April 12, 2025
Returning from a mission in Haiti, UN human rights expert William O’Neill has delivered a dire assessment. “Suffering permeates all levels of society, particularly the most vulnerable,” he stated during a press conference in New York. Despite efforts by law enforcement, the risk of the capital falling entirely under gang control remains high. These rapidly expanding armed groups terrorize the population with impunity, destroying schools, hospitals, and places of worship.
Eyewitness accounts illustrate the scale of the tragedy. P., a 16-year-old girl, recounts how armed men killed her father before her eyes after raping both her and her stepmother. “The pain is unbearable. Sometimes I forget it, and then it comes back. At night, I scream,” she confides. L., a 12-year-old boy forcibly recruited by a gang and now imprisoned, dreams of a different future: “I don’t want criminals in my country anymore. One day, I will be a pilot.” These testimonies reveal the brutal reality of a daily life defined by violence and a complete lack of protection.
The humanitarian consequences are devastating. Over a million people have been displaced internally, and the situation worsens daily. “In makeshift camps, hunger and sexual violence are rampant,” the UN expert emphasized. The lack of resources to aid victims exacerbates the crisis, pushing some Haitians to acts of desperation—such as students violently expelling displaced persons who had taken refuge in their school.
Faced with this catastrophe, O’Neill calls for an urgent response. He urges Haitian authorities to make the fight against impunity and corruption a top priority, warning that “security, the rule of law, and the survival of the state” are at stake. He insists that the crackdown on gangs must strictly adhere to human rights principles, particularly the right to life.
The international community is also being called to action. “There is not a single day to lose,” O’Neill stresses, advocating for the enforcement of sanctions, an arms embargo, and increased support for Haitian security forces. For him, inaction is not an option: “Haiti’s survival is at stake.”
