Tensions soared last week when dozens of Haitians sought refuge in front of the U.S. embassy in Port-au-Prince, attempting to flee the violence caused by the Kraze Baryè gang, a group that has been responsible for several high-profile kidnappings since June, including that of a famous radio host and her husband, the former head of Haiti’s electoral council.
Soon after, agents of the national police used tear gas to disperse the group of residents.
“The authorities are abandoning the population,” said Pierre Espérance, executive director of the National Human Rights Defense Network, which last week called Vitel’Homme Innocent, the leader of Kraze Baryè, “the protégé” of high-ranking officers at the Haitian police, including its acting director general. “The gangs are protected by the state authorities and many members of the police force.”
On July 20, CARDH predicted a rise in violence if better security measures were not adopted. The group cited, among other reasons, the weakening of the “bwa kale” movement and the gangs’ need to make up income lost after the earlier drop in kidnappings. (According to rights groups, relatives of victims are often asked to pay up to $1 million in ransom.)
On Thursday, the State Department ordered nonemergency embassy personnel and their families to evacuate; it also advised all U.S. citizens in Haiti to leave “as soon as possible.”
Another kidnapping case drew worldwide attention in 2021, when 17 missionaries, mostly Americans, and their family members were abducted as they were leaving an orphanage in Port-au-Prince. Five hostages were released soon after; the rest managed to escape months later.
“The gangs do whatever they want, whenever they want,” Mr. Espérance said. “No one is safe, whether foreigner or Haitian.”
Harold Isaac in Port-au-Prince contributed reporting.
