OCNH Issues Urgent Appeal for Mirebalais Displaced Persons

Gang violence in the lower Central Plateau is forcing thousands of people to leave Mirebalais and surrounding areas to settle, particularly in Hinche. During an evaluation visit to the Central Department, OCNH reported observing 45 temporary shelter sites currently housing these uprooted families, including over 2,000 children aged zero to 8 years. In addition to these improvised poverty camps, some 500 families are housed in reception homes, while 1,500 others live in precarious conditions, isolated from all support. “It is urgent to act. The needs are enormous, especially for children and the elderly: food, healthcare, safe shelters, protection. Time is running out,” declared Me Camille Occius of OCNH, calling for national and international solidarity on this matter. The city of Hinche is becoming the scene of a humanitarian emergency that authorities must not ignore.
In addition to the security crisis, there is an acute humanitarian crisis affecting the majority of the population. The number of internally displaced persons in Haiti has therefore tripled in one year, now exceeding one million. Nearly half are children, representing about 10% of the national population. This dramatic increase reflects the rise in power of armed groups, responsible for forced displacement, acts of terror, and loss of livelihoods.