplify the need for clean water in a South American village in a unique podcast (even before they were called podcasts) almost 70 years ago.
The star of On the Waterfront and Apocalypse Now was part of a growing number of celebrities to help the UN highlight needs across the world.
Listen to UN News’ Podcast Classics episode featuring Mr. Brando here, part of the UN News #ThrowbackThursday series showcasing pivotal moments across the UN’s past. From the infamous and nearly-forgotten to world leaders and global superstars, stay tuned for a taste of the UN Audiovisual Library’s 49,400 hours of video recordings and 18,000 hours of audio chronicling.
Visit our Podcast Classics series here and UN Video’s Stories from the UN Archive playlist here. Join us next Thursday for another dive into history.
Cuba: Ending the U.S. Economic Embargo – Draft Resolution Voting | UNGA 78 | United Nations
10:58 AM
Gabon
The Representative of Gabon, Ambassador Aurélie Flore Koumba Pambo, voiced her country’s concern over the continuing embargo.
“The scale of its impact is more and more harmful to the Cuban people,” she said, noting that the “economic blockade is a “clearly a hostile act to region and continental cohesion”.
Speaking on behalf of her country – currently serving on the Security Council – she said the embargo stood against international law, the UN Charter and normal measures that “govern peaceful relations between States.” She said had a negative impact on culture, public health and the wellbeing of Cuba’s people.
“It is the main obstacle to the social and economic development of Cuba”, she added.
10:14 AM
Chile
Paula Narváez Ojeda, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Chile, reaffirmed her country’s conviction that the implementation of unliteral coercive measures runs counter to international law
“Chile does not agree with the imposition of unilateral sanctions of any kind, the only legitimate sanctions are those adopted by the Security Council in the exercise of its authority for the maintainance of international peace and security,” she said, referring to the responsibilities of the Council under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.
She noted that the economic embargo is an anachronism from a bygone age and must be ended once and for all.
10:07 AM
The President, or PGA as the UN acronym goes, has just formally begun proceedings. This is the 26th plenary meeting of the world body since the 78th session began in September.
The first to speak will be Peru, with 16 countries due to speak before the vote is due to take place.
Peru
Ambassador Luis Ugarelli said his country “shares the view of practically the entire international community” that the embargo is against the principles of the UN Charter and international human rights law, saying his country would support the resolution, as it has done for more than 30 years.
10:05 AM
The session is just about to get underway under the gavel of the President of the General Assembly, Dennis Francis. Delegates are still filing in to the gilded Hall at UN Headquarters.
The US imposed the embargo in response to the revolution led by Fidel Castro and subsequent nationalization of property belonging to US citizens under the new Government.
For a look back at the state of relations in the General Assembly when the US embargo was first imposed, here’s a video from our Stories From the UN Archive series featuring the longest address in history by the youthful Cuban leader:
Fidel Castro’s Epic 1960 UN Speech
The resolution has been overwhelmingly passed each time, but the pattern of voting has been carefully analyzed as a snapshot of current geopolitical alliances and tensions.
09:40 AM
Debate on the resolution began yesterday and continues today at 10 AM New York time, with Cuba and US among the key countries expected to take the floor today.
Many cited the Secretary-General’s report on the impact on Cuba’s overall human development, with the Assembly calling for the embargo to be lifted every year the resolution has been debated.
At the end of the debate, action is expected to vote on a draft resolution entitled “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba.”
This item has been a regular fixture on the Assembly’s agenda, and the body has, in previous years, voted overwhelmingly in favour of an end to the measures.
Last year for instance, 185 Member States voted in favour to 2 against (Israel, United States), with 2 abstentions (Brazil, Ukraine), expressing concern about the adverse effects of such measures on the Cuban people and on Cuban nationals living in other countries.
“Elections are the only path and the only imperative to restore democratic institutions in Haiti. Only democracy and the rule of law can form the basis from which Haiti can progress towards development and growth,” she said.
The envoy, who also heads the UN Office in Haiti, BINUH, underlined the “enormous significance” of the Council’s recent resolution authorizing the deployment of a multinational support mission to assist the national police, and welcomed another on an arms embargo.
