New leadership appointed in Haiti as gangs threaten to overthrow government

A wealthy businessman on Thursday became the head of Haiti’s transitional presidential council tasked with restoring order in the troubled country as a top gang leader underscored the challenges facing the nation by vowing to overthrow the government.

Laurent Saint-Cyr’s appointment at the council’s heavily guarded office in the capital, Port-au-Prince, where criminal gangs control 90% of the neighborhoods, marked the first time that members of Haiti’s private sector serve in both the rotating presidency and the post of prime minister, two positions that share the country’s executive duties.

Saint-Cyr had his start at a local insurance company while Haiti’s current prime minister once ran an internet firm.

“Our country is going through one of the greatest crises in all its history,” Saint-Cyr said as he was sworn in. “It’s not the time for beautiful speeches. It’s time to act.”

Hours earlier, a powerful gang federation that has long denounced Haiti’s oligarchs threatened to overthrow the government, and gunfire erupted in parts of the capital.

In a video posted on social media, Viv Ansanm gang leader Jimmy Chérizier — better known as “Barbecue” — warns residents to give his armed group free passage through neighborhoods to reach the council’s office.

“People of Haiti, take care of yourselves and help us … in the battle to free the country,” Chérizier says, wearing a bulletproof vest and with an automatic rifle slung around his shoulder.

A U.N.-backed mission led by Kenyan police said in a statement that officers thwarted potential attacks by around-the-clock patrols and by boosting the number of armed forces in certain neighborhoods and around critical infrastructure.

“Armed gangs had plotted to disrupt national stability and render the country ungovernable,” it said.

Saint-Cyr thanked all national and international actors who have helped Haiti, as well as the private sector, which he called the engine of the country’s economy. He noted that while he’s from the private sector, he would serve all people equally.

Saint-Cyr previously served as president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Haiti and of the country’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He’ll be working with Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, a one-time president of an internet company in Haiti and also a former president of the country’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Saint-Cyr said security was a priority. He called on the armed forces to intensify their operations and on international partners to send more soldiers, offer more training and help boost a mission lacking resources and personnel.

“We must restore state authority,” he said. “The challenges we face are certainly linked to insecurity, but they also are the result of our lack of courage, a lack of vision and our irresponsibility.”

He questioned what was preventing the government from offering services Haitians deserve, including health and education. “Mister prime minister, assume your responsibilities!” he said.