Latest news with #PortauPrince
Washington Post
2 hours ago
- Washington Post
Thousands of Haitians mark annual pilgrimage far from a sacred waterfall surrounded by gangs
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The massive crowd that would gather once a year at a revered waterfall in central Haiti where the faithful would splash in its sacred waters and rub their bodies with aromatic leaves was not there on Wednesday. Powerful gangs in March attacked the town of Saut-d'Eau , whose 100-foot-long waterfall had for decades drawn thousands of Vodou and Christian faithful alike. The town remains under gang control, preventing thousands from participating in the traditional annual pilgrimage meant to honor the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, closely associated with the Vodou goddess of Erzulie. 'Not going to Saut-d'Eau is terrible,' said Ti-Marck Ladouce. 'That water is so fresh it just washes off all the evilness around you.' Instead, Ladouce joined several thousand people who scrambled up a steep hill in a rural part of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, on Wednesday to honor Erzulie and the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel at a small church that served as a substitute for the waterfall. Like many, Ladouce thanked the Virgin Mary for keeping him and his family alive amid a surge of gang violence that has left at least 4,864 people dead from October to the end of June across Haiti, with hundreds of others kidnapped, raped and trafficked. 'People are praying to be saved,' he said. Daniel Jean-Marcel opened his arms, closed his eyes and turned toward the sky as people around him lit candles, clutched rosaries and tried to push their way into the small church that could not hold the crowd gathered around it. Jean-Marcel said he was giving thanks 'for the grace of being able to continue living in Port-au-Prince,' where gang violence has displaced more than 1.3 million people in recent years. 'There is nowhere for us to go,' he said, adding that he and his family would remain in Haiti even as people continue to flee the ravaged country despite an immigration crackdown by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, U.S. authorities deported more than 100 Haitians to their homeland on the latest such flight. Jacques Plédé, 87, was among those dressed in all white who gathered to give thanks in Port-au-Prince, of which 85% is now controlled by gangs . He recalled helping build the small church but never thought it would serve as a substitute for the Saut-d'Eau waterfall. 'It's very disgraceful for the country that the gangs are taking over one of the nicest waterfalls where people go to pray privately,' he said. 'Life is not over. One day, if I'm still alive, I'll make it back to Saut-d'Eau.' On the morning of March 31, the Canaan gang led by a man known as 'Jeff' attacked Saut-d'Eau. Police and a self-defense group repelled the attack, but the gang returned in early April with more than 500 men, prompting residents and authorities to flee, according to a new report from the U.N. human rights office. Angry over the ongoing violence and what the United Nations described as 'weak responses from authorities,' residents of Saut-d'Eau and other nearby communities in May and June took over a hydroelectric plant in protest, causing widespread power outages in Haiti's capital and its central region. On Wednesday, videos posted on social media showed Jeff Larose, leader of the Canaan gang, standing in the large church of Saut-d'Eau that traditionally hosted the annual Mass amid the three-day pilgrimage. The church was built under a presidential order after rumors began circulating in the mid-1800s that a local farmer had seen the Virgin Mary in a palm tree there. Next to Larose stood Joseph Wilson, who goes by 'Lanmo Sanjou' and is the leader of the 400 Mawozo gang , and Jimmy Chérizier , best known as 'Barbecue' and one of the leaders of a powerful gang federation known as ' Viv Ansanm ,' or 'Living Together.' The video showed them distributing money to some residents who gathered with their arms outstretched. 'They used to stop us from coming to Mount Carmel,' Barbecue said. 'We are at the foot of our mother now.' At one point, Lanmo Sanjou looked at the camera and said the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel would give them the opportunity to perform more miracles. The sounds of laughter and gurgling water were absent on Wednesday at the church in Haiti's chaotic capital where the substitute pilgrimage was underway. Hugens Jean, 40, recalled how he and his family in previous years would visit Saut-d'Eau, where they would wash themselves in the waters and cook meals in the nearby woods. 'Today is a very special day,' he said. 'I come here to pray for deliverance for my family and for the country that's in the hands of gangs. One day, we need to be free from these systematic attacks. We don't know who's going to live today or who's going to die tomorrow.' Joane Durosier, a 60-year-old Vodou priestess known as a 'mambo,' shared a similar lament. Dressed in white with a rosary in hand, Durosier said she was praying for herself and her followers. 'A lot of people are suffering,' she said. 'In a country like Haiti, everybody needs protection.' ___ Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The Independent
