UNBEARABLE SITUATION
In Haiti, rising gang violence drives out small business owners
Haitian Jonas Joseph juggled running a busy hairdressing salon and a small bar in the capital Port- au- Prince for five years, allowing him to provide for his young family.
Then the gangsters took over.
“I had to close my business and leave. The most important thing is my safety and that of my family. I’m now living with my cousin, I can’t find work,” said Joseph, 32, a father of two.
“There’s only one activity left here: It’s gang activity.”
Joseph is one of thousands of small business owners forced to shut up shop in the Caribbean nation in the past year as rising gang violence and lawlessness cripples the economy.
Mobs dealing in extortion rackets, drugs and arms smuggling, and kidnappings for ransom have grown in power since the assassination of Haitian president Jovenel Moise in July 2021, creating a power vacuum that gangs have exploited.
Criminal groups have become de facto authorities in significant portions of the country, with gangcontrolled slum neighborhoods at the mercy of gun- toting bandits.
In downtown Port- au- Prince – usually a bustling market of clothes and food stalls – shop shutters are down and many street vendors have left after fearing for their lives.
“The downtown area has been converted into a kind of war zone. Heavily armed gunmen regularly take to the streets and innocent people are being killed or kidnapped every day,” said street vendor Jeannette Brutus, 38.
“The situation is unbearable.” Until recently, Brutus sold spaghetti, cooking oil, canned sardines and flour, along with second- hand clothes.
But when the armed gang members came several weeks ago asking Brutus to hand over a slice of her earnings, she left the area, and with it her only source of income.
“I had to flee the place. The gunmen would often come to ask me for money. Usually they’d force me at gunpoint to pay what I didn’t even have. I risked death every day, so I decided to stay away,” Brutus said.
She said she knew of several people who had been killed by gangsters for refusing to make extortion payments.
“The government has abandoned the population. We can’t rely on the police or government authorities to protect us,” Brutus said.
Police response
Haitian police say they have ramped up street patrols. One heavily armed policeman from a special forces unit deployed to the downtown area this week said despite the dangers, the police are committed to combating the gangs and keeping people safe.
“It’s very dangerous here. Our lives are at great risk because things can turn ugly anytime,” said the policeman, who only gave his name as Joel.
“From one moment to the next, bandits can erupt and create chaos – that’s why we firmly stand here, well- armed to face them should they try to do harm to the population.”
At least 148 people have been killed between April 24 and early May during the latest round of gang clashes in and around Port- au- Prince, which is the hot spot of gang violence, according to Haiti’s National Human Rights Defense Network ( RNDDH).
Gang members raped women and girls, hacked people to death with machetes, and burned others alive on tire fires in the streets, the rights group said in a report, while some people were killed after their homes were set alight.
Kidnappings for ransom are also rife, with 1,200 people snatched in 2021, according to Haiti’s Center for Analysis and Research on Human Rights.
“People are forced to pay extortion money because gang members threaten to kidnap them or their loved ones if they fail to do so,” said Pierre Esperance, head of RNDDH.
“The problem is that the government is almost totally absent in the areas where gangs operate.”
Haiti’s police chief, Frantz Elbe, has vowed to fight organized crime and hunt down “all bandits.”
“We’re planning to intervene in places where the population is unable to normally go about its business. We will recover our police precincts so that we may protect the population,” Elbe told a press conference on Tuesday.
He said several police operations in the past six months have led to the arrests of nearly 5,000 people on charges including kidnapping, murder and drug trafficking.
Gary Desrosiers, spokesperson for Haiti’s National Police, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation that the security situation “is really challenging.”
“We’re aware of businessmen who are forced to flee the areas they work in because of the gangs,” he said.
“For those who want to go back and reopen their activities, we can’t provide them with any full guarantee when it comes to their safety ... we’re doing the best we can with the meager means that we have.”
Dire economy
Gang violence comes on top of pandemic- related hardship and a worsening economy, with rising inflation pushing food prices higher and driving hundreds of thousands of Haitians deeper into poverty and hunger.
Together, they have prompted growing numbers of Haitians to leave the island on rickety boats in the hopes of reaching the US to seek safety and better opportunities. Entire neighborhoods have been abandoned.
Roughly a third of Haiti’s population of nearly 12 million live in extreme poverty, barely surviving on less than $ 2.15 a day, while about 4 million struggle to eat two meals a day, said Haitian economist Etzer Emile.
Sitting at a street corner in the capital, shoe shiner Jean Marc lamented a decline in customers in recent weeks.
“It’s hard when people have to choose between buying something to eat or cleaning their shoes. Most people prefer to eat,” said Marc, a father of two.
Nearby, Morel Janvier, a street vendor in the downtown area who sells mobile phones and other electronic gadgets, said the security and economic situation are getting worse by the day.
