Last spring was supposed to mark a turning point for the country, with the arrival of a UN-backed and largely Kenyan-staffed security support mission, and the move to a transitional government supposed to pave the way for elections next year – more than a decade after the last polls.
Amid all this, the United States announced on Thursday that it is scrapping temporary protection from deportation for half a million Haitians in the US, meaning that they could be removed by August.
That’s hardly a surprise given the vile lies about Haitian migrants spread by President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance in last year’s election.
The security mission has less than half the personnel initially envisaged, has failed to make an impact, and now Mr Trump has frozen US funding for it.
A new report by the International Crisis Group warns that elections cannot be held safely under current circumstances, and that pressing ahead with them might fuel further violence by gangs attempting to push their cronies into power.