5 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Thousands of Haitians mark annual pilgrimage far from a sacred waterfall surrounded by gangs
The massive crowd that would gather once a year at a revered waterfall in central Haiti where the faithful would splash in its sacred waters and rub their bodies with aromatic leaves was not there on Wednesday. Powerful gangs in March attacked the town of Saut-d'Eau, whose 100-foot-long waterfall had for decades drawn thousands of Vodou and Christian faithful alike. The town remains under gang control, preventing thousands from participating in the traditional annual pilgrimage meant to honor the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, closely associated with the Vodou goddess of Erzulie. 'Not going to Saut-d'Eau is terrible,' said Ti-Marck Ladouce. 'That water is so fresh it just washes off all the evilness around you.' Instead, Ladouce joined several thousand people who scrambled up a steep hill in a rural part of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, on Wednesday to honor Erzulie and the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel at a small church that served as a substitute for the waterfall. Like many, Ladouce thanked the Virgin Mary for keeping him and his family alive amid a surge of gang violence that has left at least 4,864 people dead from October to the end of June across Haiti, with hundreds of others kidnapped, raped and trafficked. 'People are praying to be saved,' he said. A church bursting at its seams Daniel Jean-Marcel opened his arms, closed his eyes and turned toward the sky as people around him lit candles, clutched rosaries and tried to push their way into the small church that could not hold the crowd gathered around it. Jean-Marcel said he was giving thanks 'for the grace of being able to continue living in Port-au-Prince,' where gang violence has displaced more than 1.3 million people in recent years. 'There is nowhere for us to go,' he said, adding that he and his family would remain in Haiti even as people continue to flee the ravaged country despite an immigration crackdown by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, U.S. authorities deported more than 100 Haitians to their homeland on the latest such flight. Jacques Plédé, 87, was among those dressed in all white who gathered to give thanks in Port-au-Prince, of which 85% is now controlled by gangs. He recalled helping build the small church but never thought it would serve as a substitute for the Saut-d'Eau waterfall. 'It's very disgraceful for the country that the gangs are taking over one of the nicest waterfalls where people go to pray privately,' he said. 'Life is not over. One day, if I'm still alive, I'll make it back to Saut-d'Eau.' Gang leaders visit a revered church On the morning of March 31, the Canaan gang led by a man known as 'Jeff' attacked Saut-d'Eau. Police and a self-defense group repelled the attack, but the gang returned in early April with more than 500 men, prompting residents and authorities to flee, according to a new report from the U.N. human rights office. Angry over the ongoing violence and what the United Nations described as 'weak responses from authorities,' residents of Saut-d'Eau and other nearby communities in May and June took over a hydroelectric plant in protest, causing widespread power outages in Haiti's capital and its central region. On Wednesday, videos posted on social media showed Jeff Larose, leader of the Canaan gang, standing in the large church of Saut-d'Eau that traditionally hosted the annual Mass amid the three-day pilgrimage. Next to him, in the largely empty church, stood Joseph Wilson, who goes by 'Lanmo Sanjou' and is the leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, and Jimmy Chérizier, best known as 'Barbecue" and one of the leaders of a powerful gang federation known as ' Viv Ansanm,' or 'Living Together.' The video showed them distributing money to some residents who gathered with their arms outstretched. 'They used to stop us from coming to Mount Carmel,' Barbecue said. 'We are at the foot of our mother now.' At one point, Lanmo Sanjou looked at the camera and said the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel would give them the opportunity to perform more miracles. 'Everybody needs protection' The sounds of laughter and gurgling water were absent on Wednesday at the church in Haiti's chaotic capital where the substitute pilgrimage was underway. Hugens Jean, 40, recalled how he and his family in previous years would visit Saut-d'Eau, where they would wash themselves in the waters and cook meals in the nearby woods. 'Today is a very special day,' he said. 'I come here to pray for deliverance for my family and for the country that's in the hands of gangs. One day, we need to be free from these systematic attacks. We don't know who's going to live today or who's going to die tomorrow.' Joane Durosier, a 60-year-old Vodou priestess known as a 'mambo,' shared a similar lament. Dressed in white with a rosary in hand, Durosier said she was praying for herself and her followers. 'A lot of people are suffering,' she said. 'In a country like Haiti, everybody needs protection.' ___ Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Associated Press
