More than 11,600 unaccompanied children have crossed the Central Mediterranean to Italy so far this year the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday, an increase of 60 per cent compared with last year.
Mediterranean ‘becoming a cemetery for children and their futures’
Argentina: PROTEX’s Dangerous Ideology. How to Fabricate “Victims of Prostitution”
In its frantic quest for victims of sexual exploitation, PROTEX, an Argentinian state agency fighting trafficking in human beings and criminal gangs exploiting prostitutes, has also fabricated imaginary prostitutes and hereby made real victims by alerting the media when it carried out a spectacular armed SWAT crackdown in August 2022 on the Buenos Aires Yoga School (BAYS), a philosophical belief group allegedly running a prostitution ring and on some fifty other places in Buenos Aires.
Article originally published by BitterWinter.Org
All in all, arrest warrants were issued against 19 persons, 10 men and 9 women, allegedly running a criminal ring. They were all imprisoned and submitted to a very harsh jail regime for pre-detention periods ranging from 18 to 84 days. In two cases, the Court of Appeals revoked the indictment for being unfounded. The others are free and are waiting for the next round.
Fabricated prostitutes
Five women older than fifty, three in their forties and one in her mid-thirties are on the one hand suing two prosecutors of PROTEX on unfounded claims of their being victims of sexual exploitation in the framework of a yoga school. On the other hand, they are real victims of PROTEX as they now publicly bear the stigma of prostitute, which they strongly deny ever having been. Although prostitution is not illegal in Argentina, the damage is huge in their personal, family, and professional life.
Those fabricated prostitutes were recently interviewed in Buenos Aires by Susan Palmer, an Affiliate Professor in the Religions and Cultures Department at Concordia University in Montreal (Canada) and Director of the Children in Sectarian Religions and State Control Project at McGill University (Canada), supported by the Social Sciences and the Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). These women are not from a vulnerable social class and have not been trafficked into Argentina. They belong to the middle class and had a job. During the interviews, they again strongly denied having been involved in prostitution. As of today, PROTEX has not provided any evidence of prostitution, and consequently of any form of exploitation in this framework.
In a 22-page well-documented report published in the July-August issue of The Journal of CESNUR, Susan Palmer highlighted the various facets of the destructive effect of PROTEX operation in the lives of imaginary prostitutes and their imaginary pimps in BAYS.
The arrested persons were accused of criminal association, human trafficking, sexual exploitation and money laundering on the basis of Law No 26.842 on Prevention and Punishment of Human Trafficking and Assistance to Victims.
The legislation against sexual exploitation
Until 2012, this sort of criminal activity was punishable by Law 26.364 but on 19 December 2012, this law was amended in such a way that it opened the door to controversial interpretation and implementation. It is now identified as Law 26.842.
The financial exploitation of prostitution by third parties must undoubtedly be prosecuted in courts as the victims are most often poor local women, female refugees, or women imported for prostitution purposes. Some accept to be considered as victims. Others do not. In this second category, a number of women state that prostitution is their choice because they fear reprisals from their pimp or the mafia ring on which they depend. They may therefore be considered as victims as well by the courts in charge of an investigation, despite their denials.
Other independent prostitutes who are not linked to any network also declare that it is a real-life choice and that they are not victims. It is at this point that the interpretation and the application of Law 26.842 become very problematic because the legal system considers them to be victims, despite their denials.
Last but not least, other women who have not been involved in prostitution are held to be victims, against their will, by the judicial system because of an investigation into an organization suspected of sexual exploitation. This is the case of the nine women having attended the Buenos Aires Yoga School who vehemently deny any prostitution activity in their lives.
Abolitionism, a questionable “feminist” concept
Two political standpoints, abolitionism and accommodation, are at loggerheads on the prostitution issue.
With regard to legislation on prostitution, abolitionism is a school of thought that aims to abolish prostitution and rejects all forms of accommodation that authorize it. The supporters of both approaches agree on the decriminalization of prostitution, but abolitionism currently considers “all” prostitutes to be victims of a system that exploits them due to their vulnerability. This viewpoint about the victims and their situation of vulnerability has been adopted by PROTEX.
