Guterres urges stronger UN role in police mission to Haiti

Amid spiralling gang violence in Haiti, the United Nations should provide logistical and financial help to the multinational police mission there, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, dismissing calls for immediately deploying peacekeepers.

In a letter to the Security Council, seen by AFP on Wednesday, the UN chief said that "at this stage, transitioning to a UN peacekeeping operation is not assessed as a feasible option."

"Such transition could be considered once significant progress has been made in substantially reducing gang territorial control," he added, with UN officials stressing that the fight against gangs and "enforcement" of peace are not the role of peacekeepers.

The small, poor Caribbean country has been suffering a political and security crisis for decades. But over the past year, violence by armed gangs has soared, forcing Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign.

Violence claimed more than 5,600 lives last year, with authorities also recording 1,500 kidnappings and thousands of rapes, according to the UN.

A Kenyan-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), authorized by the Security Council in 2023, began deploying to Haiti last summer and now has about 1,000 police officers from six countries -- far short of the expected 2,500.

In most of Port-au-Prince, gangs are "acting as de facto authorities," Guterres said in the letter.

"Violence is likely to escalate considerably during the upcoming electoral period, as gang leaders seek to rebrand themselves as political actors to gain immunity and legitimacy," he warned.

Haitian transitional authorities requested several months ago that the police support mission be converted into a full-fledged UN peacekeeping operation.

The Security Council, failing to reach consensus on the issue, asked Guterres to explore the possibility.

"When fully deployed and adequately resourced, the MSS represents the most viable solution to meet the medium-term goal of reducing gang territorial control," Guterres said in his letter.

However, considering the limited "operational effectiveness" of the under-equipped and under-funded MSS, Guterres recommended strengthening the support role of the UN.

He proposed a "UN Support Office" that would handle all logistical issues for the mission, such as accommodations, food and transportation, funded directly from the UN peacekeeping budget.

Simultaneously, the multinational mission "would also need to be scaled up in numbers and strengthened with additional military-grade capabilities and lethal equipment provided bilaterally by member states to address current gaps," he said.

Guterres noted that many donated armoured vehicles are "ill-suited for the urban environment of Port-au-Prince," with half out of service due to lack of spare parts.

He also called for strengthening the UN political mission in Haiti, such as creating a unit to support prosecutors or a program to help reintegrate former gang members back into society.

"Each new wave of criminal attacks against Haiti's communities and institutions is a distressing sign that time is running out," Guterres said. "We must act quickly."