5 hours ago
- Associated Press
Thousands of Haitians mark annual pilgrimage far from a sacred waterfall surrounded by gangs
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The massive crowd that would gather once a year at a revered waterfall in central Haiti where the faithful would splash in its sacred waters and rub their bodies with aromatic leaves was not there on Wednesday. Powerful gangs in March attacked the town of Saut-d'Eau, whose 100-foot-long waterfall had for decades drawn thousands of Vodou and Christian faithful alike. The town remains under gang control, preventing thousands from participating in the traditional annual pilgrimage meant to honor the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, closely associated with the Vodou goddess of Erzulie. 'Not going to Saut-d'Eau is terrible,' said Ti-Marck Ladouce. 'That water is so fresh it just washes off all the evilness around you.' Instead, Ladouce joined several thousand people who scrambled up a steep hill in a rural part of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, on Wednesday to honor Erzulie and the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel at a small church that served as a substitute for the waterfall. Like many, Ladouce thanked the Virgin Mary for keeping him and his family alive amid a surge of gang violence that has left at least 4,864 people dead from October to the end of June across Haiti, with hundreds of others kidnapped, raped and trafficked. 'People are praying to be saved,' he said. A church bursting at its seams Daniel Jean-Marcel opened his arms, closed his eyes and turned toward the sky as people around him lit candles, clutched rosaries and tried to push their way into the small church that could not hold the crowd gathered around it. Jean-Marcel said he was giving thanks 'for the grace of being able to continue living in Port-au-Prince,' where gang violence has displaced more than 1.3 million people in recent years. 'There is nowhere for us to go,' he said, adding that he and his family would remain in Haiti even as people continue to flee the ravaged country despite an immigration crackdown by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, U.S. authorities deported more than 100 Haitians to their homeland on the latest such flight. Jacques Plédé, 87, was among those dressed in all white who gathered to give thanks in Port-au-Prince, of which 85% is now controlled by gangs. He recalled helping build the small church but never thought it would serve as a substitute for the Saut-d'Eau waterfall. 'It's very disgraceful for the country that the gangs are taking over one of the nicest waterfalls where people go to pray privately,' he said. 'Life is not over. One day, if I'm still alive, I'll make it back to Saut-d'Eau.' Gang leaders visit a revered church On the morning of March 31, the Canaan gang led by a man known as 'Jeff' attacked Saut-d'Eau. Police and a self-defense group repelled the attack, but the gang returned in early April with more than 500 men, prompting residents and authorities to flee, according to a new report from the U.N. human rights office. Angry over the ongoing violence and what the United Nations described as 'weak responses from authorities,' residents of Saut-d'Eau and other nearby communities in May and June took over a hydroelectric plant in protest, causing widespread power outages in Haiti's capital and its central region. On Wednesday, videos posted on social media showed Jeff Larose, leader of the Canaan gang, standing in the large church of Saut-d'Eau that traditionally hosted the annual Mass amid the three-day pilgrimage. Next to him, in the largely empty church, stood Joseph Wilson, who goes by 'Lanmo Sanjou' and is the leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, and Jimmy Chérizier, best known as 'Barbecue' and one of the leaders of a powerful gang federation known as ' Viv Ansanm,' or 'Living Together.' The video showed them distributing money to some residents who gathered with their arms outstretched. 'They used to stop us from coming to Mount Carmel,' Barbecue said. 'We are at the foot of our mother now.' At one point, Lanmo Sanjou looked at the camera and said the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel would give them the opportunity to perform more miracles. 'Everybody needs protection' The sounds of laughter and gurgling water were absent on Wednesday at the church in Haiti's chaotic capital where the substitute pilgrimage was underway. Hugens Jean, 40, recalled how he and his family in previous years would visit Saut-d'Eau, where they would wash themselves in the waters and cook meals in the nearby woods. 'Today is a very special day,' he said. 'I come here to pray for deliverance for my family and for the country that's in the hands of gangs. One day, we need to be free from these systematic attacks. We don't know who's going to live today or who's going to die tomorrow.' Joane Durosier, a 60-year-old Vodou priestess known as a 'mambo,' shared a similar lament. Dressed in white with a rosary in hand, Durosier said she was praying for herself and her followers. 'A lot of people are suffering,' she said. 'In a country like Haiti, everybody needs protection.' ___ Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Al Arabiya
