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Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
U.N. extends political mission in Haiti, but it will be for less than a year
The United Nations Security Council on Monday extended the mandate of its political mission in Haiti, agreeing that the office remains critical in supporting progress on the security and political front in the crisis-wracked country. But unlike in the past when the U.N. Integrated Office in Haiti has received 12-month extensions, Monday's unanimous decision by council members backed only six-and-a-half months. The resolution extending the mission's new mandate until Jan. 31, 2026, was written by the United States and Panama. The resolution's language reaffirms support for sanctions against those fueling the country's gang crisis, while reaffirming U.N. member nations' commitment to supporting 'Haitian-owned and Haitian-led solution' to dealing with the causes of the crises. Members also expressed their intentions, 'without delay,' to consider recommendations made by Secretary-General António Guterres to help reduce gangs' territorial control. In February, Guterres nixed deploying blue-helmet peacekeepers to Haiti, saying there is no peace to keep, and instead offered to bolster the current Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission with funds from the U.N. peacekeeping budget. Five months after presenting the council with a plan, including establishing a U.N. support office to provide logistical and operational support to the mission and bolstering intelligence capabilities, Guterres has yet to receive guidance from the council, whose members on Monday acknowledged the worsening situation in Haiti. 'The technical extension of this mandate should not make us forget the urgent need for council action to bolster support for security in Haiti,' France's permanent representative, Jérôme Bonnafont, said. The ongoing efforts by the Kenya-led mission, he added, 'must be accompanied by a clear framework' provided by the U.N. 'The U.N. must bring strategic and operational expertise to the fore, as well as crucial logistic support. Almost five months after the Secretary General having issued these recommendations, there is an urgent need to deal with the humanitarian and security situation,' Bonnafont said. The U.N. mission's short mandate reflects several realities facing the global agency and Haiti, where the worsening gang violence is driving hunger and displacements and is also making it increasingly difficult for U.N. staff to operate. Forced to work in a more hostile environment it was first established in 2019, the mission faces limited options for evacuations due to the ongoing suspension of international commercial flights, and mobility, because of gangs' ongoing gang encirclement of Port-au-Prince. The mission, which was headed by María Isabel Salvador before she was replaced this month by Carlos G. Ruiz Massieu of Mexico, is down to a skeleton team of 17 staffers who work from home most days. Ahead of a meeting earlier this month, Guterres informed the security council that the U.N. political mission is undergoing a review with the objective of becoming smaller and more focused. The overhaul comes as the U.N. itself, faces a major financial crisis fueled in large part by U.S. foreign aid cuts under President Donald Trump. The United States, the largest donor to the U.N., is in arrears on its payments to peacekeeping. Trump, having already gutted some humanitarian assistance, is proposing that Congress rescind billions in additional U.N. funding. The moves, if they go through, are bound to have a detrimental effect on Haiti, where efforts to provide a robust response to the gang violence continue to lack clarity. Panama's permanent representative to the security council, Eloy Alfaro de Alba, said the agency's continued foot dragging on providing solutions was not only 'an exercise of protracted procrastination,' but 'is like the chronicle of a death foretold written by the much hailed Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez. 'We should take action now. The Haitian people cannot and should not wait any longer,' he said, warning that waiting until September when the Kenya force's mandate comes up for renewal 'will be too late.' The ill-equipped and under-resourced mission, though authorized by the Security Council, is not a formal U.N. peacekeeping operation and has had to rely on voluntary funds. Most of that money has came from the United States, which under the Biden administration gave more than $629 million. The Trump administration has said it can't continue the same level of financial support. Monday's meeting took place a day before the mandate of the U.N.'s Haiti office is set to expire on Tuesday, and as Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé visited Washington, where he met with Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. The State Department said the two men discussed ongoing efforts to restore security and political stability. 'Landau reiterated that Haiti's security crisis poses a threat to our regional and national security,' the statement said. 'Both officials emphasized the importance of restoring constitutional order and reinforcing the capacity of Haiti's democratic institutions. The Deputy expressed the United States' support for the Multinational Security Support mission, but emphasized the need for greater burden-sharing.' In recent months, Fils-Aimé has turned to foreign contractors and explosive drones to help in the fight against criminal gangs, most notably a company connected to Erik Prince, the former head of Blackwater, the private U.S. military contractor. The Trump administration is currently working on a new Haiti policy. However, Dorothy Shea, the U.S.'s acting chargé d'affaires at the U.N., provided no hint as to the direction the administration wants to take. She said the U.S. continues to work closely with those invested in Haiti security and. emphasized the administration's call for other donors to 'step up and contribute' more. 'We remain seized with the security crisis in Haiti, especially the abhorrent gang violence and rampant corruption,' she said.
