Haiti’s gangs are systematically expanding their operations beyond Port-au-Prince, moving into the provinces and adopting new tactics including surprise attacks followed by rapid escapes, kidnappings, livestock theft and road blockades.
Meanwhile, the attention of the security forces and the transitional political leadership remains focused on the capital, according to a report by the Haiti Observatory of the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), which was released on Monday.
The analysis stresses that this development is not simply a shift of urban gang activity into rural areas. Instead, it reflects a substantial change in the way the armed groups operate.
According to the report, the gangs use small and flexible groups to carry out rapid raids, intimidate local communities and move between areas that serve alternately as hideouts and targets. This allows the armed groups to extend their influence and disrupt daily life without having to maintain permanent control over an area.
The report cites the recent attack on Kenscoff, a mountainous community near Port-au-Prince, as a characteristic example. Dozens of people were killed in the attack, which also involved a mass kidnapping.
It also points to the deteriorating security situation in Artibonite, one of Haiti’s most important agricultural regions. There, gangs have targeted local communities, roads and farmland.
The growing violence in rural areas is creating new challenges for Haiti’s security forces. According to the report, they lack sufficient personnel, equipment and training to confront highly flexible armed groups operating in mountainous and geographically dispersed areas.
The report’s authors warn that addressing the problem solely through security measures is not enough. They call for measures to protect farmers, restore local economies and address long-running disputes involving land and local communities, alongside efforts to disarm and reintegrate gang members.
The spread of gangs beyond the capital shows, according to the analysis, that Haiti’s security crisis is acquiring different geographical and operational characteristics, making it even more difficult for the already overstretched state authorities to address.
Source: CNA