5 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Thousands of Haitians Mark Annual Pilgrimage Far From a Sacred Waterfall Surrounded by Gangs
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) – The massive crowd that would gather once a year at a revered waterfall in central Haiti, where the faithful would splash in its sacred waters and rub their bodies with aromatic leaves, was not there on Wednesday. Powerful gangs in March attacked the town of Saut-d'Eau, whose 100-foot-long waterfall had for decades drawn thousands of Vodou and Christian faithful alike. The town remains under gang control, preventing thousands from participating in the traditional annual pilgrimage meant to honor the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, closely associated with the Vodou goddess Erzulie. 'Not going to Saut-d'Eau is terrible,' said Ti-Marck Ladouce. 'That water is so fresh, it just washes off all the evilness around you.' Instead, Ladouce joined several thousand people who scrambled up a steep hill in a rural part of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, on Wednesday to honor Erzulie and the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel at a small church that served as a substitute for the waterfall. Like many, Ladouce thanked the Virgin Mary for keeping him and his family alive amid a surge of gang violence that has left at least 4,864 people dead from October to the end of June across Haiti, with hundreds of others kidnapped, raped, and trafficked. 'People are praying to be saved,' he said. A church bursting at its seams, Daniel Jean-Marcel opened his arms, closed his eyes, and turned toward the sky as people around him lit candles, clutched rosaries, and tried to push their way into the small church that could not hold the crowd gathered around it. Jean-Marcel said he was giving thanks for the grace of being able to continue living in Port-au-Prince, where gang violence has displaced more than 1.3 million people in recent years. 'There is nowhere for us to go,' he said, adding that he and his family would remain in Haiti even as people continue to flee the ravaged country, despite an immigration crackdown by the administration of US President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, US authorities deported more than 100 Haitians to their homeland on the latest such flight. Jacques Plédé, 87, was among those dressed in all white who gathered to give thanks in Port-au-Prince, of which 85 percent is now controlled by gangs. He recalled helping build the small church but never thought it would serve as a substitute for the Saut-d'Eau waterfall. 'It's very disgraceful for the country that the gangs are taking over one of the nicest waterfalls where people go to pray privately,' he said. 'Life is not over. One day, if I'm still alive, I'll make it back to Saut-d'Eau.' On the morning of March 31, the Canaan gang, led by a man known as Jeff, attacked Saut-d'Eau. Police and a self-defense group repelled the attack, but the gang returned in early April with more than 500 men, prompting residents and authorities to flee, according to a new report from the UN human rights office. Angry over the ongoing violence and what the United Nations described as weak responses from authorities, residents of Saut-d'Eau and other nearby communities in May and June took over a hydroelectric plant in protest, causing widespread power outages in Haiti's capital and its central region. On Wednesday, videos posted on social media showed Jeff Larose, leader of the Canaan gang, standing in the large church of Saut-d'Eau that traditionally hosted the annual Mass amid the three-day pilgrimage. Next to him in the largely empty church stood Joseph Wilson, who goes by Lanmo Sanjou and is the leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, and Jimmy Chérizier, best known as Barbecue and one of the leaders of a powerful gang federation known as Viv Ansanm, or Living Together. The video showed them distributing money to some residents who gathered with their arms outstretched. 'They used to stop us from coming to Mount Carmel,' Barbecue said. 'We are at the foot of our mother now.' At one point, Lanmo Sanjou looked at the camera and said the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel would give them the opportunity to perform more miracles. The sounds of laughter and gurgling water were absent on Wednesday at the church in Haiti's chaotic capital, where the substitute pilgrimage was underway. Hugens Jean, 40, recalled how he and his family in previous years would visit Saut-d'Eau, where they would wash themselves in the waters and cook meals in the nearby woods. 'Today is a very special day,' he said. 'I come here to pray for deliverance for my family and for the country that's in the hands of gangs. One day we need to be free from these systematic attacks. We don't know who's going to live today or who's going to die tomorrow.' Joane Durosier, a 60-year-old Vodou priestess known as a mambo, shared a similar lament. Dressed in white with a rosary in hand, Durosier said she was praying for herself and her followers. 'A lot of people are suffering,' she said. 'In a country like Haiti, everybody needs protection.' ___ Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Al Jazeera
