Protesters in Haiti demand protection against gangs

Bad weather did not stop some diehard protesters who took to the streets of Haiti's capital on Wednesday to demand security against gangs. They burned tires, blocking roads, and putting up signs.

The protest was initially expected to draw thousands in Port-au-Prince, but the main event was canceled due to heavy rain. Some police officers holding automatic firearms were positioned near the roadblocks but did not intervene. Two weeks ago, a protest in the same neighborhood gathered thousands, and the police had to use tear gas and smoke grenades to prevent protesters from marching all the way to the office of Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, whom the council appointed as prime minister in November.

Discontent and anger are spreading as gangs that already control 85% of Port-au-Prince pillage once-peaceful communities. Haiti’s government announced Monday that it approved what it called a “war budget” of $275,000 aimed at alleviating the country’s crisis as gang violence surges.

Nearly 40% of the money will go toward Haiti’s police and military “to fight the armed groups that threaten national stability,” while nearly 20% will go to fortify the border the country shares with the Dominican Republic, according to the statement by the Haiti transitional presidential council. Another 16% will go to social programs, including those focused on education, health, and humanitarian assistance.

The council said the special budget reflects the state’s commitment to decisively target the growing insecurity. Recent gang Violence has forced more than 60,000 people to flee their homes in one month alone, according to the U.N.’s International Organization for Migration. Overall, from Jan. 1 to March 27, more than 1,500 people have been reported killed in Haiti, and 572 others injured, the U.N. mission said. Gang violence has also left more than 1 million people homeless in recent years, according to the U.N.