The original aim of the abolitionist movement was to oppose the accommodation and regulation of prostitution, which among other things imposed medical and police controls on prostitutes.
The accommodation and regulation of prostitution in fact amounted to the establishment of prostitution and the officialisation of procuring. As the neo-abolitionist movement, with a more radicalized vision than that of the original abolitionism, asserted that the most intolerable forms of violence accompanying trafficking and forced prostitution are linked to the impunity of procurers, its aim is to prohibit all forms of exploitation of the prostitution wherever it is susceptible to take place.
The next step was to enlarge the scope of “irregularly authorized” places where prostitution could be exploited by criminal rings, such as “saunas,” “pubs,” “whisky clubs,” “night clubs,” “yoga clubs,” etc., which were said to be promoted with impunity in the media and in the public space. The Public Prosecutor’s Office encouraged the adoption of measures aimed at uncovering the veil of these “houses of tolerance,” which are the destination of the trafficking process for the purpose of sexual exploitation, and which enjoy an allegedly spurious and inappropriate legal recognition.
This approach provided an open door to suspicions of sexual exploitation in spiritual groups such as BAYS.
The drifting of PROTEX about the victimization issue
The controversial implementation of the controversial Law 26.842 along with its dissemination in and by the intellectual elite and the judiciary in Argentina was criticized by Marisa S. Tarantino in a book she published in 2021 under the title “Ni víctimas ni criminales: trabajadores sexuales. Una crítica feminista a las políticas contra la trata de personas y la prostitución” (Neither Victims nor Criminals: Sex Workers. A Feminist Critique of Anti-Trafficking and Anti-Prostitution Policies; Buenos Aires: Fondo de Cultura Económica de Argentina).
Marisa Tarantino is the Legal Prosecutor of the Attorney General’s Office of the Nation and was the former Secretary of the Federal Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office No. 2 of the Federal Capital. She is a specialist in Justice Administration (Universidad de Buenos Aires/ Buenos Aires University) and Criminal Law (Universidad de Palermo/ Palermo University). As she has participated in workshops organized by PROTEX, her opinion is all the more valuable. In short, these are a few of her findings:
– “UFASE-PROTEX—which had been one of the agencies strongly linked to the International Organization for Migration to address this issue—was especially dedicated to the task of disseminating the neo-abolitionist perspective, presenting it as the correct paradigm for dealing with cases of trafficking and sexual exploitation. This was reflected in the organization of multiple training courses and workshops, dissemination materials, ‘best practice protocols,’ and even in academic production. All this exerted a strong influence in various institutional spheres throughout the country” (p. 194).
– “Thus, the incorporation of this particular gender perspective, built from the main neo-abolitionist postulates, made it possible to (re)interpret the different forms of organization and exchange of sexual services in terms of criminal conflict and, more precisely, in terms of trafficking” (p. 195).
This is the context generated by the 2012 amendments to the law on trafficking and the exploitation of prostitution by criminal rings and PROTEX’ endorsement of the neo-abolitionist political model that was (mis)used to justify the crackdown on BAYS.
Apart from the political model, PROTEX found an ally in the person of the anti-cultist Pablo Salum who shot all his arrows at non-traditional religious or belief groups in Argentina, including a respected international Evangelical NGO whose 38 centers were recently raided on alleged charges of trafficking.
The diabolical triangle in the BAYS case: a political standpoint, the fabrication of false victims, the PROTEX and Salum couple
BAYS is the victim of a political model, its judicial architect PROTEX, and the anti-cultist Pablo Salum.
Salum, who had lived with relatives practising yoga at BAYS until he was a teenager, arrived with an “added value” in the debate. He accused BAYS of being a “cult,” controlling and brainwashing women to involve them in prostitution for the purpose of financing itself. His position was comforted by a tidal wave of media reports, which reproduced his accusations without any check, This is how BAYS became “the horror cult” in Argentina and abroad.
