Haiti has become a failed state, says former governor general Michaëlle Jean

Former governor general Michaëlle Jean said that Haiti has become a failed state due to the growing security and economic crisis in the Caribbean country.

Violence has been on the rise in Haiti and gang activity has increased since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021. The number of reported kidnappings rose to more than 1,200 last year, more than double the number reported the year before. Haiti had 1,200 murders last year, a 35 percent increase compared to the previous year, according to the United Nations.

Jean, a Haitian refugee who grew up in Quebec, was interviewed on the CBC News Network Power & Politics if the crisis continues it means that Haiti is a failed state.

“Haiti has become a failed state,” Jean told guest host David Cochrane.

“The government itself has failed completely. There is a crisis of government with the country as well as with the police. And this is the problem.”

Haiti’s de facto Prime Minister Ariel Henry took control of the government in July support from several Western countries, including Canada. But Henry’s government was not well received in Haiti.

Top Caribbean leaders are expected to debate Haiti’s spiraling chaos and its impact on the region during their biennial meeting this week. A three-day meeting of the Caribbean trade bloc known as CARICOM began Wednesday in the Bahamas.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will attend the meeting to discuss the crisis in Haiti, among other topics.

In a statement announcing the trip, Trudeau’s office said he hoped to find a “Haitian-led” solution to the “egregious” security crisis fueled by gang warfare that “has had a devastating impact on the Haitian people.”

Haiti’s Foreign Minister, Jean Victor Geneus, warned during a meeting of the Organization of American States last week that insecurity is increasing and will spread to neighboring countries.

“We have to solve this problem in Haiti because there is no one else in the Caribbean to help,” he said.

Earlier this month, Jamaica’s prime minister said he was willing to send soldiers and police to Haiti as part of a proposed multinational security aid deployment. Last year, the Bahamas said it would send troops or police if requested.

Jean said Canada should help stabilize Haiti

Jean said Canada should play a leading role in international policing efforts to stabilize the country and allow the transitional government to hold new elections. But he said the force should involve other Caribbean countries.

“Police teams from countries in the region will be more accepted by the Haitian population, especially if they show solidarity and as reinforcements,” he said.

Jean also warned that the change of government must happen with the involvement of Haitian community groups.

Last month, on the sidelines of the North American Leaders’ Summit, Trudeau said Canada was “preparing for a range of scenarios” to respond to if the situation in Haiti worsened. He did not say whether that could include leading an international police mission.

Jean Augustine, a former Liberal cabinet minister and longtime advocate for the Caribbean diaspora, said Canada has a “moral impulse” to help Haiti.

“We see how we have come together around Ukraine,” Augustine told the CBC. “It’s the right time for the prime minister to go down there to make sure those conversations happen, and other leaders are on board with strategies that can help.”

The Canadian government said it is providing more than $90 million in humanitarian and development aid to Haiti during the 2022-23 fiscal year. It has supported the Haitian National Police by deploying long-range patrol aircraft and coordinating the delivery of security equipment.

Since October, Henry and high-ranking Haitian officials have called for foreign troops to be sent in immediately. The UN Security Council has yet to address the request, instead opting to impose sanctions.

On Friday, the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti issued a report recommending that CARICOM step up its efforts to control the spread of illegal firearms and ammunition in the Caribbean.

Some CARICOM members are pushing for Haiti’s main stakeholders to go to neutral countries in the region to reach a consensus agreement on holding elections.

Many local officials and voices in the international community have noted that elections cannot be held in Haiti until the violence ends. Jean agreed.

“If we do not solve this problem of insecurity, we cannot imagine elections in Haiti,” he said. “It would be a disaster.”