Haitian leaders struggle to find transition consensus as crisis broils

Efforts to set up a transitional government and fill a power vacuum in violence-wracked Haiti foundered on Monday as delegates squabbled over choosing a leader and death threats caused one member to quit over the weekend.

The Caribbean nation's security crisis has been intensified by a political one: elections have not been held since 2016, with Prime Minister Ariel Henry heading the country since President Jovenel Moise's 2021 assassination.

As unrest has worsened under Henry's rule – culminating when armed gangs united to launch attacks and demand his ouster late last month – the prime minister said he would resign once a transitional council was stood up.

But the body, supported by the United Nations and regional bloc CARICOM among others, is still struggling to come into shape two weeks after Henry's March 11 announcement.

The transitional council – to be composed of seven voting members and two non-voting members – draws from Haitian political parties, the private sector and others, and is to name an interim prime minister and government to set the stage for fresh elections.

Its formation has dragged on amid arduous negotiations, though its composition changed again over the weekend.

Haiti's ambassador to UNESCO Dominique Dupuy, chosen by one of the political coalitions, said she was stepping aside, citing threats against her and her family as well as misogynistic attacks.

She was the sole woman representative on the council, and was replaced by Smith Augustin, Haiti's former ambassador to the Dominican Republic.

The United Nations warned Monday that aid services in Port-au-Prince were still being disrupted by violence and insecurity.

"The crisis has crippled operations and hindered access to the few remaining facilities," said Farhan Haq, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Haq added that, according to the World Health Organization, fewer than half of the health facilities in Haiti's capital are functioning at their normal capacity.

(With input from AFP)