An Important Update from Haiti

By Guesly Dessieux, PLH Founder & Executive Director

We want to thank you for your continued support of Project Living Hope and for your faithful prayers. Now more than ever, we truly need them.

Over the past few weeks, gang activity has intensified in nearby communities. As violence escalated, many families were forced to flee their homes, often leaving behind everything they owned. In response, we have been actively involved in relief efforts through our partner churches to support hundreds of displaced people who have found temporary safety. Out of concern for everyone’s well-being, we made the difficult decision to suspend all programs on our campus.

Gangs have been actively confronting resistance groups and attempting to expand their control. Just a few days ago, a family attempted to bury their mother when armed gang members arrived, firing shots into the air and stopping the burial. They believed the gathering was connected to resistance fighters. Once they were convinced it was a funeral, they left. This traumatic incident sparked further fear, leading many families to flee yet again, while longtime residents in the area have also begun evacuating.

We want to thank those of you who supported our Giving Tuesday campaign to bring hope and joy through a community event this Christmas. With many families fleeing these past couple of days, our Haitian leadership will assess the situation and determine if we can proceed with a large event as planned or partner with the local churches to hold smaller events or simply provide food relief. We assure you that your gift will bring encouragement, joy, and full bellies to families who desperately need it. Thank you for your understanding as the situation changes day to day.

We are grateful that our property has remained untouched. Due to its isolated location, it does not serve as a strategic area for gang takeover, which has helped protect it. Several staff members continue to return to the campus to care for and protect the campus. While we understand their commitment, we have emphasized that human life is far more important than property. Buildings can be rebuilt; a lost life cannot be replaced. We encourage them to prioritize their own safety and their family’s safety. 

We ask for your prayers that this ongoing violence in Haiti will cease. We trust fully in God’s plan for our organization and will continue to act in service by supporting displaced families. 

Project Living Hope has been exploring options to expand its work. Watch your mailbox for more on that next week. We continue to pray that God will guide us as an organization and protect. Each life is precious to him.

Psalm 32:7: "You are my hiding place; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance" 

Crisis Update: Displaced Families Find Refuge

Families continue to flee as the gang advances north. The national police, locals, and mountain people engage in fighting with the gang every day, but the gang is gaining control of more neighborhoods. There are now 130 people taking refuge in a church in our community and another 120 that have been taken in by families in the community.

We are so grateful for the support that we have received since our last update. Over $3,000 has come in to provide food relief to these families that have fled their homes. We have purchased food and are providing that to the church and families who are caring for these displaced families. Thank you for standing with us in prayer! 

Haiti, with pressure from the international community, has begun the election process. The goal is to place a president in power in February of next year. For over a year, a nine-person presidential committee has been in charge of the country. We pray that a new leader can be put in place to guide the country to peace and a stronger future. 

Pray for Haiti: Families Fleeing Violence

Last week, we shared about an outside gang taking control of a town just 15 minutes from the PLH campus. In the early hours of Friday morning, the gang went to seize guns from the mountain people that you may remember have a long history of fighting with the town. The mountain people fought back, and fighting has continued in the town since.

With the shooting, hundreds of people began fleeing the town, with more than 120 seeking refuge in our community. These families flee with nothing and have nowhere to go. Churches have opened their doors as temporary shelters, but they have little else to offer.

PLH has begun purchasing emergency relief food supplies as we assess how to best support those who have been displaced. Please continue to pray for protection, provision, and a miraculous end to the violence.

Hurricane Melissa also rained down on Haiti, Cuba, and Jamaica this week. Our area experienced heavy rain and strong winds. There was some minor damage to the PLH fence and grounds, but no major damages. Other parts of Haiti suffered major flooding with at least 25 people killed and 18 others missing, as well as many homes destroyed. We pray for these families who have lost so much.

Haiti Declares State of Emergency

By Laura Polynice

It’s difficult to write an update on Haiti. Whenever you think it can’t get any worse, it does. 

This past weekend, gangs seemingly joined forces and carried out coordinated attacks throughout Port-au-Prince and the country. 

This Weekend’s Events:

1. Gangs attacked the airport in Port-au-Prince on Thursday in an effort to prevent the acting Prime Minister from returning from Kenya. All flights through the airport have been canceled since the event. 

2. Gangs attacked the police academy in Port-au-Prince.

3. Gangs breached the country’s largest prison in Port-au-Prince, releasing thousands of prisoners. It’s reported that, of the nearly 4,000 prisoners, only 99 remain in the prison – those who chose to remain in their cells. A second prison was also attacked. 

4. Gangs attacked police stations in several places throughout the country, gaining control of the station in Cabaret. It’s reported that the gang now controls most of that town, moving their control further north up National Route 1 (the highway which leads to PLH’s community).

