In recent years, Haiti has witnessed one of the most serious crises, yet one that Western media have largely overlooked. The country is experiencing an emergency caused by political instability, armed violence, and humanitarian collapse, making it one of the most unstable contexts in the world, with over 1 million internally displaced persons and more than half of the population in need of humanitarian aid.
This emergency is linked to the disastrous earthquake that struck in 2010, which killed 220,000 people and destroyed much of the capital’s infrastructure, as well as a large number of homes, generating a severe political and economic crisis that has deteriorated over the years. A further, more recent aggravation of this crisis was caused by the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021 after a long period of protests and instability linked to misgovernment and economic difficulties. Prime Minister Ariel Henry filled the power vacuum, taking his place until 2024, when, due to international pressure, he resigned and fled the country. A transitional government has been established, with the assistance of American intergovernmental organizations, to address violence and restore peace and stability, thereby preparing the country for free and fair general elections. However, these elections are not expected to take place before 2026. As a result of such instability, on March 3, 2024, Haiti declared a state of emergency due to the escalation of violence and insecurity in the country, where ongoing violence and unrest took over the fate of the country.
Although a new transitional government has been formally set in place, a coalition of gangs and armed groups called “Vivre Ensamble,” taking advantage of institutional instability, are in de facto control of 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and vast portions of surrounding regions. The control of these groups has resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, with severe violence, abuse, and rape. Children are paying the highest price for this emergency, affected by increasing poverty and hunger. In fact, between 30% and 50% of gang members are minors, many of whom are forced to commit acts of violence, and in 2024 alone, cases of child abduction increased by 150% compared to the previous year. Additionally, access to education in times of crisis cannot be guaranteed for more than 300,000 children due to the closure, attack, or conversion of schools into shelters, thus making them more vulnerable to possible recruitment by armed groups.
Because of this serious situation, Haiti is facing one of the worst humanitarian crises in the entire region. It is estimated that over 6 million people, out of a total population of approximately 11 million, need urgent aid, including 3.3 million children, due to food shortages and the risk of famine. Another significant consequence is the health emergency caused by the spread of cholera, especially in shelters where sanitation, basic services, and vaccines are lacking, as well as the closure of many health facilities; more than 60% of hospitals in Port-au-Prince have been forced to close. Médecins Sans Frontières has had to suspend its work due to violent attacks on doctors, patients, and the facilities where they operated after 30 years of providing aid on the ground.
According to the IOM, Haiti has the highest rate of internal displacement per capita due to crime-related violence. Displacement reached unprecedented levels in 2025, with 1.3 million people forced to leave their homes to seek refuge in overcrowded camps or shelters lacking necessities and medical care, where they face increasing risks of violence and exploitation. Many Haitians fled the country, often facing dangerous journeys, but despite their dire conditions, more than 200,000 Haitians were repatriated to Haiti. The Dominican Republic deported 86,000 Haitians. In the United States, despite the extension of temporary protected status for some refugees, most Haitian migrants attempting to enter US territory are intercepted by the Coast Guard and repatriated. This worsens the crisis by leaving thousands of people without protection, exposed to ongoing violence, and unable to seek protection without risking their lives to escape from an extremely dangerous situation.
Despite the urgent need for immediate intervention by the international community, most Western countries have taken measures to weaken these armed forces and criminal groups by imposing sanctions and arms embargoes rather than reaching a consensus on a collective response aimed at saving the Haitian population. This was emphasized by the director of Save the Children in Haiti, Chantal Sylvie Imbeault, who stated: “Despite the declaration of a state of emergency, the world continues to watch as armed groups burn entire neighborhoods, children are caught in the crossfire, and families are deprived of their most basic rights, such as healthcare, food, and clean water.”
The United Nations has repeatedly launched appeals to raise funds for humanitarian policies in favor of Haitians. However, these fundraising campaigns have never achieved results commensurate with the emergency Haiti is experiencing. In 2024, of the $720 million requested to launch the humanitarian response plan, less than 30% of the requested funding was raised. At the same time, due to a lack of resources, security support responses have been limited. In October 2023, the United Nations approved a mission to support the Haitian police force, led by Kenya, with support from Jamaica, Belize, and the Bahamas. However, this mission was delayed by many NGOs and local groups due to concerns about a lack of oversight, and only managed to send 416 officers out of the 2,500 expected.
In such a critical situation, besides actively cracking down on criminal gangs, it’s necessary to strengthen humanitarian access, open legal channels for Haitian refugees, especially women, children, and victims of violence, as well as secure funding to ensure food security and the reopening of health facilities. It’s also necessary to support the country to allow for institutional reconstruction. Given the many examples of historical failures in imposing institutions or regimes from outside, the international community must support Haiti in a bottom-up reconstruction process, with the involvement of Haitian civil society, to begin a transition that involves building new institutions through free and competitive elections and that can provide what is defined as “transitional justice,” which is a key element in post-conflict transitions, particularly where the domestic environment is too unstable or fragmented, to ensure justice and prepare the ground for social pacification, acknowledging and addressing victims’ suffering.
Thus, Haiti is on the verge of total collapse, with one of the most serious and, at the same time, most ignored humanitarian crises of our time. The country is now an example of extreme state fragility due to the political crisis that has turned into armed violence and humanitarian catastrophe. Women and children are the primary victims of violence and recruitment by armed gangs. Still, the entire society is also in serious difficulty, with limited humanitarian aid and little attention from the international media, which contributes to the crisis’s substantial invisibility, hindering the mobilization of public opinion and, consequently, reducing pressure on global institutions to intervene effectively.
