Haiti’s government was not amused on Friday after French President Emmanuel Macron wascaught on camera calling the island nation’s leaders “morons” for ousting their former prime minister amid escalating gang violence. Macronalso blamed Haitians for “letting drug trafficking take over,” sparking outrage in the former French colony.
The comments have led to renewed demands for reparations for payments Haiti made to France back in 1804. The bill was to account for so-called “lost property,” including slaves, after the country declared independence. Activists claim the payments amounted to over $100 billion and engendered a cycle of perpetual economic and political instability.
Violence has again reached crisis levels. Armed gangs control over 85% of the capital of Port-au-Prince and have attacked prisons, police stations, and the city’s international airport, whichwas closed for the second time this month after gangs fired at passenger planes. This cut off food aid to a populationwhere nearly 6,000 people are starving and 5.4 million are experiencing crisis levels of hunger.
Despite hopes for change, the latest UN-backed security mission led by Kenya has failed to stem the violence. At least 108 suspected gang members were killed over a three-day peroiod last week, and Doctors without Borders has suspended operations in the country. The US pushed for a full UN peacekeeping mission at the Security Council last week, but Russia and China opposed the mission.