A step in the right direction, but no more. Once again, the international community has shown its reluctance to come to the aid of Haitians, one of the poorest and most unstable countries on the planet.
On Friday July 15, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution from the United States and Mexico calling on member states to ban the transfer of small arms to gangs operating in the country. But he did not go so far as to decide on an embargo, as China insisted.
The text would “could have been better”
Specifically, the text “calls on Member States to prohibit the transfer of small arms and light weapons and ammunition to non-state actors engaged in or supporting gang violence, criminal activity or human rights abuses in Haiti”. China, which had called for the imposition of an embargo on small arms aimed at gangs in Haiti, estimated that “this resolution was a warning” for these last ones. Individual sanctions could be taken against them within 90 days, Chinese Ambassador to the UN Zhang Jun warned after the vote. The text would “could have been better”he added, considering however that it was a question “a good step in the right direction”.
A terrible situation
Throughout the week, Beijing had been on the offensive to toughen the text proposed by the United States and Mexico, deemed too soft as Haiti sinks into crisis. China thus judged on Thursday that“An arms embargo against criminal gangs was the minimum the Council should do in response to a dire situation”.
At least 234 people were killed or injured between July 8 and July 12, victims of gang violence raging in Cité Soleil, the most disadvantaged commune in the agglomeration of Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. , the UN announced on Saturday.
“Most of the victims are not directly related to the gangs but were targeted by gang members and we also received new information on sexual violence”writes the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, which recorded 934 murders, 684 injuries and 680 kidnappings over the period from January to the end of June 2022.
A link with Taiwan?
On the Haitian file, Beijing has become an increasingly important player in the UN in recent years. The reason ? A Chinese desire for reprisals, assure Western diplomats, after the recognition of Taiwan by Port-au-Prince. Beijing, for its part, denies establishing any link between the two subjects.
In addition to the absence of an arms embargo, China has also failed to impose the launch of consultations on the dispatch of a regional police force to Haiti in order to pacify the country. The resolution is limited to asking Antonio Guterres to study with countries in the region “possible options” to strengthen security in Haiti, with a report to be submitted on October 15.