The rampant gang violence – mainly affecting the capital, Port-au-Prince – is another shock to Haiti, where nearly half the population, roughly five million people, needs humanitarian aid. In recent years, the Caribbean nation has been hit by a cholera epidemic, earthquakes and cyclones, as well as the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021.
Serious crime increasing
Ms. Salvador reported that major crimes are rising sharply and reaching new record highs. Incidents include the broad daylight kidnapping last week of the head of the High Transitional Council – the body tasked with preparing the long-overdue elections – by gang members dressed as police officers.
“Killings, sexual violence, including collective rape and mutilation, continue to be used by gangs every day and in the context of ineffective service support for victims, or a robust justice response,” she said.
Activities by vigilante groups have added further complexity to the security crisis. BINUH has registered the lynching of nearly 400 alleged gang members by the so-called ‘Bwa Kale’ movement between late April and the end of September.
Path to the polls
Meanwhile, Ms. Salvador has continued engagement towards “a path to elections to fully re-establish democratic institutions and the rule of law.” Although inter-Haitian consultations have resumed under the auspices of regional bloc CARICOM, she was concerned that “efforts towards elections are not moving at a desired pace.”
She stressed that re-establishing control by the Haitian National Police is a prerequisite for holding a credible and inclusive vote, and the deployment of the multinational force brings hope that that things will improve.
“The Haitian National Police can only achieve lasting results when public security is restored, and the State resumes its functions, especially in disadvantaged neighbourhoods prone to gang activity,” she said.
Child recruitment and sexual violence
Roughly two million people in Haiti live in areas under the control of armed groups, who are expanding their operations, the head of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said in her briefing to the Council.
Catherine Russell reported that children are being injured or killed in the crossfire, even on their way to school. Others are being forcibly recruited into gangs or joining them out of sheer desperation, while women and girls are facing extreme levels of gender-based and sexual violence.
Rape ‘now commonplace’
Ms. Russell visited Haiti last June where she met a pregnant 11-year-old at a centre for survivors of sexual violence. Five men had abducted the girl last year while she was walking on a street, and three took turns raping her.
“Several women at the centre spoke of armed men breaking in, raping them – in one case, in front of her children – and then setting their homes on fire. In some areas, such horrific abuses and crimes are now commonplace,” said Ms. Russell.
Food and nutrition crisis
Armed groups have also strangled major routes from the capital to the rest of Haiti, where most of the population resides, destroying livelihoods and restricting access to essential services.
Ms. Russell said this “life-threatening mix of conditions” has caused a food security and nutrition crisis that is deepening, with more than 115,000 children suffering from severe wasting – a 30 per cent increase over last year.
Nearly a quarter of all children in Haiti are chronically malnourished, and the ongoing cholera outbreak is further putting young lives at risk.
A child eats ready-to-use therapeutic food at a health and nutrition centre in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Humanitarian response continues
Although the violence is also compromising humanitarian workers on the ground, Ms. Russell said UNICEF and partners continue to deliver in Haiti. Last week they were able to secure the safe release of nearly 60 children held by armed groups occupying a school in Port-au-Prince.
She said the multinational support mission will play a critical role in improving security and urged the force to give special care and attention to the protection of children, women, people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
Illicit weapon flows
The gang violence being enabled by “sophisticated firearms” that are being brought into Haiti illegally, Gada Waly, head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) told the Council.
Demand is linked to criminal groups needing to enforce the lucrative trade in illegal drugs, as the country remains a transit destination primarily for cocaine and cannabis.
“Halting the flow of illicit firearms into Haiti and establishing a robust regulatory framework for firearms are imperative steps for the Haitian authorities to assert control and re-establish normalcy,” she said.
By land and sea
Ms. Wady urged the international community to support Haiti in achieving these aims, in parallel to the deployment of the multinational support mission.
The latest UNODC report has identified four major sea and land routes for illicit flows of firearms and ammunition into Haiti, which are mainly coming from the United States, including via direct shipment in containers to Port-au-Prince.
Weapons are also sent from the US to northern regions and transported overland to coastal cities and onward to docks controlled by gangs or traffickers before eventually landing in the capital.
