Haiti anti-gang force will miss staffing goal

A United Nations-backed armed force helping Haitian police fight gangs will not be fully staffed by October as planned, its spokesperson said Tuesday.

The Gang Suppression Force had been expected to build up between April and October to 5,500 uniformed personnel and 50 civilian staff. Spokesperson Igor Rugwiza told Radio Magik 9 in Port-au-Prince that the force continued to receive new troops, but said the target could not be met in such a short time because of logistical constraints.

Rugwiza declined to say how many troops were already deployed, citing operational reasons. He said the delay would not stop personnel already in Haiti from doing their work.

He said force members were in Tabarre, where Haiti's international airport is located; Cite Soleil; downtown Port-au-Prince; and the Artibonite department north of the capital.

"With the personnel already on the ground, we continue to expand our deployment zone and occupy a little more territory," Rugwiza said.

Haitian human rights advocate Pierre Esperance gave a different assessment, saying the force was not yet operational and that criminals continued to operate. He criticised the slow pace of deployment and said blocked roads controlled by gangs could make elections impossible.

Haiti is preparing to hold its first presidential and legislative elections since 2016, along with a constitutional referendum, on December 13.

The Gang Suppression Force replaced the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, which was seen as under-equipped and under-funded. It was intended to be more robust, but as of July had fewer than 1,000 personnel from Chad, Mongolia, Jamaica, Guatemala, El Salvador and Sri Lanka.