Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Haiti: Key Recent Developments, December 2021 through May 2022

This update, covering December 2021 through May 2022, reports that the human rights situation has continued to deteriorate since IJDH's previous December 2021 update, with increased waves of gang violence further impeding all aspects of life amid rising mass violence and kidnappings and continuing allegations of government complicity. Chronic impunity, both a driver and consequence of the insecurity crisis, persists as the de facto government further undermines the judiciary, dismantles accountability mechanisms, and presides over a shrinking of civic space threatening Haitians' civil and political rights.

Millions of Haitians lack adequate food or water, and access to core rights such as healthcare, education and a living wage is extremely and increasingly limited. Unlivable conditions and pervasive insecurity are driving Haitians to emigrate, and those seeking refuge in the United States and other countries in the Americas have faced mass expulsions under policies the report describes as racist and illegal, violating their right to seek asylum. Civil society, government officials and other observers continue to call attention to these compounding crises, which the update situates within a broader picture of governance collapse following President Jovenel Moise's assassination and Dr. Ariel Henry's de facto assumption of the premiership.