Several reports by foreign researchers have however shown that Salum only spread fantasies and lies about BAYS and new religious movements to attract the attention of the media on his own person.
Some leaders of PROTEX unwisely started befriending Salum, whom they saw as an opportunity to investigate and prosecute new groups on the basis of charges of human trafficking and exploitation of prostitution.
On the one hand, according to PROTEX, people used for prostitution are all real victims because of the exploitation of their vulnerabilities, even if they fiercely deny it. On the other hand, according to Salum, cults achieve the same result by brainwashing their members and exploiting their weaknesses. The abuse of vulnerability according to PROTEX and the abuse of weakness according to the anti-cultist Salum thus lead to the same result: the creation of so-called victims who are unaware of being victims and deny it.
This explains the trap into which BAYS and the nine women described by PROTEX as unaware victims of prostitution by a criminal network have fallen.
How to get out of this trap? Argentina remains a democracy and justice is the main way out. The Christian group “Cómo vivir por fe” won its case against PROTEX in November 2022 after a raid instigated by Pablo Salum and accusations of exploitation and organ trafficking. The court criticized Salum for having “coached” and manipulated the main witness.
In the case of BAYS, brainwashing is a fantasy denounced as a non-existent concept by scholars in religious studies. Concerning the nine female plaintiffs the courts will have to recognize that there is no evidence of sale of sexual services.
The machinations of PROTEX and Co. were recently denounced by CAP/ Liberté de Conscience, an NGO with ECOSOC status, at the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
PROTEX and the judiciary in Argentina would do well to heed this warning shot before losing face in front of the international human rights community when the ghost of prostitution vanishes in the BAYS case.
Human rights defenders face harsh reprisals for partnering with UN
Among the growing trends noted in the report was the increase in people choosing not to cooperate with the UN due to concerns for their safety, or only doing so if kept anonymous.
Victims and witnesses in two-thirds of the States listed in the report requested anonymous reporting of reprisals, compared with just a third last year.
The increased surveillance of those who cooperate or attempt to cooperate with the UN was reported in half of the countries listed.
An increase in physical surveillance by State actors was also noted, likely linked to a return to in-person forms of UN engagement.
‘Shrinking civic space’
Notably, almost 45 per cent of the countries listed in the report continue to apply or enact new laws and regulations which punish, deter, or hinder cooperation with the UN. These legislative frameworks represent severe obstacles to long-standing human rights partners of the UN.
“A global context of shrinking civic space is making it increasingly difficult to properly document, report and respond to cases of reprisals, which means that the number is likely much higher,” said Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, Ilze Brands Kehris, in Thursday’s presentation to the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Women and girls
The severity of reprisals against women and girls, which constitute half of the victims in this year’s report, was once again identified as a particular concern.
Most of these women were human rights defenders targeted for their cooperation with UN human rights mechanisms and peace operations, but there were also a significant number of judicial officers and lawyers.
“We have a duty to those who put their trust in us,” said Ms. Kehris.
“That is why at the UN, we are determined to live up to our collective responsibility to prevent and address intimidation and reprisals against those who cooperate with the organisation and its human rights mechanisms.”
Karabakh emergency escalates, thousands still pouring into Armenia: UN agencies
Over 88,000 refugees from the Karabakh region have fled to Armenia in less than a week and humanitarian needs are surging, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday.
Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict: beyond common belief
by ERIC GOZLAN
Fenelon wrote in his book “Dialogue of the dead” that “war is an evil that dishonors humanity”.
ERIC GOZLAN
It is undeniable that war, this scourge that ravages humanity, sows devastation. The longer a conflict persists, the more it fuels animosity between the involved nations, making the restoration of trust between the belligerents all the more difficult. As the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia has already reached the sad centenary of its existence, it is difficult to imagine the torments endured by these two peoples, each bearing its share of suffering.