Another land route is through two border crossings with the Dominican Republic, used mainly for trafficking ammunition. The final route is via Cap-Haitien, a city on the north coast, where smaller quantities of weapons are hidden in the personal items of people crossing the border by car or on foot.
Earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanic activity and other natural disasters regularly cause destruction and the loss of life in parts of the Caribbean.
On the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction marked annually on 13 October, UN Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Didier Trebucq and Nahuel Arenas, regional chief of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) consider the connection between disasters and inequality.
“In the Caribbean, we share a deep understanding of the intricate link between disasters and inequality. It’s a narrative of uneven access to crucial resources, leaving the most vulnerable exposed to the impacts of disasters. When disasters strike, they disproportionately affect marginalized communities, exacerbating existing inequalities and pushing them deeper into poverty.
UN Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Didier Trebucq (left) visits St. Vincent and the Grenadines six months after the volcanic eruption.
Fighting inequality is critical to build a stronger and safer future for everyone.
Interconnected challenges
The region faces a range of challenges today—economic uncertainties, widening disparities, supply chain disruptions, energy shortages, price surges, and inflation—all of which cast shadows on economies and livelihoods and worsens the impact of disasters. According to the UNDRR’s Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction, globally disasters will push an additional 100.7 million people into poverty by 2030 and an estimated 37.6 million more people will be living in conditions of extreme poverty due to the impacts of climate change.
Recent research paints a stark picture: the poorest bear the heaviest burden when disasters strike. For instance, the deadliest recent disaster in the Caribbean, the Port-au-Prince Earthquake in 2010, impacted the poorest country of the region: Haiti; and its long-term impacts continue to be visible more than a decade later.
MINUSTAH/Marco Dormino
A man walks through the rubble of collapsed buildings in downtown Port au Prince, Haiti, following the earthquake in January 2010.
Between 1970 and 2019, a staggering 91 per cent of all deaths caused by weather, climate, and water hazards occurred in developing countries like the Caribbean. Similarly, the World Bank reports that 82 per cent of disaster-related deaths occurred in low and lower-middle-income countries.
Cycles of inequality
Approximately 75 per cent of extreme weather events are now linked to climate change, primarily fueled by carbon emissions. Ironically, those experiencing the most severe losses from disasters are often those who have contributed the least to the problem.
In essence, inequality acts as a conduit, transferring disaster risk from those who benefit from risk-taking to those who bear its costs.
Impoverished communities are more likely to reside in hazard-prone areas, lack the resources to invest in risk reduction measures, live in substandard and insecure housing, and have limited access to essential services such as healthcare, public transport, and basic infrastructure.
Specific populations, including women, children, and persons with disabilities, are disproportionately affected by disaster impacts. For example, studies reveal that women in the Caribbean region are less likely to receive official warnings about impending disasters than men. Similarly, during past disasters, persons with disabilities were often the most vulnerable.
This entails a resolute reduction of poverty and inequality, alongside action against disaster risk and vulnerability. Our focus remains unwaveringly fixed on the most vulnerable communities, ensuring they receive the protection and support they deserve.
On a global scale, decision-makers are looking at revamping the financial architecture, aligning it to better serve the needs of the world’s most vulnerable countries. Economic resilience is critical for those most at risk from disasters, forming an indispensable component of our collective strategy to confront the challenges that lie ahead.
Disaster preparedness drills can help reduce the impact of disasters on communities.
Furthermore, the implementation of the Early Warnings for All initiative, including in Caribbean countries such as Barbados and Antigua and Barbuda, will help to ensure that every corner of the globe is covered by multi-hazard early warning systems within the next four years.
By prioritizing the most at-risk communities, we offer them the vital lifeline of preparedness and early warnings.
By engaging in disaster risk reduction, countries will bolster their capacity, and empower diverse groups in all decision-making processes. Women, the elderly, and persons living with disabilities should be at the forefront, and actively included in our efforts.
The presence of local, national and regional actors, including state and civil society organisations remains key to humanitarian and resilience effectiveness since local actors are often the first responders in an emergency.
As we commemorate this year’s International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, let us recommit ourselves to this formidable challenge. Let us remember that in the face of disaster-induced inequality, we hold the power to reshape the future.
