A report from the UN mission in Haiti (Binuh) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), published Monday, December 23, denounces the conditions in which 134 men and 73 women were shot dead between December 6 and 11 in Port-au-Prince.
The majority of these 207 victims “were elderly people accused of practicing voodoo and allegedly causing the child's illness” of Micanor Altes, leader of the Wharf Jérémie gang, with some 300 members, according to the text.
“On the evening of December 6, he ordered his gang members to carry out a “brutal manhunt.” The latter burst into around ten alleys in the neighborhood and forcibly took the victims out of their homes”explains the UN.
“They were taken to the gang’s stronghold where they were held captive and interrogated (…). They were then taken to a nearby execution site, before being shot or killed with machetes. The gang attempted to erase all evidence by burning the bodies, or dismembering them, then throwing them into the sea.according to the report.
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More than 5,350 people killed in 2024, according to the UN
“The other victims were family members of the elderly, who tried to flee the area, or individuals suspected of having leaked information about these crimes to local media”adds the report.
“We cannot pretend that nothing has happened. I call on Haitian justice to conduct a thorough investigation into these horrible crimes and to arrest and punish their perpetrators.”says Maria Isabel Salvador, the special representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations in Haiti, stressing that these crimes target “the most vulnerable populations”.
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Gang violence, already endemic in Haiti, has been worsening for months. Murders, rapes, looting and kidnappings for ransom are intensifying. “Since the start of 2024, (…) more than 5,350 people were killed and more than 2,155 others injured”underlines the report on Monday.
Of African origin and pillar of the country's culture, voodoo arrived in Haiti with African slaves. It had been banned during French colonial occupation (independence in 1804) and was only recognized as an official religion by the government in 2003.
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