Hindustan Times (Ranchi)

Unicef head says Haiti situation nears chaos of ‘Mad Max’

- Agence France-Presse

The UN children’s agency chief offered a dire assessment on Sunday of the chaotic situation in Haiti, saying it was “almost like a scene out of ‘Mad Max’,” which depicted a violent and lawless post-apocalypti­c future.

“Haiti is a horrific situation,” Unicef executive director Catherine Russell told CBS talk show “Face the Nation”.

“Many, many people there are suffering from serious hunger and malnutriti­on and we’re not able to get enough aid to them,” with gangs controllin­g large parts of capital Port-auPrince as well as key roads leading elsewhere. The situation is “the worst that anyone has seen in decades”, she said. “It’s almost like a scene out of ‘Mad Max’. That’s what it seems like,” Russell said of the 1979 film.

Haiti, already hit by drought, natural disasters and a weak government, has seen “the nearcollap­se of basic services”, a recent United Nations report warned.

That has left millions vulnerable as they await the formation of a transition­al governing council to take power after unpopular Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced his resignatio­n Monday under pressure.

The challenges facing foreign aid workers — some of whom have been attacked or kidnapped for ransom — were underlined on Saturday when gangs looted a Unicef shipment intended to provide relief for suffering mothers and children.

“Today, Unicef’s container, containing crucial supplies for maternal, neonatal and child health, was looted at Port-auPrince’s main port,” the agency’s Haitian account posted Saturday on X.

“This incident occurred at a critical moment when children needed them the most.”

Haiti has been convulsed for two weeks by a gang uprising, as brutal and well-armed groups — their numbers swollen after an attack on two prisons freed thousands of inmates — sought to topple Henry.

Meantime, efforts are continuing to organise a Kenyan-led security mission to back up the Caribbean island’s overwhelme­d police force.

 ?? AP ?? People line up outside a bank that had been closed for several days due to the violence, in capital Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on March 13.
AP People line up outside a bank that had been closed for several days due to the violence, in capital Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on March 13.

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