Haiti: Gang kills, kidnaps church members

CMC – At least seven people were killed and several others injured after gunmen fired upon a protest that had been organised by a church leader in Haiti on Saturday.

The parishioners, some armed with machetes, were marching through a suburb of the capital, Port-au-Prince, when the members of the gang, believed to be those in control of the suburb of Canaan, fired upon them with machine guns.

Officials fear that the death toll could rise given the number of persons badly wounded, while others have been kidnapped.

A video being circulated on social media showed people being shot at in the street, bodies lying on the ground and people who appeared to be hostages saying they thought the march was peaceful and had no idea it was about taking on the gang.

The suburb of Canaan, which was founded by survivors of the devastating 2010 earthquake,  is controlled by a gang led by a man identified only as “Jeff”, who is believed to be allied with the 5 Segonn “5 Seconds” gang.

Gédéon Jean, director of Haiti’s Center for Analysis and Research in Human Rights, is quoted by the Associated Press news agency as saying that that he watched the event unfold online and planned to ask the Ministry of Justice to investigate.

He also accused the pastor who organised the march of being irresponsible, adding the “police should have stopped them from going. It’s extremely horrible for the state to let something like this happen.

Haiti has been thrown into turmoil since the July 7, 2021 assassination of  President Jovenel Moïse, with the interim government of Prime Minister Dr. Ariel Henry urging the international community t send in a multi-national force to maintain peace and security in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.

Last week, a 10 member-team from Kenya arrived on the island for discussions with the government and various stakeholders.

Kenya’s Foreign Minister, Alfred Mutua,  has said that his country’s commitment is to deploy a contingent of 1,000 police officers to help train and assist Haitian police restore normalcy in the country and protect strategic installations.

in the first half of 2023, kidnapped more than 1,000, and used sexual violence to terrorize the population. Human Rights Watch said it documented 67 killings, including of 11 children and 12 women, and more than 20 cases of rape, many of them gang rapes by multiple perpetrators.

Last Friday, the former president of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP), Pierre L. Opont, who was kidnapped on June 20 was released by his abductors.

The businessman  was kidnapped in Tabarre by heavily armed men, as he was preparing to return to his home and the “Kraze Baryè” gang led by Vitel’Homme Innocent had been  strongly linked to his abduction.

It is not known whether a ransom had been paid for his release.

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