The last elected president of Haiti, Jovenel Moïse,
was assassinated on 7th of July 2021.
The killing plunged the country into political, humanitarian and security chaos.
In the absence for functioning government
and with a limited police force,
rival gangs have increasingly seized control of most of the capital,
Port-au-Prince
and more than half of the country.
There is not a single elected official left in office
and Haitians have been left with limited access
to fuel, water and food.
But while the depth of this crisis is unprecedented,
the influence of armed gangs and their relationship with politicians,
have a long history.
So, how did armed gangs become embedded in Haitian politics?
The origins of Haiti's political instability
can be charted back to 1791.
When an uprising of enslaved Haitians overthrew French colonial rule
and won independence.
But the resulting emancipation came at a price,
setting an unparalleled historical precedent.
France forced Haiti to pay so-called 'reparations'
to their former slave masters.
The first instalment alone was roughly
six times the country's income that year.
So, Haiti was encouraged to take out loans from French banks
to make the payments.
This became known as Haiti's double debt.
This severely damaged Haiti's economy for centuries
and prevented the country from investing in its own development.
As recent as 1911,
for every $3 Haiti generated from coffee taxes,
$2.53 went to paying debts held by French investors
In the early 1900s,
widespread deprivation accompanied near constant political instability.
Which saw seven Haitian presidents either ousted or killed
over a four-year period.
This led to the occupation of Haiti by US forces in 1915.
He promised to stabilise the country,
but instead seised control of many of many of Haiti's institutions.
Including the banks and and the national treasury.
Under US government control,
40% of Haiti's national income
was spent on repaying debts to American and French banks.
The New York Times has estimated,
that had Haiti not been forced to make reparations,
its economy would have been $$21bn better off.
The US occupation ended in 1934,
leaving behind a litany of human rights abuses,
including forced labour, torture and executions
and a severely weakened economy.
These people have something infinitely more precious than material wealth,
liberty.
In 1957, a decade after the US relinquished fiscal control,
the dictatorship of François Duvalier began.
Ruling amid economic and institutional fragility
and fearing the deadly coup d'etat of the past,
Duvalier almost immediately came to rely on armed gangs.
In 1959 he created the first paramilitary force,
known as the Tonton Macoute.
They acted as Duvalier's personal guard
and secret police.
Serving as a counterweight to the army,
who had attempted to overthrow him only a year after he seized power.
The Macoute helped Duvalier suppress opposition
and brutally enforce his rule,
through massacres, assassinations and political violence.
And by 1961,
the Macoute had become twice as large as the army.
They continued to operate under Duvalier's son, Jean-Claude
and even after he was forced from office in 1986,
the Macoute would re-emerge in different forms in the late 80s and early 90s,
supporting different administrations.
In 1991, President Jean-Bertrand Aristide,
was overthrown by a military coup,
that crucially included former members of the Macoute.
This led to another US invasion in 1994,
alongside a parallel United Nations peacekeeping effort.
The aim of restoring Aristide to power,
dismantling armed groups and bolstering the police force.
But despite international intervention,
the situation didn't improve.
In the years that followed armed gangs continued to operate
in support of different political parties.
A number of these gangs took over community self-defence groups,
while others even fused with the state police.
These groups form the basis of what are the established gangs in Haiti today.
The worst disaster in United Nations history,
survivors are continuing to die because of the lack
of basic medical help.
On top of such a turbulent political history,
Haiti has been rocked by a series of devastating natural disasters.
The biggest of which was the 2010 earthquake
that killed up to 300,000 people
and led to thousands of incarcerated gang members escaping from prison.
But the more recent earthquake in 2021,
just a month after Moïse's assassination,
sent the situation spiralling out of control.
Currently there are around 200 gangs operating across the country,
with many in the capital, Port-au-Prince, controlling large parts of Haiti's economy.
They profit from kidnapping, raiding businesses,
as well as food, fuel and other supplies.
They have also taken control of key infrastructure.
drawing income from customs, water and electricity and even bus services.
With Haiti facing a convergence of so many crisis,
the spectre of international intervention is rising once again.
In the present circumstances we need armed action
to allow for humanitarian corridor to be established.