More Kenyan police arrive in Haiti with UN-backed mission to fight violent gangs

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Another 200 police officers from Kenya arrived Tuesday in Haiti for a U.N.-backed mission led by the East African country to battle violent gangs that have taken over parts of the troubled Caribbean country.

The officers arrived nearly a month after the first contingent of 200 landed in the capital of Port-au-Prince, where gangs control at least 80% of the city.

Last week the United Nations Security Council strongly condemned “the extreme levels of armed violence” in Haiti that are undermining security in the country and the region.

Authorities have declined to provide details on the Kenyans’ assignments, citing security concerns. Associated Press journalists have seen them on patrol in areas near the main international airport, which reopened in May after a surge in gang violence forced it to close for nearly three months.

“We are happy to work side-by-side with the Kenyans,” Normil Rameau, the new chief of Haiti’s National Police, said shortly after they arrived. “In the name of the government, we give them a warm welcome.”

More Kenyans are expected to arrive in coming weeks and months and will be joined by police and soldiers from the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Chad and Jamaica for a total of 2,500 personnel. They will be deployed in phases at a cost of some $600 million a year, according to the U.N. Security Council.

The Kenyan-led mission is meant to bolster Haiti’s National Police, which remains understaffed and underfunded, with only about 10,000 officers active at a time in a country of more than 11 million people.

The mission also aims to quell gangs accused of killing more than 4,450 people last year and injuring another 1,668, according to the U.N, more than double compared with the previous year. More than 1,500 people were killed or injured in the first three months of this year.

While some Haitians have welcomed the Kenyans’ arrival, others remain wary.

“The fear of the Haitians is that this mission, as has occurred in the past … will only achieve a temporary reduction in violence,” said Diego Da Rin, with the International Crisis Group, who was recently in Haiti. Da Rin noted that certain politicians and business owners have long been tied to gangs, and warned the crisis will continue “as long as the problems of impunity and corruption are not addressed.”

Another concern is that Kenyan police have faced years of allegations of abuses in their country, including extrajudicial killings. Their behavior drew renewed scrutiny when they opened fire on protesters in recent weeks amid ongoing turmoil that has killed dozens of people.

In addition, a previous intervention in Haiti — the U.N.’s 2004-2017 peacekeeping mission — was marred by allegations of sexual assault and the introduction of cholera, which killed nearly 10,000 people.

Jean-Marc Etienne, 49, lost his home a year ago when gangs invaded his neighborhood, forcing him to flee like many others. He said he hasn’t seen Kenyans on patrol since the first contingent arrived in June.

“Security has not improved,” he said as he pushed a wheelbarrow of sugarcane near the airport. “On top of that, kidnappings have started again.” He and his family have been living in a friend’s yard under a tarp, exposed to sweltering heat and heavy rains.

Gangs have left more than half a million Haitian homeless in recent years.

“There’s no action being taken yet,” said Mario Jean-Baptiste, 39, as he walked past the airport and peered around, trying to glimpse the Kenyans. “That’s what the Haitian people are counting on.”

He said Haitians are still unable to move freely about Port-au-Prince and that many don’t have a place to sleep or anything to eat: “They’re living like dogs.”

Violence worsened earlier this year when gangs launched coordinated attacks in late February. They opened fire on the main international airport, stormed more than two dozen police stations and broke into Haiti’s two biggest prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates.

The attacks eventually led to the resignation of former Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who had urgently requested the deployment of foreign forces in late 2022. His resignation in late April was followed by the appointment of a transitional presidential council and a new prime minister, Garry Conille.

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Coto reported from San Juan, Puerto Rico.