I hear and read allegations that Azerbaijan is committing genocide against Armenians. As Albert Camus pointed out, “misexplaining things adds to the world’s unhappiness.” It is essential to understand that the term “genocide” was first introduced by the Polish lawyer Raphael Lemkin in 1944, in his work titled “Axis Rule in Occupied Europe.” It is composed of the Greek “genos,” meaning “race” or “tribe”combined with the Latin “cide,” rmeaning “killing.” Raphael Lemkin coined this term not only to describe the systematic extermination policies carried out by the nazis against the Jewish people during the Holocaust but also other targeted actions aimed at destroying specific groups of individuals throughout history. Therefore, it is indisputable that Armenians were victims of genocide in 1915, and this must be acknowledged by all. However, it is equally crucial to recognize other tragedies, including those affecting Azerbaijanis, through the same lens of understanding and justice.
It is undeniable that Azerbaijanis have been severely affected by assassinations and killings, all because they were Azerbaijanis. Let’s delve into this lesser-known period of history that will help us better understand the current situation.
March 31, 1918, Azerbaijan massacre
In 1925, Lenin appointed Stepan Chaoumian as extraordinary commissar for the Caucasus. On March 31 of that year, for three days, the Azerbaijanis were massacred.
A German named Kulne described the events in Baku in 1925: “The Armenians stormed Muslim (Azerbaijani) quarters and killed all the inhabitants, piercing them with their bayonets. A few days later, the corpses of 87 Azerbaijanis had been dug out of a pit. Bodies disemboweled, noses cut off, genitals mutilated. The Armenians had shown no mercy for either the children or the adults”.
During the March massacre, the corpses of 57 Azerbaijani women were found in a single district of Baku, their ears and noses cut off and their stomachs torn open. The girls and women had been nailed to the wall, and the city hospital, where 2,000 people were trying to escape the attacks, was set on fire.
The deportation of Azerbaijanis from Armenia 1948-1953
In December 1947, the Communist leaders of Armenia addressed a letter to Stalin. In that letter, they agreed to move 130,000 Azerbaijanis from Armenia to Azerbaijan, creating vacancies for Armenians coming to Armenia from abroad. The details of the deportation were also set out in USSR Council of Ministers Decree No. 754. The plan was to deport around 100,000 people to the Kura-Aras plain (Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic) in three stages: 10,000 in 1948, 40,000 in 1949 and 50,000 in 1950.
The deportation of Azerbaijanis from Armenia in 1988-1989
In January 1988, under the aegis of the USSR leadership, over 250,000 Azerbaijanis and 18,000 Kurds were expelled from their ancestral lands. On December 7 of that year, a terrible earthquake struck the region. Azeri villagers were evacuated to Azerbaijan and throughout 1989 demanded the right to return and compensation for property lost in the disaster. However, the authorities in Spitak and Yerevan denied that the Azeris were double victims, arguing that they had left Spitak of their own free will.
The massacres of 1992
The Khodjaly Massacre: On February 25 and 26, 1992, during the Nagorno-Karabakh war, Armenian forces attacked the town of Khodjaly, which was mainly populated by Azeris. The siege of the town resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Azerbaijani civilians, including women, children and elderly. This massacre was widely condemned by the international community.
Garadaghly massacre: In February 1992, Armenian forces attacked the village of Garadaghly, outside Nagorno-Karabakh, killing many Azerbaijani civilians.
Maragha Massacre: In April 1992, Armenian forces attacked the village of Maragha, located in Nagorno-Karabakh, and killed several dozen civilians.
Now, with a better knowledge of history, it’s easier for us to understand the current situation.
Following attacks against them and civilians, Azerbaijan’s armed forces launched an attack on Armenian forces in Karabakh on September 19. The following day, Armenia refused to send soldiers to the region in order to counter-attack, revealing certain dissensions within Armenia. Armenia has two distinct governments: the central one in Yerevan, elected by the people, and the one in Karabakh, backed by Russian oligarchs.
The Prime Minister of the central government, Nikol Pachinian, has been expressing his desire to draw closer to the United States for some time, and has been negotiating with the Baku government for over a year. A few weeks ago, Nikol Pachinian announced his intention to recognize Azerbaijan’s sovereignty over Karabagh.