Miami Herald
13-06-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Miami cargo carrier helps Haiti test new airport as domestic service resumes
Miami-based cargo carrier IBC Airways conducted a test flight Thursday to Haiti's southern coast, landing at the Antoine Simon International Airport in the southwestern port city of Les Cayes. The flight coincided with the first regular commercial domestic service into Port-au-Prince in seven months and marked the first time a U.S.-based carrier other than a private aircraft, charter or foreign registered drug running aircraft, touched down in the southern city in recent memory. In May, Haiti's transitional council inaugurated a newly renovated Les Cayes airport after extending its runway from 1,300 meters in length to 1,800 meters with a width of 25 meters in order to accommodate certain international cargo and commercial flights. The moment was significant in that it paved the way for Thursday's IBC Airways flight and possibly commercial air service from neighboring countries in the region. Haiti's has been largely isolated from the world due to its escalating gang violence, which has not only prompted countries like Canada and the United States to place it under its highest travel warning, but also made flying into Port-au-Prince dangerous. In a rare move, the government recently agreed to provide the additional insurance costs, worth of about $11 million, in order for local carrier Sunrise Airways can resume domestic flights. On Thursday, the Haitian-owned airline resumed domestic commercial service into Port-au-Prince. Some 19 passengers landed at Guy Malary terminal in the capital after boarding the flight in the northern port city of Cap-Haïtien. The airline also plans to operate flights between Port-au-Prince and Jacmel in the Southeast, and Jeremie in the Grand'Anse. READ MORE: Why airlines see Haiti in the same 'war-risk' level as areas where pilots dodge missiles For Haiti, which has some of the highest taxes on international air travel, the lack of regular commercial and cargo fights from the U.S. has only added to the economic hardship. A newly opened international route would not only be a chance to pump life into parts of the country cut off by the gang violence gripping the capital and its surrounding communities, but it offers a chance to revive tourism in places like Jacmel and Port Salut. The southern beach towns have been on life support since armed groups, four years ago, began seizing control of its National Road No. 2, which connects the South to Port-au-Prince by road. For humanitarian aid groups, a new air route would also provide an opportunity to do away with the logistical nightmare that usually accompanies the shipment of medicines and other aid into the South, which is still struggling to recover from the 2021 deadly earthquake, and is now hosting tens of thousands of gang-fleeing refugees. 'It will help restore access to essential medical supplies, humanitarian aid and economic resources—and most importantly, bring families and communities back together,' said Skyler Badenoch, chief executive officer of Hope for Haiti, a U.S. based nonprofit that provides healthcare in the South. Named after the country's 18th president, François C. Antoine, the Les Cayes airport is now Haiti's third international airport after the main facility in Port-au-Prince and the Hugo Chavez International Airport in the city of Cap-Haïtien. If Haitian authorities succeed in getting international carriers and cargo airlines to provide service, they will provide a critical gateway into a region of the country that's been shutoff. In January, members of the powerful Viv Ansanm gang coalition launched deadly attacks in Kenscoff, a lush farming community in the mountains above Port-au-Prince. In gaining a foothold in the region, they also seized control of the last open road to the South, a perilous trek through rugged terrain that allowed Haitians to access four different regions: the Southeast, Southwest, Nippes and Grand'Anse. Outside of risking one's life through the gang controlled roads where motorists are required to pay hefty tolls, the only other way to access the area or Les Cay, has been via Cap-Haïtien. The northern port city hosts the only international airport able to accept regular commercial flights from the U.S. In November, the Federal Aviation Administration banned all U.S. commercial flights, and cargo liners like IBC from landing in Port-au-Prince after armed gangs opened fire on Spirit Airlines as it prepared to land, and two other airlines, JetBlue Airways and American Airlines also later reported being struck by gunfire. All three airlines have delayed their return to the Caribbean nation while American, which has served Haiti for more than 50 years, closed its offices in Port-au-Prince and paid employees severance until December Although Haitian officials reopened the airport in December, restrictions by foreign nations against their carriers landing in Port-au-Prince have halted operations. They include restrictions by the United Kingdom, Canada, the Dominican Republic and France. On June 6, France extended its ban on carriers landing at Toussaint Louverture International Airport until at least Sept. 1. This leaves only Sunrise Airways providing a direct link between the country and the U.S. via Cap-Haïtien and Miami International Airport. In response to the resumption of domestic flights into Port-au-Prince, Osprey Flight Solutions, an aviation security firm, noted that the industry was 'repeatedly' targeted by armed gangs last year and they twice forced the closure of Toussaint Louverture International Airport. The security environment around the airport and its surrounding urban areas and Port-au-Prince in general, still remains highly volatile, the firm said in an analysis published after the government's announcement. 