House Democrats ask Biden administration to reverse course in Haiti

A group of House Democrats on Friday called on the Biden administration to withdraw support for a planned multinational military intervention in Haiti — and for the country’s embattled president.

In a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken led by Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.), co-chairs of the Haiti Caucus, six Democratic lawmakers said the administration should instead focus on cutting off the country’s gangs from access to illicit arms and ammunition.

“Another armed foreign intervention in Haiti will not result in the necessary Haitian-led transition to a democratic government, rather it risks further destabilizing the country, endangering more innocent people, and entrenching the current, illegitimate regime,” they wrote.

“We believe that a genuine commitment to supporting the Haitian people requires the United States to withdraw support from de facto Prime Minister Ariel Henry and encourage negotiations for a Haitian-led democratic political transition.”

Pressley was joined in the letter by Democratic Reps. Yvette Clarke (N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), Barbara Lee (Calif.), Jan Schakowsky (Ill.) and Jim McGovern (Mass.).

Ongoing instability in Haiti has generated significant emigration from the country. In fiscal 2023, U.S. immigration officials encountered 163,781 Haitian nationals arriving without prior authorization, 76,130 of whom were encountered at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The U.S. Haitian diaspora and its allies have periodically asked the Biden administration to turn its back on Henry, who serves both as acting prime minister and acting president.

Haitian authorities have implicated Henry in the assassination of his predecessor, Jovenel Moïse, though investigations in Haiti are at a standstill. 

A parallel Florida-based investigation has yielded few public results — it’s being conducted under severe confidentiality restrictions because some of the suspects have ties to U.S. intelligence services, according to Jake Johnston of the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

But the Biden administration and other Western governments are standing behind Henry, providing millions in security assistance, though Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols said in January the U.S. goal is to avoid “reaching into Haitian politics and picking winners and losers.”

A State Department spokesperson told The Hill in an email that “Prime Minister Henry is a transition figure and the head of Haiti’s government.”

“We remain strongly supportive of efforts to urgently restore democratic order, including elections, when security permits. We remain committed to supporting the Haitian people’s right to a democratic, peaceful future,” wrote the spokesperson.

The Democrats said civic leaders have put together proposals for a transition government focused on a broad spectrum of policy priorities beyond immediate security needs.

“Unfortunately, de facto Prime Minister Henry — buoyed by diplomatic support from the U.S. — has rejected these attempts and has only deepened his grip on power. The State Department should not override the will of the Haitian people — it is clear that a transitional government is the only viable path forward for Haiti to return to stability and democracy,” they wrote.

But Henry has successfully swayed Western governments and the United Nations to support ongoing security assistance and a Kenya-led peacekeeping mission in the country.

Haiti has since the 1990s hosted seven U.N. peacekeeping missions; the 2004-2017 mission was infamous for repeated allegations of human rights abuses by peacekeepers and a 2010 cholera outbreak linked to Nepalese peacekeepers in the mission.

The formerly cholera-free Haiti is now among the top five countries reporting cases of the disease, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

While the prospect of a new peacekeeping mission may be unpopular in Haiti, Kenyan President William Ruto enthusiastically volunteered his security forces to lead the mission, which is also expected to include troops from Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Antigua and Barbuda.

The Biden administration looked favorably on Kenya stepping up. Shortly before the October U.N. resolution authorizing the intervention, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Nairobi to sign a defense agreement and pledge $100 million to pay for the mission.

“The Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission has higher than70 percent support from the Haitian public.  The MSS does not support any political leader or party.  It will strictly focus on improving security in Haiti by working hand-in-hand with the Haitian National Police.  The MSS mission seeks to stabilize security, support ordinary citizens who seek normalization, stem irregular emigration, and create security conditions that allow for elections,” wrote the State Department spokesperson.    

“The United States remains committed to the success of the MSS, having announced the intent to provide up to $200 million in financial and in-kind support.  The Department of State has and continues to consult with Congress on our progress. This is an innovative mission to drastically improve the situation in Haiti.” 

Though Kenyan security forces have experience in peacekeeping deployments in countries like Somalia and Sudan, advocates for Haiti have raised concerns over their human rights record and over the mission’s objectives.

“Earlier this year, the Kenyan security forces killed up to 23 people during demonstrations in Kenya, raising concerns with both the UN and Amnesty International Kenya around police brutality,” the Democrats wrote. 

“With the absence of clear objectives for this [Multinational Security Support] mission, we strongly believe that funding this security operation in tandem with continued support for the de facto Haitian authorities is a misguided strategy that may have catastrophic repercussions for the Haitian people.”

And it’s unclear whether the mission will ever take place. Political and legal opposition in Kenya threatens to derail deployment.

Kenya’s High Court blocked authority to deploy the force in October and in November extended that hold until January, though the country’s parliament passed a controversial motion supporting the mission in November.

The six Democrats called on Blinken to instead focus on blocking gun trafficking to Haiti, where armed gangs exercise military-style control.

“There are no manufacturers of guns and ammunition in Haiti, rather the gangs rely on shipments from the United States to arm themselves,” they wrote.

Though the House members recognized “the current everyday violence the Haitian people face is untenable,” they said the administration’s current approach would not improve conditions.

“Rather than hastily address this situation by supporting an armed foreign intervention – a strategy that has been tried and failed several times in Haiti – we urge you to take a holistic approach. This includes withdrawing support for military intervention and prioritizing a representative transitional government in Haiti.”