Avellon Williams
PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI– Haitian officials said on Thursday that 12 prisoners died from lack of food or medicine during the month ending mid-September. They said the number has likely increased since then due to crippling fuel shortages caused by a gang blockade.
In Haiti’s deteriorating jail conditions, Renan Hedouville, head of the Office of Citizen Protection, says prisoners are starving and/or contracting preventable diseases such as tuberculosis.
“Prisoners, people in detention, people deprived of their freedom, are exposed to cruel, inhumane and degrading treatments,” Hedouville, whose role is similar to that of an ombudsman, said in a telephone interview.
“When someone is jailed, the security of the person in the prison depends on the Haitian state.”
According to a June report from the United Nations Security Council, 54 prison deaths were linked to malnutrition between January and April.
Because the gang blockade has made it impossible to move around the country, Hedouville’s office and local human rights groups cannot determine if more people have died.
It has also complicated the process of feeding prisoners since family members cannot reach the jails to provide food.
According to Hedouville, the state should be sued for negligence by the families of the deceased.
Hundreds of Haitians have been killed in bloody turf wars fought by Haitian gangs that have taken over large parts of the country. Thousands have fled their homes and have been forced to flee their homes by the violence.
U.S. lawmakers said Thursday that gang leaders and those who finance them should be sanctioned.