'Regular gang-related violence and confrontations have affected neighborhoods north and east of the airport and closed roads, including the [National Road No. 1], a main thoroughfare leading to the airport,' the security firm said in an analysis after the government and Sunrise Airways announced the restart of domestic flights into the capital. 'Throughout March, gangs launched new offensives against communes of Port-au-Prince and its surroundings, including Kenscoff, forcing local authorities to move their offices. In April, the gangs targeted locations in the Centre department, taking control of Saut d'Eau and Mirebalais. 'Of note, in the capital, it is estimated that more than 30 police stations and branches are under the control of the gangs, including in Martissant, the Bicentenaire, Portail Saint-Joseph, Portail Leogane and Cul-de-Sac, among many others,' the report said. 'The near-daily attacks have further raised concerns that gang activity may soon overwhelm the capital.'
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump travel ban stuns NYC ‘s sprawling Haitian community
President Trump's new travel ban has sparked widespread outrage and fear in New York's sprawling Haitian community, by far the biggest local diaspora group impacted by the edict aimed at 12 nations. Pastors, shopkeepers and community leaders worried out loud that their community would seek to stay out of sight to avoid any contact with authorities for fear of being arrested or possibly deported. 'We did nothing wrong,' said Rev. Wesley Joseph, 55, of the Jerusalem Church of Christ in Brooklyn, a U.S. citizen who immigrated from Haiti two decades ago. 'We work for America. We help America … You have doctors, you have lawyers. We contribute to the economy.' Waving at a sparse lunchtime crowd, Jolly Fleury, 62, said business has fallen off at his J & C Haitian Restaurant and Bakery on Clarendon Road since Trump launched his latest anti-immigrant crackdown. 'Customers (are) scared. ICE hasn't come over here yet. But some other restaurants I know, they come,' said Fleury, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. 'A lot of people are worried. That's the reason I don't make enough money.' Stephanie D. Delia, an immigration lawyer and executive director of the Little Haiti BK advocacy group, said the impending ban is hurting Haitian-owned small businesses like the small groceries along bustling Flatbush Ave. selling stacks of ripe mangoes, ginger root and cassava. 'There's a lot of fear. There's a lot of confusion,' Delia said. Trump last week said citizens of Haiti and 11 other countries would be banned from even visiting the United States unless they already possess visas or permanent residency, a sharp blow to the Haitian community that numbers hundreds of thousands in the New York metro area, especially in central Brooklyn and southern Queens. Haitian leaders and Democratic lawmakers lashed out at Trump for the move, which they said was motivated by racism and hatred of immigrants. 'This is horrific for the people of my district, many of whom have family members who are in Haiti right now,' Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-Brooklyn, told the Daily News. 'They see their family living in the U.S. as a lifeline. It's just more of the cruelty, especially when it comes to the Haitian diaspora.' Clarke ticked off a laundry list of immediate problems New York Haitian families and businesses would face when the ban goes into effect as soon as Monday. 'It could be grandma coming for life-saving medical treatment or a niece or nephew coming for a wedding or going for a funeral,' she said. 'It's all the things that we as families do. It's unjust, and for what?' Vania Andre, editor and publisher of The Haitian Times newspaper, said her staff is documenting huge problems in the community stemming from the ban, which comes on top of Trump's broader crackdown on immigrants. She said an earlier Trump order revoking Temporary Protective Status for Haitians turned the Little Haiti neighborhood in Flatbush into a 'ghost town' as legal and undocumented immigrants alike lay low. 'People are not sending their kids to school, not going to places where immigrants gather or congregate,' Andre said. 'They're afraid it's going to be: Round up first and ask questions later.' Haiti avoided being included in a chaotic travel ban imposed during Trump's first term. It is not on the government's terror watch list, Clarke noted. The White House says Haiti was included in the new ban as punishment for high rates of overstaying legal visas and and large numbers of Haitian nationals who come to the U.S. illegally. Haitians on the island face chronic poverty, political instability and gang violence, with armed men controlling at least 85% of the capital of Port-au-Prince. The ban takes effect Monday at 12:01 a.m., a lag that may help avoid the worst of the chaos that unfolded at airports nationwide when a similar measure took effect with virtually no notice in 2017. Official estimates say close to 500,000 people of Haitian descent live in the New York metro area, and the 2010 census counted about 200,000 in New York City alone. Trump tied the new ban to Sunday's anti-Israel terror attack in Boulder, Colorado. He says the attack underscores the dangers posed by some visitors who overstay visas, even though the suspect in the attack is from Egypt, a country that is not on Trump's restricted list. Some, but not all, 12 countries were included in a similar ban in Trump's first term. The new ban includes Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Several other countries will face new heightened restrictions including Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Including Haiti in the travel ban is only the latest attack on the community by Trump. In his first term, Trump derided immigrants from 's—hole countries' including Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. During the presidential campaign, he repeated false claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating neighbors' pets. His administration has moved to end a federal program that gave permission to temporarily live and work in the United States to 532,000 people from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. The Supreme Court last week approved the move, clearing the way for those immigrants to potentially be deported. _____
