Calm reigns this Saturday in Haiti, after the violent demonstrations on Thursday and waiting for the government of Prime Minister Ariel Henry to meet to take action in the face of the serious situation in the impoverished country.
Dozens of armed policemen attacked the private residence of Henry on Thursday, who was not in the country, to repudiate the lack of action by the authorities in the face of the murders of agents by armed gangs, which caused tension in the capital. forcing the closure of schools, banks and businesses.
After what happened on Thursday, when shots were fired, barricades and vehicles were burned, the country was paralyzed on Friday, even several embassies decided not to open their doors.
However, this Saturday the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area is apparently calm again and activities are gradually resuming.
Prime Minister condemns violence against police officers
Henry, whose return to the country from Argentina on Thursday was delayed by violent protests against him around Port-au-Prince’s Toussaint Louverture airport, condemned the gang attacks on police officers.
“We will not accept at all what is happening. The son of the people who made the decision to defend the country while others abandon it deserves another treatment, “he declared.
Likewise, the prime minister said he understood the demand of the agents, while he expressed his condolences to the relatives of the recently murdered law enforcement officers.
“The State will assume its responsibilities with the families of the victims,” ​​declared Henry, the main authority in the country after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July 2021.
Despite their pain, the agents “must not confuse their targets and adversaries in their battle,” he said.
“We must put an end to this insecurity that is spreading. We will work together to find the right solution. We are not going to accept that bandits of all kinds sow division among us, “he said.
Call a meeting of the Council of Ministers
After what happened, he announced a meeting for this weekend with the Superior Council of the National Police and a council of ministers “to take all the necessary measures so that these acts are not repeated,” he said in his speech.
“So that all children can go back to school in peace, but also so that all Haitians, foreigners living in the country and all diplomatic missions can resume their normal activities,” he continued.
He also reported that he asked the police chief, Frantz Elbe, and the high command of the institution to speak with the representatives of the protesters and prepare a report as soon as possible on what happened this week.
Haiti has been immersed in crisis and violence for years, a situation aggravated after the assassination in July 2021 of then-President Moïse by alleged mercenaries, most of them Colombians, who broke into his private residence.
Last October, the government officially requested the dispatch of a foreign force, after which the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, proposed establishing a “rapid action force” made up of soldiers from one or more countries and not under the flag of United Nations, an initiative that has not yet materialized.