On September 6, the world discovered a photo of Anna Hakobyan, wife of the Prime Minister of Armenia, beaming as she shook hands with Volodymyr Zelensky. Mrs Hakobyan was in Kiev at the invitation of the Ukrainian President’s wife, Olena Zelenska, to take part in the annual summit of first ladies and spouses, dedicated to mental health. On the occasion of her first visit to the Ukrainian capital, Anna Hakobyan formalized the delivery, for the first time since the Russian invasion in February 2022, of humanitarian aid from Armenia to Ukraine. Although modest – around a thousand digital devices for schoolchildren – this assistance has great symbolic value.
The Karabakh government, supported as we know by Putin and the Russian oligarchs, has no desire to draw closer to the United States or Ukraine. Consequently, on September 19, it attempted a coup d’état to remove Pachinian from power.
Peace in the Caucasus is important for several reasons:
Regional stability: The Caucasus is a geopolitically complex region, with several countries in close proximity to one another, including Russia, Turkey, Iran, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Conflicts in this region can have destabilizing repercussions that extend beyond its borders.
Energy: The Caucasus is a key region for the transport of energy, particularly oil and natural gas. Pipelines criss-cross the region, carrying these resources to Europe and other international markets. Any conflict or instability in the region can disrupt energy supplies, with significant economic and geopolitical consequences.
European stability: Instability in the Caucasus can have repercussions for European security. Armed conflicts or humanitarian crises in this region can lead to refugee movements, tensions between Europe’s neighboring countries and disruption of energy supply routes, all of which can affect the continent’s security and stability.
The Author : A specialist in geopolitics and parallel diplomacy, Eric GOZLAN is a government advisor and directs the International Council for Diplomacy an Dialogue (www.icdd.info)
Eric Gozlan is called as an expert at the National Assembly and the Senate on subjects dealing with parallel diplomacy and secularism
In June 2019, he contributed to the United Nations Special Rapporteur’s report on anti-Semitism.
In September 2018, he received the Peace Prize from Prince Laurent of Belgium for his fight for secularism in Europe.
He took part in two numerous conferences on peace in Korea, Russia, the United States, Bahrain, Belgium, England, Italy, Romania…
His latest book: Extremism and radicalism: lines of thought to get out of it
Petting dogs boosts immunity
Scientists from the University of Virginia, USA, have found that petting dogs helps to increase immunity, reports the site of the educational institution.
The authors analyzed data from previous studies and came to the conclusion that short-term communication with dogs has a beneficial effect on the state of the human organism.
For example, the level of the stress hormone cortisol drops in humans in just 5-20 minutes in the company of a dog. The researchers also reported an increase in the level of oxytocin, a hormone that promotes good mood. This contributes to improving immunity and the health of the nervous system. What’s more, the same thing happens with pets.
Dog ownership is also associated with improved heart health, increased physical activity and better mental well-being: a pet provides companionship and a source of stability in life, and makes its owners feel loved.
The authors of the present study plan to do further studies in the future to prove their conclusions in larger samples.
Also, dogs can sense when their owners are going through a tough time and get stressed too. Swedish researchers came to this conclusion after studying 58 people who owned Border Collies or Shetland Sheepdogs.
The scientists examined hair from people and their dogs by checking levels of the hormone cortisol, which is released into the blood in response to stress and absorbed by hair follicles.
Lina Roth and her team at Linköping University found a synchrony in the cortisol levels of humans and their dogs, both in winter and summer. Specialists cannot explain the reason. They suggest that it is in the relationship that forms between a person and his best friend.
Dogs “become infected” by their owner’s stress, because he plays a big role in their lives. People can reduce their pets’ stress by playing with them more, scientists advise.
Photo by cottonbro studio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-white-long-sleeves-holding-dog-s-face-5961946/
UN rights experts slam ‘systemic racism’ in US police and courts
A new report by UN International experts advancing racial justice and equality in policing, published after an official visit to the country, shows that Black people in the US are three times more likely to be killed by police than if they were White, and 4.5 times more likely to be incarcerated.
