Haiti’s Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, has agreed to resign from his office amid the breakdown of law and order occasioned by widespread violence by armed gangs.
“The government that I lead will withdraw immediately after the installation of this council,” Mr Henry said in a video posted on social media on Tuesday. Mr Henry, who has been barred from entering the country by armed gangs, lamented the breakdown of law and order in the country as armed gangs overrun it.
“It hurts us and it revolts us to see all these people dying. The government that I lead cannot remain insensitive to this situation,” he said. This month, Mr Henery visited Kenya to mobilise a multinational force led by the East African nation, to combat Haiti’s armed gangs. He has remained stranded in Puerto Rico as armed gangs overrun the country blocking him from returning into the country.
Mr Henry’s resignation comes alongside regional talks over participation in an international force, which he had requested to help police fight the gangs. He assumed power as interim leader of the Caribbean country in July 2021 following the assassination of former President Jovenel Moïse.
The Haiti leader has repeatedly postponed elections on claims that security must be restored, sparking rebellion from Haitians.
Since armed gangs took over the streets in Haiti, they have attacked prisons, freed inmates, and attacked police stations and airports.
However, Haiti declared a state of emergency early this month as the attack and clashes damaged communications.
It also led to two prison breaks after Jimmy Cherizier, a leader of an alliance of armed groups, said they would unite and overthrow Mr Henry.
The gang leader, Mr Cherizier had threatened to go after hotel owners hiding politicians or collaborating with Henry.
He demanded that the country’s next leader be chosen by the people and live in Haiti, alongside their families.
“We’re not in a peaceful revolution. We are making a bloody revolution in the country because this system is an apartheid system, a wicked system,” Mr Cherizier said.
Mr Henry, who many Haitians consider corrupt, had repeatedly postponed elections, saying security must first be restored.
He’s set to be replaced by a presidential council that will have two observers and seven voting members, including representatives from several political coalitions, the business sector, civil society and one religious leader.
The council has been mandated to quickly appoint an interim prime minister; anyone who intends to run in Haiti’s next elections will not be able to participate.
The Caribbean country has lacked elected representatives since early 2023 and its next elections will be the first since 2016.