5 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Haiti death toll hits nearly 5,000 in nine months as gang violence spreads
The United Nations has appealed to the international community to bolster its support for Haiti after a report revealed that gang violence has claimed 4,864 lives from October to June. More than 20 percent of those deaths unfolded in the departments of Centre and Artibonite, indicating that intense violence is spilling into the areas surrounding the capital, Port-au-Prince. In a report released on Friday, the UN explained that the growing presence of gangs like Gran Grif in those areas appears to be part of a broader strategy to control key routes connecting the capital to Haiti's north and its border with the Dominican Republic. 'This expansion of gang territorial control poses a major risk of spreading violence and increasing transnational trafficking in arms and people,' the report said. Among its recommendations was for the international community to better police the sale of firearms to Haiti and to continue to offer support for a Kenya-led security mission aimed at strengthening Haiti's local law enforcement. In a statement, Ulrika Richardson, the UN's resident coordinator in Haiti, explained that propping up the country's beleaguered police force is key to restoring security. 'Human rights abuses outside Port-au-Prince are intensifying in areas of the country where the presence of the State is extremely limited,' she said. 'The international community must strengthen its support to the authorities, who bear the primary responsibility for protecting the Haitian population.' The report indicates that the violence in the regions surrounding Port-au-Prince took a turn for the worse in October, when a massacre was carried out in the town of Pont Sonde in the Artibonite department. The Gran Grif gang had set up a checkpoint at a crossroads there, but local vigilante groups were encouraging residents to bypass it, according to the UN. In an apparent act of retaliation, the gang launched an attack on Pont Sonde. The UN describes gang members as firing 'indiscriminately at houses' along the road to the checkpoint, killing at least 100 people and wounding 16. They also set 45 houses and 34 vehicles on fire. The chaos forced more than 6,270 people to flee Pont Sonde for their safety, contributing to an already dire crisis of internal displacement. The UN notes that, as of June, more than 92,300 people were displaced from the Artibonite department, and 147,000 from Centre — a 118-percent increase over that department's statistics from December. Overall, nearly 1.3 million people have been displaced throughout the country. The massacre at Pont Sondé prompted a backlash, with security forces briefly surging to the area. But that presence was not sustained, and Gran Grif has begun to reassert its control in recent months. Meanwhile, the report documents a wave of reprisal killings, as vigilante groups answered the gang's actions with violence of their own. Around December 11, for instance, the UN noted that the gangs killed more than 70 people near the town of Petite-Riviere de l'Artibonite, and vigilante groups killed 67 people, many of them assumed to be relatives or romantic partners of local gang members. Police units are also accused of committing 17 extrajudicial killings in that wave of violence, as they targeted suspected gang collaborators. The UN reports that new massacres have unfolded in the months since. In the Centre department, a border region where gangs operate trafficking networks, similar acts of retaliation have been reported as the gangs and vigilante groups clash for control of the roads. One instance the UN chronicles from March involved the police interception of a minibus driving from the city of Gonaives to Port-au-Prince. Officers allegedly found three firearms and 10,488 cartridges inside the bus, a fact which sparked concern and uproar among residents nearby. 'Enraged, members of the local population who witnessed the scene lynched to death, using stones, sticks, and machetes, two individuals: the driver and another man present in the vehicle,' the report said. Haiti has been grappling with an intense period of gang violence since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July 2021. Criminal networks have used the resulting power vacuum to expand their presence and power, seizing control of as much as 90 percent of the capital. A transitional government council, meanwhile, has struggled to re-establish order amid controversies, tensions and leadership turnover. The council, however, has said it plans to hold its first presidential election in nearly a decade in 2026. Meanwhile, Volker Turk, the UN high commissioner for human rights, warned that civilians will continue to suffer as the cycle of violence continues. 'Caught in the middle of this unending horror story are the Haitian people, who are at the mercy of horrific violence by gangs and exposed to human rights violations from the security forces and abuses by the so-called 'self-defence' groups,' he said.
