HomeNewsBriefOver 400 Vigilante Killings Have Gone Unpunished in Haiti: UN
BRIEF

Over 400 Vigilante Killings Have Gone Unpunished in Haiti: UN

HAITI / 18 JAN 2017 BY FELIPE PUERTA EN

A recent UN report indicates that the majority of instances in which citizens take justice into their own hands in Haiti are never investigated, an indication of the lack of trust in the country's security institutions and the government's inability to process these cases. 

According to the report, titled "Taking justice into one's own hands or the reign of impunity in Haiti" (pdf) and presented by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH by its French acronym), there were 483 cases of lynchings or attempted lynchings in Haiti between 2012 and 2015. Only 59 arrests and one conviction came as a result of these cases. 

The deaths from lynchings represent 15 percent of the total number of homicides in the country. The vast majority of the victims are male individuals suspected of theft, and 70 percent of incidents occur in urban areas.

The main motivation behind the crowd's participation in these violent acts resides, according to the MINUSTAH, in the lack of trust toward law enforcement. The report argues that the "authorities’ lack of resources to prevent and punish lynching reinforces the phenomenon and suggests that lynching is implicitly an accepted practice."

InSight Crime Analysis

While the lack of trust in government institutions and in security forces have been signaled out as the main motivation for citizens to carry out their own type of justice, there are other underlying factors as to why these acts of violence have become so common.

A significant proportion of Haiti's prison population has been convicted of theft -- which is also the main crime associated with lynchings. This may indicate a discrepancy between the public perception and the reality of government efforts to tackle this type of crime.

However, the vast majority of incidents of vigilante justice have occurred in urban areas, which possess the highest police presence per inhabitant. This suggests a strong passivity of police forces with regards to these crimes.

SEE ALSO: Coverage of Vigilantes

In other parts of Latin America this type of vigilante justice occurs within the context of non-state judicial systems, such as in indigenous communities in Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia.

In 2015, Vanderbilt University studied the public support for vigilante action across the region and published its results through the Latin American Public Opinion Project. The study found that the Dominican Republic -- which borders Haiti -- showed the highest approval rates for this type of justice. This could suggest the existence of underlying social dynamics that normalize acts of lynching, such as a culture of violence.

Institutional weaknesses, the absence of state action and widespread corruption within the region's judicial systems create fertile ground for the vigilante phenomenon. But beyond these factors are relevant social and cultural dynamics that are often correlated with state actors' lack of will and capacity to tackle this issue. 

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

CARIBBEAN / 11 APR 2022

Kidnappings in Haiti have increased during the first three months of 2022, continuing a grim surge that began last year…

ARMS TRAFFICKING / 24 JAN 2023

As American-made guns continue to flood the Caribbean, heads of state are demanding that the US do more to stem the…

ELITES AND CRIME / 11 NOV 2022

Sanctions are turning the screw on Haiti's major gangs and leaders, who fuel constant violence in the country.

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Continues to be Highlighted

3 MAR 2023

This week, InSight Crime co-director Jeremy McDermott was the featured guest on the Americas Quarterly podcast, where he provided an expert overview of the changing dynamics…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela's Organized Crime Top 10 Attracts Attention

24 FEB 2023

Last week, InSight Crime published its ranking of Venezuela’s ten organized crime groups to accompany the launch of the Venezuela Organized Crime Observatory. Read…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime on El País Podcast

10 FEB 2023

This week, InSight Crime co-founder, Jeremy McDermott, was among experts featured in an El País podcast on the progress of Colombia’s nascent peace process.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Interviewed by Associated Press

3 FEB 2023

This week, InSight Crime’s Co-director Jeremy McDermott was interviewed by the Associated Press on developments in Haiti as the country continues its prolonged collapse. McDermott’s words were republished around the world,…

THE ORGANIZATION

Escaping Barrio 18

27 JAN 2023

Last week, InSight Crime published an investigation charting the story of Desafío, a 28-year-old Barrio 18 gang member who is desperate to escape gang life. But there’s one problem: he’s…