Together, we can break these chains, forging a path to resilience and equality for all, for a brighter Caribbean awaits.”
UN Resident Coordinator:
The UN Resident Coordinator, sometimes called the RC, is the highest-ranking representative of the UN development system at the country level.
In this occasional series, UN News is inviting RCs to blog on issues important to the UN and the country where they serve.
Learn more about the UN’s work in in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean here.
Find out more about the UN Development Coordination Office here.
Montserrat Xilotl, a Regional Technical Advisor in Climate Change Adaptation for the UN Development Programme (UNDP), explains why.
UNDP
Montserrat Xilotl, Regional Technical Advisor in Climate Change Adaptation for the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
“Forests are nature’s water filters and storage systems. When rain falls, the trees, and vegetation capture and absorb it, allowing it to seep into the ground, replenishing aquifers, supplying drinking water to communities, and supporting agriculture.
Forests also help to regulate the flow of water in rivers and streams. The roots of trees and plants hold the soil together, preventing erosion and ensuring that water flows steadily, reducing the risk of floods and droughts.
Unfortunately, Honduras has seen a notable loss of forest cover over the years, with high levels of deforestation driven largely by unsustainable agriculture and illegal logging, both in return the result of poverty. On top of this, climate-related hazards such as forest fires, pests, and disease, have also been enormously damaging. It’s estimated that from 1990 to 2020, the country lost nine per cent of its forest coverage.
Recognizing the associated threats posed to people, ecosystems, and the economy, Honduras has been looking closely at nature-based solutions with a heavy emphasis on social inclusion.
Earlier this year, I flew to Tegucigalpa to see the work of one, financed by the global Adaptation Fund and implemented by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (SERNA) with support from UNDP, in the country’s central forest corridor.
What I witnessed was inspiring. Young people and women leading the way with innovation and enthusiasm, bringing in local pride and demonstrating how local knowledge provides the best way forward, not only in adapting to climate change but also in caring for their country’s natural resources.
UNDP/María-José Bu
Young scientists are the key to monitoring and protecting clean water in Honduras.
I met these young researchers at a lab at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras, the National Autonomous University, which is key to understanding and solving the country’s water crisis.
Through the study of the ecology of water, they were integrating diverse practices to better monitor water sources and quality within the central forest corridor.
UNDP/Johan Edin Vallejo
Researchers at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras are working on groundbreaking climate information and water modelling.
The lab we were standing in had been created around 10 years earlier, through an initial collaboration between the ministry and university, supported by the Adaptation Fund and UNDP.
Instead of accepting payment, the university requested scientific equipment to analyse the water that flowed into the city. A department dedicated to researching water ecology and a permanent lab were created, looking at the nexus between water, microbiology, climatology, and physics.
The lab has produced ground-breaking climate information and water modelling. It represents a huge leap forward, one which provides the science which is foundational to addressing the crisis.
I met women producer groups who are developing their own nutrient-rich biofertilizers made from local plants, fungi, and fruits to sell to local markets. I spoke with a young woman who was leading the municipal fire brigade to protect her forests from the increasing incidence of fires. She mentioned the value of the forest to her community and how she had taken pride in stopping several forest fires from escalating. She proudly mentioned how the project had taught her to prepare the forest during fire season, what protocols to take during a fire, and how she is communicating with other women in nearby communities about early detection.
It is promising that the university has secured grant funding to continue its work, including from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). It has also allowed us, through the new Adaptation Fund project, to commission more ambitious hydrological analyses to better identify water sources along the forest corridor while considering increasing demand and climate change.
As I boarded my flight home to Mexico, it struck me that this is what transformational change looks like – it is young, it is diverse, and it is proactive. I was able to understand why countries’ climate goals, known as nationally determined contributions, or NDCs, that engage youth, women and diverse populations are often more ambitious than those that don’t.
In the fight for a climate-resilient and prosperous future, it is clear that nature and youth are our most powerful assets.
Stéphane Dujarric was speaking a day after the Security Council voted to send the non-UN mission to the Caribbean country, where armed groups have taken control of large areas of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and terrorized civilians for more than a year.