“People don’t have money to buy,” said Janvier, as armed police wearing balaclavas passed by.
Haiti’s economy is expected to grow by just 0.8 percent in 2022, after a three- year downturn that plunged the country into a long recession, said Emile.
“Gang violence has caused the country’s economic situation to worsen,” he said.
“When gangs force people to pay sums of money to let them pass with their goods, it means consumers pay more money for products.”
For business owner Joseph, his hair salon and bar will remain shut until security improves.
“It seems like some evil god has cast a spell on our country. Why do we always have to suffer such misfortunes?” he said.
Jurgen Klopp urged Liverpool to give one last push for the quadruple after they beat Chelsea on penalties in the FA Cup final to keep their history bid alive.
Klopp’s side won 6- 5 in the shootout following an enthralling 0- 0 draw after extra time at Wembley on Saturday.
Kostas Tsimikas scored the decisive penalty after Alisson Becker saved Mason Mount’s effort, sparking wild celebrations from Liverpool boss Klopp and his players.
Having already beaten Chelsea on penalties in the League Cup final in February, Liverpool remain in contention to become the first English team to win all four major trophies in a single season.
The Reds face Real Madrid in the Champions League final in Paris on May 28 and still have an outside chance of catching Premier League leaders Manchester City.
Liverpool are three points behind City with two games left for both teams.
City travel to West Ham on Sunday before Liverpool return to action at Southampton on Tuesday and Klopp wants his squad to drag a final effort from their weary limbs in what will be their 61st game of a marathon season.
“The quadruple, it’s outstanding that we can talk about it, it’s crazy,” Klopp said.
“But we play Tuesday against Southampton and we have no clue who can play. I think we will have to make a few changes.
“It will be incredibly tough. The quadruple is on if you like, but also off as well. City are three points ahead and have a better goal difference. If they win at West Ham it’s hard.”
The quadruple chase might have been dented after Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk were unable to finish the final due to injuries.
Klopp doesn’t expect them to be long- term absentees, but is unsure if they will face Southampton.
“I think they will both be fine, for Tuesday we will see. We will train on Sunday and if they are available I will take it,” he said.
‘ Absolutely incredible’
Liverpool’s first FA Cup triumph since 2006 was especially meaningful for Klopp, who saluted his players for matching Chelsea blow for blow after such a gruelling campaign.
“My team knows exactly what I think of them. This is a trophy for the whole club. It’s massive, it means the world,” Klopp said.
“You saw with the performance what it means to the players. It’s massive.
It’s game number 60 in a very intense season and pulling out a performance like this is absolutely incredible.”
Klopp also revealed that Liverpool’s penalty success was in part due to their work with a company who specialise in neuro science.
“The penalties are a lottery but we did it again. We work with a neuro company, they got in contact a few years ago,” Klopp said.
“They said we can train penalty shooting. I said that sounds interesting, come over. We met, we worked together. This trophy is for them, like the League Cup.”
It was another harsh Wembley defeat for Chelsea, who, just as they did in the League Cup final, pushed Liverpool to the brink without delivering the knockout blow.
Blues boss Thomas Tuchel admitted it will be hard to lift his players in time for their final two games against Leicester and Watford next week as they try to clinch third place in the Premier League.
“The season is not finished. We have goals to reach in the Premier League. It will be harder now but not impossible,” he said.
Tuchel took heart from drawing four times with a team of Liverpool’s quality.
But he knows closing the gap will be tough given the uncertainty caused by Chelsea’s change of ownership after Roman Abramovich sold up to Todd Boehly’s consortium.
“We showed we can compete with them, but the difference is Liverpool they can produce these kind of performances more often and we struggle to do that,” he said.
“This is where the gap is. The sanctions didn’t make it easier to close it, players are leaving.”
Liverpool spot kick hero Alisson said the victory would give them a huge confidence boost as they chase a historic quadruple.
“It was a shame we didn’t score during normal time, but it was a proper fight after in extra time, anything could happen,” he told the BBC.
“We kept a clean sheet, it went to penalties and after the boys were unbelievable with scoring the goals and then I just needed to save the last one. I am so happy.”
He added, “That is part of the ‘ mentality monsters’ as well, going to extra time and keeping the high level, performing well.
“It gives us even more confidence to keep on going for the Premier League and also the Champions League final.”
Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson said it felt “pretty special” for Liverpool to win the FA Cup for the first time since 2006.
“We’re here to lift trophies, we work so hard all season,” he said. “To come here and get over the line means a lot to everyone. The fans deserve it, the whole club.”
But he said the players could not rest on their laurels.
“We’ve got to recover quickly, another big game on Tuesday against Southampton, we have to be ready for that,” he said.
“And then Wolves at the weekend to finish the Premier League season off and then the Champions League final.”