Sexual violence surges in Haiti as gangs use rape to control population

Telegraph

a day ago

Reports of sexual violence almost doubled in Haiti over the past three months, with gangs vying for territory using rape to subjugate residents, the United Nations has warned.
At least 628 victims reported sexual attacks in the capital and central Haiti between April and June – up from 333 victims in the first three months of the year, according to new findings released by the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH).
The agency warned that the true number is likely far higher due to 'persistent under-reporting'.
Catherine Ann Moore, BINUH's senior women's protection advisor, who is based in Haiti, says the rise is in part linked to gangs having expanded their territorial control since March.
The Caribbean island has been gripped by escalating gang violence since 2021, following the assassination of then-president Jovenel Moïse. Ever since, groups have inflicted widespread terror and violence on the civilian population in a brutal bid to expand their control across the capital and beyond.
In June, US officials said gangs had gained 'near-total control' of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and that southern Haiti, which until recently was insulated from the violence, has seen a sharp increase in gang-related incidents. In the east, criminal groups have also begun exploiting land routes, including key crossings like Belladere and Malpasse.
Haiti has had no president since the assassination, and analysts say law and order has all but collapsed. Kidnappings, murders, rapes and extortion are now daily occurrences.
The UN said its most alarming finding was that gang rape is now being used systematically to terrorise and humiliate civilians. It accounts for 85 per cent of all reported sexual violence cases.
'When gangs attack neighbourhoods, they will attack a house, they will loot, they will rape the women and girls, they will usually kill the men, and then they will burn the house down,' Ms Moore says. 'They use sexual violence and rape to humiliate those living in the house.'
The UN has documented multiple cases where girls or women were raped in front of family members, with the husbands being forced to watch before being shot and killed.
'How the gangs are using rape to humiliate women and girls, speaks to their malicious behaviour and the length they will go to maintain power and control,' says Ms Moore.
When the BBC challenged gang leaders on accounts of killings and rapes earlier this year, one said members 'do things they are not supposed to do', while another said they have a 'duty' to fight the state, and 'when we are fighting we are possessed – we are no longer human'.
At least 20 people have also been subjected to sexual slavery, the UN said. In one case, girls aged 14 and 16 were forced into so-called 'relationships' with gang members in the commune of L'Estère and repeatedly raped over several days.
Victims are often abducted from public spaces. In some cases, they were killed after being raped. This was the case in April when several women were abducted while they were on board a public transport vehicle in Gressier. The victims were then brought to the gang's stronghold, where they were raped. One of the victims was found shot dead the following day, while the others remained in captivity at the end of June.
The vast majority of victims are women, and the youngest reported victim was 10 years old. Boys and men have also been assaulted, though these figures are believed to be severely under-reported due to stigma. Ms Moore cited one instance in which a man was kidnapped, tortured and sexually assaulted.
Other factors in the rise include delays in reporting earlier attacks and growing awareness of a new reporting system launched last year.
The USAID cuts have also impacted millions in funding for gender-based violence in Haiti, which Ms Moore says has made it harder for the system to respond.