Investigations
Surge In Gang Violence Claims 131 Young Lives In Haiti
A staggering 131 children have been killed or injured in Haiti in the first six months of 2024, a 47% increase from the previous year, according to analysis of UN data by Save the Children. The devastating toll is a result of warring gangs, with children caught in the crossfire of machine gun assaults, targeted for suspected affiliations, or lynched by the public.
Diaspora Watch gathered that most of the children were hit by stray bullets when armed gangs launched machine gun assaults on their neighborhoods or battled with other armed groups and the police in the streets. A small but growing number of those children have been actively targeted out of suspicions they supported a local self-defense group, rival gang, or the police. Others were lynched by the public after being accused of committing minor offenses.
“We are at a loss for words when it comes to the unimaginable suffering children in Haiti are enduring. Entire neighborhoods have been burned, kidnappings and sexual assaults are rampant, and children are being directly targeted or caught in the crossfire,” said Chantal Sylvie Imbeault, Save the Children’s country director for Haiti.
Armed gangs control about 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and have joined forces to oust acting prime minister Ariel Henry, laying siege to the international airport and torching police stations and hospitals. Haiti’s new acting leader, Garry Conille, took office in June after being appointed by a transitional council and has been trying to regain control, with 400 Kenyan police officers dispatched to the Caribbean country to help restore order.
However, analysts say the taskforce will need reinforcements to take on the gangs, and local groups have voiced concerns that their ranks are swelling with children who are being recruited to kidnap, loot, and murder. Haiti’s deep and rampant poverty makes it easy to convince children to take up arms or work as informants, say civil society groups. With one in two children regularly going hungry and schools often closed, the offer of regular food can be sufficient.
“There’s a lot of young boys, and a lot of girls too, that are joining the gangs for security, but also because they don’t have any opportunities,” said Emmline Toussaint, from the Bureau de Nutrition et Développement (BND), which offers school meals to try to keep children in education and off the streets, where they are more likely to be recruited into taking up arms.
Save the Children released a statement in June warning that it believed more children would be at risk of being killed or seriously injured when international security forces were deployed to Haiti. Observers have voiced concerns that Kenyan officers with a chequered human rights record at home could be heavy-handed when trying to retake control of the country from the gangs, and Save the Children said it had not seen evidence that the security forces had measures in place to protect the children that live in gang-controlled slums.
“We still have serious concerns about the integration of child protection measures by the Multinational Security Support Mission. With armed groups in Haiti actively recruiting children, their safety cannot be an afterthought,” Imbeault said.
The Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, and Chad have offered to send forces to Haiti to bolster the initial Kenyan deployment, but the security mission lacks the required international funding.
ExxonMobil Guyana has announced plans to increase oil production from its Stabroek block by 18,000 barrels per day (bpd). The capacity of the Unity floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel will increase from 252,000 bpd to 270,000 bpd, pending approval from local authorities. ExxonMobil Guyana currently produces 665,000 bpd, and future developments include the Hammerhead project, which aims to produce 120,000-180,000 bpd. The company’s investment is set to further strengthen Guyana’s economy as it grows into a major oil producer.
In political developments, President Irfaan Ali has announced several benefits ahead of Guyana’s upcoming elections. The new incentives include free college tuition and a one-time cash handout of nearly $1,000 per household, benefiting 264,000 families. The minimum wage will also increase from $350 to $500 starting next year, aimed at reducing the cost of living for Guyanese citizens.
Guyana’s economy, bolstered by its growing oil sector, saw a remarkable 60% GDP growth in 2022, the highest in the world, according to the IMF. To further utilize oil revenues, the government is launching various infrastructure projects, including hospitals, schools, and a $1.9 billion gas-to-energy initiative.
At the same time, the 115th COTED meeting on agriculture in CARICOM is tackling challenges like climate change and underdeveloped agricultural value chains, working towards the 25 by 2025 Food Security Initiative.
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Diaspora
Former Eritrean Finance Minister And President’s Fierce Critic, Berhane Abrehe, Dies In Prison
Berhane Abrehe, a former Eritrean finance minister and vocal critic of President Isaias Afwerki, has died in prison, his family confirmed. The 79-yearold was Eritrea’s longest-serving finance minister before his removal in 2012 due to clashes with the president. He was later jailed in 2018 for publishing a book that described President Afwerki as a “dictator” who needed to resign.
Abrehe’s family has not been informed of the circumstances surrounding his death, and his body has not been released. The government rarely confirms the deaths of senior officials in custody or shares information on their burial sites.
Abrehe’s fall-out with President Afwerki began during his 12-year tenure as finance minister, where he advocated for transparency in the country’s budget. After his removal, he wrote a book challenging the president’s rule and calling for his resignation.
Eritrea has been criticized for its human rights record, including torture, forced disappearance, and imprisonment of tens of thousands of people in inhumane conditions. The UN and human rights groups have accused the government of gross human rights violations.
Abrehe’s death highlights the country’s poor human rights record and the risks faced by those who dare to criticize the government.
Born in Eritrea in 1945, Abrehe earned an MA degree in economics from a US university before joining the struggle for independence from Ethiopia. He is the father of four children.
His family, including his wife and son, have also faced persecution. His wife was imprisoned for a year, and his son, Efrem, fled the country and now lives in the US.
Efrem previously described his family’s ordeal to the BBC, saying, “I am living with a dim glimmer of hope that my father, who has health issues, [will be out of prison one day]. How can people be kidnapped by a government and disappear for years? Why do people show such cruelty on a fellow human like this?”
Abrehe’s death is a stark reminder of the dangers faced by those who speak out against the Eritrean government.
The Italian coast guard has confirmed that the body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch is among those recovered from the wreckage of a superyacht that sank off the coast of Sicily on Monday.
Lynch, who was recently acquitted of fraud charges, was celebrating with his family and legal team when the tragedy occurred. One woman, believed to be his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, remains missing.
The 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, The Bayesian, went down in a storm after being struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout, while moored about a kilometer (half a mile) offshore. Civil protection officials believe the ship sank quickly after being hit.
Five others were recovered by rescue crews, and 15 of the 22 people on board survived by escaping in a lifeboat, including a mother who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over the waves to save her. They were rescued by the sailboat Sir Robert Baden Powell.
The manufacturer of the superyacht, The Italian Sea Group, has said that superyachts like The Bayesian are “designed to be unsinkable.” CEO Giovanni Costantino noted that sailing ships require “a greater competence” to be guided compared with motor boats and suggested that the most likely cause of the sinking was taking in water.
Investigators are now looking into why The Bayesian sank while a nearby sailboat remained largely unscathed. A criminal investigation has been opened, with the Termini Imerese Public Prosecutor’s Office collecting evidence, but no formal suspects have been identified.
The Bayesian was built in 2008 by Italian shipyard Perini Navi. The incident occurred as the family and legal team were celebrating Lynch’s recent acquittal on fraud charges in the United States.
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