MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Killing of journalists on the rise in Haiti - UN concerned

“I would like to pay a heartfelt tribute to these brave press workers for their continued commitment to freedom of expression,” Henry said on social media

Haiti's crisis includes the murder of 19 journalists since 2000, three of them this year, according to the United Nations Integrated Office, which has also called for local authorities to act accordingly since these crimes systematically remain unpunished.

“In Haiti, the insecurity of journalists and the expected impunity may favor the violation of many human rights, in addition to freedom of expression and freedom of the press, as well as encourage other forms of criminality,” criticized the UN on the occasion of International Press Freedom Day.

Safety in the profession is essential as reliable information makes for free and open debate on the state of things and the changes needed in society, the UN maintained. It also urged authorities to do everything in their power to prevent murders and punish those responsible.

“On this day, I would like to pay a heartfelt tribute to these brave press workers for their continued commitment to freedom of expression. I recognize and appreciate their struggle for the right to information,” Prime Minister Ariel Henry posted on Twitter.

In January, journalists Wilguens Loussaint and Amady John Wesley were shot by armed gangs operating in the Laboule 12 slum, located southwest of Port-au-Prince, the capital city, while working on a report on rising insecurity.

Lazarre Maximilien was also killed, apparently by the police, last February, while he was covering a demonstration of textile workers demanding wage increases.

Another of the journalists murdered was the reporter Diego Charles, who was massacred in June 2021 together with a score of people in Delmas, and two years before at least two others died in the midst of the political crisis in the country, and others were assaulted or received death threats.

Although the police announced the opening of investigations in most cases, no concrete results have been attained.