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On Sunday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada’s third shipment of armored vehicles to Haiti. The vehicles are intended to help the Haitian National Police fight a gun battle with heavily armed gangs that control nearly two-thirds of the capital Port-au-Prince.
But the three vehicles delivered this week, plus those already sent to Haiti in two previous shipments, represent only half of the total number of vehicles Haiti has purchased.
The deadline for the contract has been extended until the end of December 2022 – of which only three of the 18 vehicles have been delivered.
This latest shipment won’t come soon enough for a police force that is seeing its officers killed at a rate of one every two or three days.
With the delivery of three new INKAS mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles, the Toronto-based supplier will complete half of the contract to deliver 18 vehicles.
Three were sent back in October last year and the other three landed on January 11. Both deliveries were carried by Royal Canadian Air Force C-17 Globemaster cargo aircraft.
Frustrated by the delay
Frustration over the slow delivery has fueled tensions within the force, leading to armed protests and assaults by police officers – even as gangs expand their areas of control.
Year to date, the police situation in Haiti has worsened, Canada’s Ambassador to Haiti Sébastien Carrière told CBC News.
“It’s been a tough few months,” he said. “He’s had some losses, more than usual I’d say in the last month. Brutal murder.”
Eugene Gerstein of INKAS, which manufactures the vehicles at its facility in Weston, Ontario, said he is very aware of the Haitian police situation.
“I myself have visited Haiti with our team several times. I have spoken with many officers,” he said. “I know the situation, I know the situation.
“I visited Haiti for the first time in 2010, right after the earthquake, and in the 13 years since then I have seen the country spiral into darkness. We really want help.
“In terms of protection, the feeling of horror when you’re sitting in an armored vehicle and you hear a 50 caliber projectile hitting your body … knowing that this is what is between you and death. We are proud to be part of this mission. We are proud to help save soul.”
The police force is in crisis
As almost the only part of the Haitian state still functioning, the Haitian police have borne the brunt of the war to prevent the country from descending into total anarchy.
Killings have occurred during police clashes with heavily armed gangs, but also in ambushes, targeted killings, and attacks on police stations.
When the police are kicked out of the police station – as happened recently in the Port-au-Prince neighborhood of Pernier – gangs will often set the building on fire to prevent them from returning.
Port-au-Prince is now surrounded by gang territory. The ring around the city is incomplete but anyone who passes through it is at risk of being kidnapped or robbed – or worse.
In late January, a shadowy group known as Fantome 509, made up mostly of active and former police officers, staged angry protests across the city. Shots were fired at the home of de-facto prime minister Ariel Henry, although he was out of the country for a summit in Buenos Aires at the time. Another group besieged the airport when he returned, forcing him to stay in the terminal for hours.
And in the town of Gonaives, a protesting policeman stopped work because six of his colleagues were killed in a nearby town by the Gran Grif gang – who mutilated the body and posted the video on the internet. The bodies were not returned.
CBC News contacted the Haitian National Police but was unable to get troops to discuss the matter.
INKAS vehicles can provide police protection needed to enter gang territory. It was used last October to remove a gang blockade of Haiti’s main fuel terminal that brought trade and transportation to a near standstill.
INKAS told CBC News the company is working flat-out to provide the remaining vehicles as soon as possible. The company said the delay was due to a combination of supply chain issues and changes demanded by Haitian buyers after the contract.
When it became clear that the gang had access to heavy weapons, said Gerstein, the police “felt that they needed additional protection.”
“One of the interesting things I heard from them was, look, they’re shooting at us from above,” he said.
“He needs, for confidence, protection in various additional areas. He wants a protective canopy of his own design that has been changed two or three times. I am sure now we have the final result. It looks like he likes it, so we are happy for the people that.”
A ‘trench fight’ for the section
The supply chain problems that plague manufacturing networks around the world are also shaping Haiti’s armored car manufacturing process, Gerstein said.
“The war in Ukraine has affected manufacturers like Volkswagen Audi. It turns out that the wiring harnesses for many vehicles that Volkswagen Audi produces are made in Ukraine,” he said.
Gerstein said the company’s vehicles have been caught in the same supply chain that caused new civilian passenger cars to pile up in North America.
“More often than not, the vehicle is ready, but it doesn’t have a part that can cost $100, like a sensor. Without that sensor, the vehicle doesn’t work,” he said.
“In our case, for example, the transmission speed sensor was one of the problems we encountered.
“We are doing everything in our power to speed up the manufacturing process. We are getting the parts we need from anywhere, from all over the world… working around the clock in shifts. Our procurement department is chasing parts all over the world.
“It’s trench warfare trying to get a part that other people are trying to get.”
A pound full of broken vehicles
In the meantime, INKAS said it had provided the Haitian police with “some armored personnel carriers for relief” that were not included in the additional contract.
There are also questions from training. CBC News has seen video taken at a Haitian police vehicle compound that shows several armored vehicles, made by more than one manufacturer, that are clearly damaged. Many no longer have wheels. All showed small arms fire marks, sometimes all over the sides of the vehicle.
But some also expressed concern about operator error and poor maintenance practices.
“Haiti needs, unfortunately, training, a lot of training,” said INKAS chairman Margarita Simkin.
According to INKAS and Canadian officials, one of INKAS’ new vehicles was rendered useless just days after its arrival when Haitian police locked the differential and then tried to push the vehicle over with a bulldozer, stripping the planetary gears.
“In addition to the additional vehicles to Haiti, we have sent several groups of our own employees to train the Haitian police with driver training, with mechanics,” said Simkin. “Now we have two mechanics in the field.”
‘He cares about his country’
The vehicle is not a gift from Canada, but the Canadian air force has stepped up to fly to the country and is expected to continue to do so.
Last week, Trudeau said Canada would send two coastal defense ships to patrol the bay and harbor of Port-au-Prince, an area that has been plagued by gang activity. The ship is also expected to have an intelligence and eavesdropping role.
Canada also sent a CP-140 Aurora surveillance plane to fly over the city for several days earlier this month to support police operations. The plane is expected to return at some point.
But the main battle is in the streets and shantytowns of Haiti, where the Haitian police can no longer operate without armored vehicles.
Gerstein said INKAS hopes to fulfill the contract soon; The other four vehicles will leave in March and the last eight will be delivered in about 60 days.
“I’ve spent time talking to police officers in the Haitian national police, you know, from the rank and file to senior officers, and there’s one narrative that’s there all the time. They’re taking care of their country,” he said. “He cares for the future of his children, every day he destroys his life… Criminals can see what they see.
“He’s a hard worker and we try our best.”
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