Violence by armed groups is just one element of the multifaced crisis in Haiti, which remains gripped by political, humanitarian, and socioeconomic challenges.
The international mission has been approved for an initial period of 12 months, with a review after nine. It will be led by Kenya and several of Haiti’s neighbours have also pledged their support.
“Yesterday’s resolution was not about the approval of a UN mission, but the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) will fully support the Multinational Security Support mission, within the limits of its mandate, the Human Rights Due Diligence Policy and in full respect of the decisions taken by the Haitian State,” said Mr. Dujarric.
“While awaiting the deployment of this mission, the UN will continue to engage closely with Haitian authorities – in particular in support to the police, the corrections and justice system, and the electoral process,” he added.
Positive step
Maria Isabel Salvador, the head of BINUH, the UN’s political mission in Haiti, called the Council decision “a positive and decisive step to bring peace and stability to the country”.
“This decision follows a long plea by the Haitian government, relayed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, based on the observation that the country will not emerge from the current security situation without strong international support for the Haitian National Police,” she said in a statement issued after the vote.
With Haiti confronting many crises, she urged political leaders to “rise to the occasion to address the challenges facing the country and its population.”
Human rights in Haiti: fast facts*
The human rights situation is marked by brutal attacks, including indiscriminate killings and kidnappings targeting the civilian population.
Armed violence and attacks by gangs against the population escalating.
Gangs have used snipers on rooftops to indiscriminately shoot people.
Mass looting and burning of houses have resulted in the displacement of thousands of people.
Sexual violence, including collective rape, is used by gangs to terrorize especially women and girls.
The emergence of vigilante movements presents an additional layer of complexity to an already highly challenging security situation.
National institutions are ill-equipped to re-establish the rule of law.
Stabilizing the security situation in Haiti will require significant support to national police.
* From the Report of the Secretary-General on Haiti, September 2023
“Costa Rican society does not teach us that there are indigenous people in this country,” she said. “It is a form of discrimination, making the existence of indigenous peoples invisible.”
Amid an alarming trend of spiraling hate speech and discrimination online platforms, Costa Rica, with UN support, has been designing Latin America’s first ever strategy to fight back, Poised to unveil the powerful tool by the end of 2023, the landmark strategy aims at laying the foundation for new national policies,
“We must not let expressions of hate, violence, and discrimination become normalized in public and digital spaces,” Costa Rica’s Communication Minister Jorge Rodríguez explained when announcing the strategy’s unveiling. “Today, we recognize that decisive action is required from the State, but also from all social actors to address this great challenge.”
Targeted people are ‘scared’
Attempts to unravel the social fabric may be virtual, but the threats are real. An artificial intelligence (AI) driven UN study earlier this year detected more than 1.4 million messages and conversations related to hate and discrimination on Costa Rica’s social media platforms, a 255 per cent spike since 2021.
Allegra Baiocchi, the UN Resident Coordinator the country, said her team realized that most hate content targeted women, particularly those in leadership positions, LGBTQ issues, and migrants.
“When we started speaking to women and some of the people who had been targeted, they told us that they felt scared, scared to express their opinions,” she said.
After the UN urged immediate action, Costa Rica stepped up, laying the groundwork for a safe digital space for all, which can act as a replicable blueprint for fighting hate online around the world.
Multi-pronged approach
Aligned with the UN Secretary-General’s priorities to stamp out hate and led by a multidisciplinary expert team from the UN and the Government, the new strategy will provide solutions to stop these scourges from spreading online, from determining responsibilities, creating new monitoring, and identifying areas of action.
“With the launch of this process of creating a national strategy, we are taking a step in the right direction,” Ms. Baiocchi said.
Steps already taken include the recent launch of a guide to confront digital violence against women in politics. In the same vein, the Government established an observatory on hate speech with the University of Costa Rica, passed a law protecting women in politics, and forged a partnership with the Lawyers Committee Association, who studied laws on hate speech evolving around the world and produced a handbook for those affected.
“In Costa Rica, if you’ve been a victim of hate speech, you can go to this handbook and see what is already available for you to protect yourself,” said Ms. Baiocchi, highlighting other such ongoing initiatives as teaching debate in schools.
