Overview:
Officers from the 33rd promotion of the Haitian National Police (PNH) completed a 12-week training program, preparing them to integrate the institution’s different specialized units.
PORT-AU-PRINCE— Over 450 police officers, members of the Haitian National Police (PNH)’s 33rd promotion, have completed a 12-week training program, preparing them to integrate the institution’s different specialized units. The PNH’s high command held a ceremony Tuesday to hand parchments to the officers and celebrated their efforts in the law enforcement institution’s service. The officers’ readiness comes as the authorities seek to bolster PNH’s capability in combating escalating gang violence, particularly in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area.
This reinforcement of the police’s specialized units comes at a crucial moment as the country, particularly the Haitian capital and certain regions in the Artibonite department, faces a resurgence in gang attacks on institutions and civilian populations.
To emphasize its importance, numerous high-ranking government officials attended the ceremony, including the PNH Director General Frantz Elbé, members of the Presidential Transitional Council (TPC) such as Édgard Gardy Leblanc Fils and Smith Augustin, Prime Minister Garry Conille and the Minister of Justice and Public Security Carlos Hercule.
In his speech during the ceremony held at the the Pétion-Ville-based National Police Academy, Elbé congratulated the officers for their bravery in confrontating dangerous gangs that control 80-90% of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. He also saluted the PNH’s commitment and dedication despite the complications of its mission, emphasizing the police’s important role in maintaining order and national security.
“Your presence here again demonstrates your unshakable and unwavering commitment to developing this strategic republican institution,” said Elbé. “I salute the courage of the police officers who have sacrificed themselves since February 29 to defend citizens and their property day and night against the deadly attacks of armed criminal gangs.”
According to a report published by the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH) on June 12, between October 28, 2021, and June 9, 2024, approximately 120 police officers were killed by gangs, averaging four deaths per month compared to three in previous years. RNDDH also reported 55 armed attacks on police infrastructure between November 15, 2021, and June 9, 2024, under Elbé’s leadership.
The most recent police assassinations occurred on June 9, when three agents of the Temporary Antigang Unit (UTAG) were ambushed and killed by the gang led by Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier in Delmas 18, a populated area in the Haitian capital northeastern suburb. These losses forced the PNH to cancel the celebration of its 29th anniversary on June 12, prompting renewed calls for Elbé to resign from his position as police chief.
A weakened police force awaits the deployment of the MSS
Today, there is no official number of active-duty police officers in the PNH. However, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) reported in February 2022 that the force had 15,474 officers, including 1,712 women, with a ratio of 1.30 officers per 1,000 inhabitants. That is below the international standard of 2.2. These numbers further decreased in 2023.
According to the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), by December 31, 2023, the police force had 13,196 officers, including 1,588 women. During that year, 1,663 officers left the force, 48 were killed and 75 were injured in fights against gang violence.
“The national police remain overwhelmed by endemic organized gang violence,” said the UN Secretary-General in his January 2024 report. “The temporary anti-gang unit is still largely under-resourced and understaffed and faces shortcomings in operational planning and resource management.”
Prime Minister Conille, present at the ceremony, welcomed the specialized agents and reiterated his government’s commitment to supporting the police in operations against gangs. He promised to reclaim all territories controlled by gangs and restore peace and security in the country.
The TPC president, Édgard Gardy Leblanc Fils, also expressed support for the police officers and emphasized the TPC’s commitment to deploying police officers throughout the country to restore peace.
While these agents constitute an importance boost to the PNH specialized units, observers remain skeptical about the institution’s ability to shore up Haiti’s security. The country places its hope in the arrival of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission to help restore peace and order on the streets.
A delegation of Haitian police officials, led by Inspector General Joachim Prophète, arrived in Kenya on Tuesday to renew Haiti’s call for help. The MSS deployment, initially scheduled for the end of May, was delayed to the end of June due to several issues, including Kenya’s domestic legal issues related to deploying police forces aborad, delay in completing the construction work of a base to welcome the mission in Port-au-prince and delay in raising adequate funds for necessary materials and equipment.
In a boost to the Keny-led mission, The Miami Herald reported Tuesday that the Biden-Harris administration would be poised to override Congress Republican’s hold on the U.S. financial aid commitment to its funding. According to the Herald’s report, Biden would have issued an executive order to authorize the release of $109 million in support for Haiti’s security mission.