Last Updated on March 7, 2020, 2:47 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The U.S. State Department has warned the American citizens against travelling to Haiti, due to the rise in violent crimes which also include kidnappings.
The travel warning for the country of Haiti has been raised to Level 4, which means Do Not Travel and has replaced the previously issued “reconsider travel” advisory. The reconsider travel advisory was issued on June 11 last year.
The new travel advisory for American citizens has been issued in the wake of a magnificent rise in kidnappings in Haiti.
Other violent crimes, including armed robbery and carjackings, are also escalating, and the politically unstable country continues to be trapped in the claws of civil unrest.
The State Department, in its advisory, said that kidnappings are widespread and that the kidnappers may use advanced planning or may take advantage of unplanned opportunities to commit the crime and also that the victims to these crimes have included U.S. citizens in the past.
In addition to the tremendous increase in crime which are often committed by armed criminal gangs, the demonstrations, incidences of tire burnings and also roadblocks are still prevalent, unpredictable, and may escalate and turn violent.
The American Citizen Services Unit in Haiti,s Port-au-Prince published a security alert on Twitter, which warned the people about a sound truck which was being accompanied by a group of demonstrators and was throwing rocks at the passing motorists.
The State Department further said that the local police might lack the resources to respond effectively to such serious criminal incidents. Also, emergency response services, including ambulances, are very scarce, almost non-existent.
There have been incidences where Travelers were sometimes followed and violently attacked with an intention to rob and were robbed soon after they left the Port-au-Prince international airport.
In the past months, there have been many reports that robbers have carjacked and attacked private vehicles, mainly which were being driven by women alone and were stuck in heavy traffic.
The U.S. embassy in Haiti has barred its personnel from using the modes of public transportation, visiting establishments without secure parking after dark and visiting banks or using ATMs.
The personnel also are not allowed to drive around Port-au-Prince at night and prohibited from visiting certain parts of the capital without prior permission of the embassy.
The last time when the State Department issued a Level 4 Travel Warning for Haiti was during the month of February last year when civil unrest had spread out and forced diplomats and Haitian citizens to stay indoors at home.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
