Ariel Henry resigns as Haiti’s premier amid wave of violence

Prince Port. Ariel Henry resigned this Thursday as prime minister of Haiti, clearing the way for a new government to be formed in the Caribbean country, devastated by gang violence that has killed or injured more than 2,500 people between January and March.

Henry presented his resignation in a letter signed in Los Angeles, dated April 24, and published this Thursday by his office, the same day that a council in charge of choosing a new prime minister and cabinet for Haiti was to be sworn in.

The council would be installed more than a month after Caribbean leaders announced its creation following an emergency meeting to address Haiti’s growing crisis. Henry had promised to resign once the council was installed and a new prime minister selected.

The council, made up of nine members, seven of whom have the right to vote, is also expected to help establish the program for a new cabinet. He will also appoint a provisional electoral commission, a prerequisite for holding elections, and establish a national security council.

The council’s non-renewable term expires on February 7, 2026, when a new president is scheduled to be sworn in.

The gangs launched coordinated attacks beginning on February 29 in Port-au-Prince, the country’s capital, and surrounding areas, burning police stations and hospitals, opening fire on the main international airport, which has been closed since March, and storming the two largest prisons in Haiti, releasing more than four thousand prisoners. Gangs have also blocked passage to the country’s largest port.

The attack began when Henri was in Kenya, on an official visit to request the deployment of a UN-backed police force from that East African country. Henri is currently prohibited from returning to Haiti.

“Port-au-Prince is currently almost completely isolated due to air, sea and land blockades,” Catherine Russell, director of the United Nations Children’s Fund, said earlier this week.

Members of the Presidential Council of Haiti take the oath

The members of the Presidential Transition Council of Haiti (CPT) took the oath this Friday at the National Palace, from where the route will be drawn to politically reorganize the Caribbean country.

Before a limited audience Smith Augustine; Louis Gerald Gilles; Fritz, Alphonse Jean; Edgard Leblanc Jr.; Laurent Saint-Cyr; Emmanuel Vertilaire, Leslie Voltaire, Régine Abraham and Frinel Joseph sealed their commitment to the nation.

At the same time, former Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry officially presented his resignation and appointed Michel Patrick Boisvert as interim prime minister by decree pending the formation of another government by the CPT, the newspaper said. The Nouvelliste.

In previous days, the gang coalition attacked the National Palace with the argument that the CPT was created in Jamaica under the sponsorship of the Caribbean Community, and the watchful eye of the United States government.

The bandits consider that several sectors were left out of that body, which only has seven political decision-makers and two observers from civil society.
In his opinion, the CPT should have been formed in Haiti and not outside its borders.

Once this transitional government is established, a multinational force led by Kenya will be able to arrive in Port-au-Prince, which, together with the PNH, will combat the gangs in the capital, now 80 percent controlled by criminals.