5. Gang leaders announced that several of the gangs have joined forces and will not stop their attacks until acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry is removed from power. 

6. After the weekend’s events, the country declared a state of emergency and instated a curfew Monday through Wednesday. 

7. The citizens of Port-au-Prince are trapped in the city as violence escalates and shooting increases throughout the city. All routes out of the city are controlled by gangs. Schools are closed and streets are empty as everyone hides in their homes. Leaving even to find water or food is a life-threatening mission.

8. Food insecurity continues. 1.4 million people face emergency levels of food insecurity with 4.35 million people suffering from acute hunger. 

9. All of this comes after January 2024 was labeled the “most violent month” in the past 2 years in Haiti with more than 1,100 people killed, injured, or kidnapped.

10. On Friday, Ariel Henry and the Kenyan President signed a deal to move forward with the proposal to send 1,000 Kenyan police to Haiti, a plan devised by the UN Security Council, paid for largely by the US, and initially halted by the Kenyan parliament. Other Caribbean nations also discussed an effort to organize a multinational force to send to Haiti. 

Video: Haiti declares state of emergency amid escalating violence and prison break (CBS) 

The Political Situation

After the assassination of President Jovenel Moise with no prime minister installed, several candidates stepped forward to run the country. Ariel Henry won the power grab and has been acting as Prime Minister since. Most of the population does not view him as a legitimate leader of the country as he was not elected. Henry signed an agreement that he would organize elections in 2023 and hand over power on Feb 7, 2024.

In November of 2023, Guy Phillipe, a revolutionary and accused drug smuggler who led the 2004 coup against President Aristide, returned to Haiti after serving several years in US prison. He began to call for protests throughout the country to start a “revolution”. With no elections in sight, protests broke out around the country in February to call for Ariel Henry to step down. Henry has since stated that he will organize elections in 2025 and hand over power in 2026.

Haiti is Hurting

Hopelessness is spreading throughout the country. Every month brings new levels of suffering. Gangs are armed with military grade weapons, drones, and vehicles. The police are overwhelmingly outnumbered and outgunned. The people have no way to defend themselves and are running out of places to hide. People fear that they will all die before help comes. 

PLH is Standing Steadfast

We share all of this to bring awareness to the suffering that our Haitian brothers and sisters are facing, to bring light to the injustices happening in this corner of the world that we serve. While things are dark and it is hard to say when and how Haiti will rise from this, we continue to hold on to hope for Haiti. PLH believes that God has a brighter future ahead for Haiti. We remain steadfast in our mission of empowering Haitians to build a stronger Haiti. The PLH programs continue to offer hope and purpose through athletic programs for youth, valuable training courses for adults, and a commitment to stand with those we serve and partner with them to bring about a stronger future for their community and nation. 

Haiti Reaches a New Breaking Point

By Guesly Dessieux
PLH Executive Director and Founder

Project Living Hope has been in the town of Camp Marie, Haiti since 2017. This month for the first time, we were unable to make payroll. This was not because we did not have the funds but rather because the situation in Haiti has made getting cash from the bank very hard. In recent weeks, the route to and from the bank has been blocked by protestors, the banks are often closed and give only limited amounts of cash, and hundreds of people wait outside hoping to be served.

The situation in Haiti is truly the worst it has been in a long time, possibly since its people gained independence over 200 years ago. Over the past several weeks, Haiti has seen an increase in roadblocks, protests, looting, and destruction. This is in addition to the ever-increasing levels of terrorist “gang” activity throughout the capital and beyond that is turning neighborhoods into war zones. The school year has been delayed. Many of those fortunate enough to have a job cannot get to work. The small police force is outnumbered and outgunned. Hospitals are shutting their doors as they don’t have fuel to run their generators. Businesses, banks, and stores have a hard time staying open. Trucks cannot transport goods around the country. Resources have become dangerously scarce. The cost to refill a 5-gallon jug of drinking water has risen from $0.30 to as much as $6 in some places because of the lack of fuel for water pumps and water trucks. On October 3, the largest water company announced that they were out of fuel and could no longer bottle or distribute water. That same day, the ministry of health announced that cholera cases have been confirmed. Cholera first came to Haiti in 2010 after the earthquake; the last recorded case in Haiti was in 2019. Its reemergence is a huge threat to Haiti.

Because of the roadblocks and lack of fuel, many areas in Haiti are running out of food and many places have already run out of drinkable water. People are desperate. Even those who typically can take care of themselves are struggling to feed their families. We are thankful that Camp Marie is an agricultural community. While the community is hurting, this area is doing better than many.

We pray that the organization is able to make payroll through this difficult time, keep our employees working, and be a source of hope for the community. I know the PLH staff and myself find comfort in what Jesus said in John 14:27: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”