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump travel ban stuns NYC ‘s sprawling Haitian community
President Trump's new travel ban has sparked widespread outrage and fear in New York's sprawling Haitian community, by far the biggest local diaspora group impacted by the edict aimed at 12 nations. Pastors, shopkeepers and community leaders worried out loud that their community would seek to stay out of sight to avoid any contact with authorities for fear of being arrested or possibly deported. 'We did nothing wrong,' said Rev. Wesley Joseph, 55, of the Jerusalem Church of Christ in Brooklyn, a U.S. citizen who immigrated from Haiti two decades ago. 'We work for America. We help America … You have doctors, you have lawyers. We contribute to the economy.' Waving at a sparse lunchtime crowd, Jolly Fleury, 62, said business has fallen off at his J & C Haitian Restaurant and Bakery on Clarendon Road since Trump launched his latest anti-immigrant crackdown. 'Customers [are] scared. ICE hasn't come over here yet. But some other restaurants I know, they come,' said Fleury, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. 'A lot of people are worried. That's the reason I don't make enough money.' Stephanie D. Delia, an immigration lawyer and executive director of the Little Haiti BK advocacy group, said the impending ban is hurting Haitian-owned small businesses like the small groceries along bustling Flatbush Ave. selling stacks of ripe mangoes, ginger root and cassava. 'There's a lot of fear. There's a lot of confusion,' Delia said. Trump last week said citizens of Haiti and 11 other countries would be banned from even visiting the United States unless they already possess visas or permanent residency, a sharp blow to the Haitian community that numbers hundreds of thousands in the New York metro area, especially in central Brooklyn and southern Queens. Haitian leaders and Democratic lawmakers lashed out at Trump for the move, which they said was motivated by racism and hatred of immigrants. 'This is horrific for the people of my district, many of whom have family members who are in Haiti right now,' Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-Brooklyn) told the Daily News. 'They see their family living in the U.S. as a lifeline. It's just more of the cruelty, especially when it comes to the Haitian diaspora.' Clarke ticked off a laundry list of immediate problems New York Haitian families and businesses would face when the ban goes into effect as soon as Monday. 'It could be grandma coming for life-saving medical treatment or a niece or nephew coming for a wedding or going for a funeral,' she said. 'It's all the things that we as families do. It's unjust, and for what?' Vania Andre, editor and publisher of The Haitian Times newspaper, said her staff is documenting huge problems in the community stemming from the ban, which comes on top of Trump's broader crackdown on immigrants. She said an earlier Trump order revoking Temporary Protective Status for Haitians turned the Little Haiti neighborhood in Flatbush into a 'ghost town' as legal and undocumented immigrants alike lay low. 'People are not sending their kids to school, not going to places where immigrants gather or congregate,' Andre said. 'They're afraid it's going to be: Round up first and ask questions later.' Haiti avoided being included in a chaotic travel ban imposed during Trump's first term. It is not on the government's terror watch list, Clarke noted. The White House says Haiti was included in the new ban as punishment for high rates of overstaying legal visas and and large numbers of Haitian nationals who come to the U.S. illegally. Haitians on the island face chronic poverty, political instability and gang violence, with armed men controlling at least 85% of the capital of Port-au-Prince. The ban takes effect Monday at 12:01 a.m., a lag that may help avoid the worst of the chaos that unfolded at airports nationwide when a similar measure took effect with virtually no notice in 2017. Official estimates say close to 500,000 people of Haitian descent live in the New York metro area, and the 2010 census counted about 200,000 in New York City alone. Trump tied the new ban to Sunday's anti-Israel terror attack in Boulder, Colorado. He says the attack underscores the dangers posed by some visitors who overstay visas, even though the suspect in the attack is from Egypt, a country that is not on Trump's restricted list. Some, but not all, 12 countries were included in a similar ban in Trump's first term. The new ban includes Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Several other countries will face new heightened restrictions including Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Including Haiti in the travel ban is only the latest attack on the community by Trump. In his first term, Trump derided immigrants from 's—hole countries' including Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. During the presidential campaign, he repeated false claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating neighbors' pets. His administration has moved to end a federal program that gave permission to temporarily live and work in the United States to 532,000 people from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. The Supreme Court last week approved the move, clearing the way for those immigrants to potentially be deported.
