February 7, traditionally Haiti’s Presidential Inauguration Day, was filled with violent protests and gang attacks across the small Caribbean country, including in the town of Gros Morne, home of Maryknoll Lay Missioners in Haiti.
The following article was published in the March-April 2024 issue of NewsNotes.
Thousands of frustrated Haitians took to the streets across the country on Feb. 7, to demand that de facto Prime Minister Ariel Henry step down, as required by law on what should have been Haiti’s Presidential Inauguration Day. But there have been no elections since the assassination of Jovenel Moïse in July 2021 and violent gangs, often armed with U.S. made weapons, continue to terrorize the people with murders, kidnappings, and sexual assaults.
Eight U.S. senators issued a statement on Feb. 7, calling for the de facto government of Ariel Henry to take steps to hold elections. On Feb. 29, there were news reports stating that Prime Minister Henry has agreed to hold general elections in Haiti by mid-2025.
Armed gangs took advantage of the heightened tension on Feb. 7 to invade the town of Gros Morne, where Maryknoll lay missioners live four hours north of the capitol city of Port-au-Prince.
Maryknoll lay missioner Sami Scott and her co-workers operate a henhouse project in Gros-Morne. The ministry provides food security and employment for many of her neighbors and is a model for other communities to follow.
The gang that attacked Gros Morne was heavily armed, shooting up the entire town. Our partners report that there were injuries but no deaths. The community’s central market shut down and people fled to their homes. As of Feb. 16, schools and the market remain closed, taking away the community’s sources of education, food and income. The main road north out of town is also blocked.
So far the gangs have not returned after their initial incursion, but the entire community is on edge, staying in their homes as much as possible. The pervasive fear and lack of mobility makes it difficult for the community to sustain crucial agricultural and economic development work.
Haiti does not produce arms or ammunition. Haiti’s armed groups obtain weapons illegally from the United States. According to a 2023 United Nations report, networks of criminals source guns in states with loose gun laws, and ship them to Florida, where gangs conceal and ship them to Haiti.
“In the five years I have served in Haiti, the number of guns in the hands of criminals has increased dramatically, especially since 2021,” said Sami Scott. “These are all coming into the country illegally. They are all sourced in the U.S. and trafficked here by various routes.”
“Everyone I know has been impacted by the gangs,” Scott said. “Either they or someone in their family has been robbed, chased off their land or out of their homes, kidnapped, or killed. Haiti cannot know peace or have a chance to prosper until the illegal trafficking of arms is stopped and the gangs that have them are controlled. Any advancement, including elections, education, food security, reforestation, jobs creation, or infrastructure improvements cannot happen until there is security. The United States must stop being complicit in the insecurity of Haiti and the destruction it has caused. The U.S. can stop the illegal trafficking of arms from the U.S. to Haiti. To let it continue is a crime against humanity.”
The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns is working with partners in Washington, DC, to advocate for laws and regulations that would stop the flow of weapons into the Caribbean. Together with the Quixote Center, Sisters of Mercy, and Religious Sisters of Jesus and Mary, we have met with Congressional offices and the Department of Homeland Security to press for stronger and more coordinated action.
An additional root cause of weapons proliferation in Latin American and the Caribbean was a change under the Trump Administration in oversight over export licenses of small arms shipments from the State Department to the Commerce Department, creating fewer registration requirements, less oversight, and more exemptions.
According to Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas, the change led to a 30% annual increase in arms exports, and in Latin America and the Caribbean, an 82% increase in handgun exports. This is why Rep. Castro introduced the ARMAS Act (HR 6618) last December, to address this issue of export licenses, moving authority back to the State Department and requiring additional oversight and reporting. The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns has spoken with the offices of Senators Cardin, Van Hollen, and Murphy about developing a Senate version of the bill, with the goal of its passage into law in 2024.
Faith in action
Ask your Congressional Representative to support the ARMAS Act, to rebuild U.S. oversight of small arms shipments to stop the flow the guns from the United States to Haiti. https://quixote.org/action#/13
Photo of weapons surrendered to the UN on Nov 9, 2005 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. UN Photo/Sophia Paris.