Dr Tracie Keesee, an expert member of the task force, said the testimonies she heard on how victims do not get justice or redress were “heart-breaking” and “unacceptable”.
“All actors involved, including police departments and police unions, must join forces to combat the prevailing impunity,” she said.
‘A legacy of slavery’
During their country visit, the experts heard testimonies from 133 affected individuals, visited five detention centres and held meetings with civil society groups as well as government and police authorities in the District of Columbia, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, Minneapolis and New York City.
They say that racism in the US, “a legacy of slavery, the slave trade, and 100 years of legalized apartheid that followed slavery’s abolition”, continues to exist in the form of racial profiling, police killings and many other human rights violations.
Chained in childbirth
The experts condemned the “appalling” overrepresentation of people of African descent in the criminal justice system.
They expressed concern over instances of children from the diaspora being sentenced to life imprisonment, pregnant women in prison being chained during childbirth, and persons held in solitary confinement for 10 years.
Not just a few ‘bad apples’
The report notes that there are more than 1,000 cases of killings by police each year in the country but only one per cent result in officers being charged.
The experts warned that if use of force regulations in the US are not reformed in accordance with international standards, killings by police will continue.
“We reject the ‘bad apple’ theory. There is strong evidence suggesting that the abusive behaviour of some individual police officers is part of a broader and menacing pattern,” said Professor Juan Méndez, an expert member of the Mechanism, as the Human Rights Council-appointed panel is formally known.
Mr. Mendez stressed that the police and justice systems reflect the attitudes prevalent in US society and institutions and called for “comprehensive reform”.
Alternative approach
The report’s authors insist that armed police officers “should not be the default first responders to every social issue in the US”, including for mental health crises or homelessness, and call for “alternative responses to policing”.
The experts highlighted the burden of a “work overload” on police officers, as well as systemic racism within police departments, which need to be addressed.
Good cop recommendations
The report made 30 recommendations to the US and all its jurisdictions, including the more than 18,000 police agencies in the country. It also highlighted local and federal good practices.
“We encourage the good practices to be reproduced in other parts of the country. We look forward to continuing to cooperate with the US to implement these recommendations,” Prof. Méndez said.
The Mechanism comprises three experts appointed by the Council: Justice Yvonne Mokgoro (Chair), Dr Keesee and Prof. Méndez. The experts are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work.
Appeal for Support, Marrakech Earthquake Victims Need Your Help
Geneva, September 28, 2023. The earthquake that struck the Marrakech region on September 8, 2023, was one of the most violent in Morocco’s history. The rural province of Al Haouz was hard hit, resulting in the loss of many lives and the destruction of entire villages.
In these difficult times, our international organizations: the International Observatory for Peace, Democracy and Human Rights (IOPDRH) and Promotion of Economic and Social Development (PDES) in Geneva, in collaboration with other international NGOs, are launching an appeal for donations to benefit the victims of this disaster.
We are appealing to the generosity of the local community, businesses, philanthropic organizations and all citizens of goodwill to support efforts to bring relief to the victims. Every donation, whatever its value to you, will help to alleviate the suffering of those who have lost everything.
By making a bank transfer to the: ACCOUNT WITH BANK AL-MAGHRIB (Moroccan National and Central Bank)
IBAN: MA64001810007800020110620318
SWIFT CODE : BKAMMAMR
Or visit the drop-off points for your in-kind donations: (See the list of needs on the campaign poster):
Basilique Notre Dame: Place de Cornavin, 1201 Geneva
Islamic Cultural Foundation of Geneva: Chemin Colladon 34, 1209 Geneva
La maison internationale des associations : Rue des Savoises 15, 1205 Genève
Our thoughts and prayers are with all the victims and their families
Rights chief calls for international help to provide ‘way out of chaos’ in Haiti
“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.
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.
Libya floods: ‘Tragedy is not over’ warns UNICEF
More than 16,000 children are displaced in eastern Libya following Africa’s deadliest storm in recorded history the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Thursday, highlighting the urgent need for psychosocial care.