Miami Herald
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
‘This is choking Haiti': Haitians blast Trump administration's travel ban
Even before President Donald Trump told Haitians this week they will no longer be welcome in the United States, travel from the crisis-wracked Caribbean nation was already difficult. It's been restricted by deadly gang violence, repeated airport shutdowns and years-long visa delays at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince. Now, with the newly instated travel ban, Haitian families are facing prolonged separation and the country risks being further isolated, according to Haitians and heads of U.S.-based organizations who see the move as unfair and discriminatory — and likely to have devastating consequences. 'This is choking Haiti, choking Haitians,' said Clarel Cyriaque, a Miami immigration attorney and longtime Haitian rights advocate. 'The impact on Haiti and Haitians is astronomical.' Haiti is the midst of a spiraling crisis marked by years-long political instability, escalating gang violence, economic collapse and deepening hunger. On Wednesday, Trump made it the only country in the hemisphere whose nationals are banned from entering the U.S. The list of 12 nations with full bans also includes seven African countries. Cuba and Venezuela were added to a list of seven nations with partial bans. The measures are set to take effect on Monday and have left many Haitians confused. While the White House proclamation made clear that the issuance of all new non-immigrant visas for Haitians will be suspended, both State Department and Homeland Security officials have refused to say whether those with current, valid B1/B2 tourist visas will be allowed entry. If those with current visas are banned, it will mean that many children will be unable to see their parents. Due to the ongoing gang violence and kidnappings, many children emigrated to the U.S. with one parent, leaving the other behind. A former Haitian lawmaker who travels frequently to the U.S. to see his own kids, and who is currently in Haiti, said countless families will be split. 'The biggest winner are the gangs, holding the country hostage and instilling terror, which has led the U.S. not to take action to help Haiti to eliminate the gangs but rather to consider all law-abiding Haitian citizens as gangsters and pariahs,' said the lawmaker, who asked not to be named because he fears the ire of U.S. authorities. The ban stands to affect not just all aspects of Haitian life but also South Florida's economy, which offers the only U.S. gateway into the country aboard a Haitian-owned airline. Sunrise Airways became the sole carrier into and out of Haiti after gangs opened fire on three U.S. commercial airlines flying over Port-au-Prince's Toussaint Louverture International Airport in November, prompting an ongoing Federal Aviation Administration ban on U.S. airlines. ''Why are they doing this now?' said Nathan Letang, a Haitian businessman. 'Why are they doing this to Haiti in 2015?' Letang, attending a Boston Foundation Haiti Funders Conference in Boston this week, blasted the ban as an effort to 'humiliate Haitians.... If they want to isolate Haiti, they should just say they want to isolate Haiti.' The Caribbean nation is already isolated from the neighbor with which it shares the island of Hispaniola. Since April 2024, the Dominican Republic has had its airspace closed to Haiti, and since January has deported more than 139,000 Haitians back to their country. Terrorist designation, travel ban Last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio designated some of Haiti's most powerful gangs as global and foreign terrorists, a label that was welcomed by some Haitians, though others now see as having devastating consequences after President's Trump travel ban. The ban, and the terrorist designation, are likely meant to deal with the problem of illegal arms trafficking to Haitian gangs, which have used South Florida ports to smuggle weapons to Haiti, said Kim Lamberty, executive director of the Washington-based Quixote Center, a nonprofit social justice organization that advocates on behalf of Haiti. Administration officials, she said, are afraid of taking on the U.S. gun lobby to curtail the illegal arms and have instead turned to measures like the terrorist designation and the travel ban. 'This visa thing now punishes regular people,' Lamberty said, 'because they [U.S. authorities] don't think they can deal with the real issue because of the gun lobby.' In justifying Haiti's ban, Trump's proclamation cites the Haitian government's inability to provide the 'information necessary to ensure its nationals do not undermine the national security of the United States.' The administration also cites high so-called overstays — over 31% for B1/B2 tourist visa holders, and 25% for individuals with student visas. 