Girls and women in Haiti are in urgent need of help amid an increase in sexual violence in Haiti's capital of Port-au-Prince due to the confrontation of armed gangs, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th August, 2022) Girls and women in Haiti are in urgent need of help amid an increase in sexual violence in Haiti's capital of Port-au-Prince due to the confrontation of armed gangs, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said on Tuesday.
"Not being able to receive critical sexual and reproductive health care is endangering the lives of women and girls in need, particularly survivors of sexual violence and an estimated 85,000 currently pregnant women - around 30,000 of whom are due to give birth in the throes of the crisis over the next three months," a statement said, adding that women and girls as young as nine years old have reported being raped by opposing gangs.
The Cite Soleil metropolitan area, which is home to more than 250,000 people, has seen the most violent gang fights, with more than 17,000 people forced to leave their homes. Without access to essential services, women and girls' health, well-being and survival are at high risk, the statement said.
Haiti already has the highest level of maternal mortality in Latin America and the Caribbean, the statement noted.
