December 22, 2024
On the night of Tuesday, December 10 to Wednesday, December 11, 2024, around ten people, including two children, were brutally murdered in Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite. This gruesome attack, attributed to the Gran Grif gang of Savien, occurred despite the recent recapture of the local police station by law enforcement. A chilling video circulating on social media shows the victims’ bodies aligned in the same location, underscoring the gravity of the tragedy.
This massacre, accompanied by kidnappings and the burning of several homes, appears to be retaliation for acts of vigilante justice carried out by local residents. This is not the first time Gran Grif has unleashed terror; in October, the same gang was responsible for the slaughter of about a hundred people in Pont-Sondé. These harrowing acts, adding to an annual death toll exceeding 5,000 according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, paint a bleak picture of Haiti’s endemic violence.
The Haitian authorities are attempting to respond to this humanitarian crisis. A Council of Ministers meeting held on December 11 declared three days of national mourning, from Thursday, December 12 to Saturday, December 14, to honor the victims of recent atrocities. Among the victims are also over 184 elderly individuals murdered in Cité Soleil by another gang leader, Micanor Altès. Altès reportedly justified his actions by accusing the victims of witchcraft, reflecting a toxic mix of violence and archaic beliefs.
These tragedies have provoked widespread outrage. The Office of Citizen Protection (OCP) expressed its anger over these barbaric acts, describing them as flagrant violations of human rights. In a statement, the OPC emphasized that elderly individuals, who have contributed to society, deserve respect and protection rather than being targeted by such unjustifiable and incomprehensible violence.
As law enforcement struggles to contain these gangs, the Haitian population remains trapped in an endless cycle of violence. Calls for justice and security are growing louder as the country desperately seeks a way out of this unprecedented humanitarian and security crisis.