'Additionally, hundreds of thousands of illegal Haitian aliens flooded into the United States during the Biden Administration,' the proclamation said, in reference to the more than 200,000 Haitians who legally entered the U.S. under a humanitarian parole program that required them to have a financial sponsor in the U.S., undergo government background checks and buy airline tickets. 'This influx harms American communities by creating acute risks of increased overstay rates, establishment of criminal networks, and other national security threats,' the proclamation added. The Congressional Black Caucus on Friday issued a statement blasting the travel ban, noting that the majority of the nations involved have predominanly Black and brown populations. In the case of Haiti, the CBC met with the country's new ambassador to the U.S., Lionel Delatour. 'This proclamation has nothing to do with national security. Rather, it represents a continuation of the Trump Administration's long standing pattern of bigoted attacks against Black and brown nations,' Rep. Yvette Clarke, a New York Democrat, said. 'His aim is to create fear, sow division, and demonize the vulnerable—many of whom are struggling to recover from catastrophic circumstances, seeking life-saving medical attention, or have waited decades to be reunited with family members.' U.S.-based organizations that rely on visas to bring employees to the United States for training and conferences warn of the ripple effects and say the new policy is akin to keeping people 'inside a burning house.' 'They're actually blaming the people, as if they twisted the Biden administration's arms to create these programs through a planned invasion, and now they must pay the consequences,' said Cyriaque. The narrative being pushed by the Trump administration is that beneficiaries of the Biden-era humanitarian parole program known as CHNV, the initials of the four countries affected — Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela — have assaulted the immigration system. Haitians haven't had access to normal visa services at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince since before the COVID-19 pandemic, which created huge backlogs in the processing of applications. The gang violence that escalated after the July 2021 assassination of the president, Jovenel Moïse, only exacerbated the situation. The embassy's next appointment to process requests for non-immigrant visas to the U.S. is in 2026. In the meantime, the country has continued to plunge deeper into chaos. The main international airport in Port-au-Prince remains close to U.S. commercial traffic. Roads in and out of the capital, already in imminent danger of collapse, are controlled by armed groups, leaving those with means and connections to resort to helicopter flights to escape the violence out of the only airport connecting them to the outside world in Cap-Haïtien. Longtime U.S. visa holder and Haitian development professional Ronel says this is what led him and his wife to leave the country under the humanitarian parole program in 2023, after spending a year in limbo unable to get his U.S. visa renewed. 'I was stuck,' he said. 'There was no more hope.' After arriving in the U.S., Ronel, who asked that his last name not be used to avoid being targeted by U.S. immigration authorities, applied for political asylum, citing threats against him as a youth organizer and international project coordinator in Haiti. Despite his fear of persecution in Haiti, he's says he's now considering abandoning his asylum application. 'Even though I was actually persecuted in Haiti... the thing with asylum is you cannot travel, and I am a global traveler,' he said. 'I am part of different networks in the world, volunteer networks; there are conferences happening everywhere in the world, and you're stuck.' He is also concerned about the Trump administration's targeting of Haitians and other immigrants, especially the half-million in the Biden-era parole program who are now being targeted for deportation after the U.S. Supreme Court gave Trump the green light last week. 'I don't want to stay in the U.S. with this situation. I don't like living in distress,' said Ronel, 38. 'That's why we are really actively exploring the alternatives, before it's too late.' While he and his wife are exploring several countries to move to, there is one that is off the table: Haiti. 'I don't want to be stuck in Haiti,' he said. 'It's hard for you to get out of the country and almost everywhere you go, requires you to transit through the United States.... This is very bad news for Haitian professionals who want to be connected with the world.'