“Fundamentally, the message behind any work on hate speech and discrimination…is about being able to respect each other and coexist,” she said.
That approach is in line with UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ aim of crushing hate speech online and off. In response to trends of growing xenophobia, racism and intolerance, violent misogyny, antisemitism, and anti-Muslim hatred around the world, the Secretary-General launched the UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech in 2019.
“If left unchecked,” he said, “hate speech can even harm peace and development, as it lays the ground for conflicts and tensions, wide scale human rights violations.”
Find out more about how the UN is helping Costa Ricans here.
Subscribe to our podcast series, UNiting Against Hate, here.
“Every day the lives of Haitian people become even harder, but it is vital that we do not give up. Their situation is not hopeless. With international support and resolve, the Haitian people can tackle this grave insecurity, and find a way out of this chaos,” Mr. Türk said.
The High Commissioner’s latest report on the human rights situation in Haiti stresses that the deployment of a multinational security support mission is essential to assist the HNP in tackling organized crime, armed gangs and international trafficking in arms, drugs and people.
The report details the findings of the High Commissioner’s Designated Expert on the human rights situation in Haiti, William O’Neill, who visited the country in June 2023.
BINUH
Detainees in a Haitian prison
Haitian Prisoners
According to the report, Haiti’s prisons are inhumane and the situation of detainees epitomizes the continued erosion of the rule of law in the Caribbean country.
At the end of June 2023, Haitian prisons held 11,810 inmates, more than three times their maximum capacity. Nearly 85 per cent of those in detention were awaiting trial.
During his visit to the National Penitentiary in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince and the Central Prison in the northern city of Cap-Haïtien, Mr. O’Neill observed detainees crammed into small cells, in stifling heat, with limited access to water and toilets.
“They must endure a suffocating smell and, in the capital, mounds of rubbish, including human excrement, add to the squalor. The detainees must take turns sleeping because there is not enough room for them to lie down at the same time,” the report reads.
“Lives are at stake,” Mr.Türk said. “Time is of the essence – we need to comprehend the sense of urgency this crisis demands.”
Escalating violence
The latest report from the UN Secretary-General on Haiti says that “Haiti faces a multidimensional crisis, with gang violence at its centre, which undermines State institutions.”
Armed gangs control or exercise influence over about 80 per cent of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, with gang violence affecting all neighbourhoods.
According to the report, “violence is also spreading to departments beyond the capital. Over the past few months, a significant increase in serious crimes, such as homicide, kidnapping and rape, has been reported. Indiscriminate, large-scale attacks against entire neighbourhoods and their residents have displaced almost 130,000 people.”
The spread of gang violence has provoked popular protests against the Government and a rise in vigilante groups and related violence, including killings and lynchings, which has further frayed social cohesion.
In April 2023, an anti-gang vigilante movement, commonly known as “Bwa Kale”, emerged in Port-au-Prince.
The Secretary General stressed that “the prevalence of armed violence has a significant impact on socioeconomic activities. Freedom of movement is impaired as gangs extort, hijack or rob commercial and public vehicles transiting through arterial roads.”
“Schools have been forced to close as a result of escalating violence, with children being exposed to the risk of recruitment by gangs.
Gangs have managed to isolate entire neighbourhoods, predominantly for economic gain. They intimidate the local population through violent means, including the targeting of critical infrastructure.”
Humanitarian crisis
Insecurity has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis. The number of people in need of humanitarian aid has nearly doubled over the past three years. Attacks against schools by gang members have increased ninefold in the past year, and many health workers have left the country.
Once the security situation is stabilized, there needs to be investment in the development of socio-economic opportunities to enable the people of Haiti to access better living conditions and ensure lasting stability and prosperity of the country, according to the Un chief.
Strengthening State institutions
In Haiti, impunity and decades of poor governance and corruption have contributed to the current crisis.
“The cycle of violence never ends because rarely is anyone held to account,” said the Secretary-General. “It [the State] must hold accountable both those responsible for crimes and its own officials in the police, courts and prison system to provide security for and deliver justice to the population.”
This week, members of the UN Security Council are expected to continue negotiating a draft resolution authorizing the deployment of a non-UN multinational security support mission to Haiti.
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The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
