The US government is in the process of providing more advisers and equipment to Haiti's National Police (HNP) responsible for fighting gangs and supporting election security, Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs Todd Robinson said in a congressional hearing on Tuesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th November, 2021) The US government is in the process of providing more advisers and equipment to Haiti's National Police (HNP) responsible for fighting gangs and supporting election security, Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs Todd Robinson said in a congressional hearing on Tuesday.
"Following the July presidential assassination and August earthquake, INL bolstered support for training, equipping, and vetting the anti-gang unit," Robinson told the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "INL is also in the process of providing additional embedded advisors, vehicles, and protective equipment for HNP units countering gangs and supporting election security."
INL refers to the US State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.
Robinson said during the hearing that INL will continue to support long-term community prevention efforts and institutional capacity building of the HNP given that weak institutions and pervasive corruption in Haiti add to spread of gang violence.
"Gang violence has become the Primary concern in Haiti and continues to grow as Haitian gangs expand their influence and geographic presence, including control of nearly 50 percent of metropolitan Port-au-Prince and expanding into less urban areas," he said.
Robinson noted the United States is seeing the gangs employing increasingly aggressive tactics, including the recent kidnapping of US citizens, outmaneuvering the HNP and disrupting control of transport routes leading to fuel scarcity throughout the country.
Haiti has experienced severe crises marked by crime and gang violence as well as fuel shortages, food insecurity and the migration of thousands of Haitians in search of better life abroad. The situation was further exacerbated by the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise on July 7.
