- Haiti has issued a decree announcing the establishment of a nine-member transitional council tasked with appointing a new prime minister and cabinet. The council will exercise certain powers until the election of a new president, which must take place before Feb. 7, 2026. CNN (LR: 2 CP: 5)
- The governing council, comprised of seven voting members from across the political spectrum, plus two non-voting observers, has agreed to support the deployment of a UN-backed multinational police force to help Haiti fight gangs. Le Monde.fr
- This comes after a political agreement on governance mechanisms and structures to favor a smooth transition to democracy and security was announced on Friday following weeks of stalemate. The Haitian Times
- The proposal for a transitional council was reportedly discussed last month after Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry was pushed to resign due to ongoing gang violence. New York Times (LR: 2 CP: 5)
- Haiti last held elections in 2016, and has been without a president since the assassination of Pres. Jovenel Moïse three years ago. Increasingly powerful gangs demanding Henry's resignation have allegedly escalated violence. Al Jazeera (LR: 2 CP: 1)
- According to a rights group, at least 208 people have been killed in the first quarter of 2024, including 13 police officers. HaitiLibre.com
Pro-establishment narrative:
- Gangs waging warfare have plunged Haiti into anarchy. As the country badly needs some authority to allow the deployment of an international security force, it's positive news that the transitional council is now closer to starting work.
ECONOMIST (LR: 2 CP: 5)
Establishment-critical narrative:
- The international community wants to impose a failure-prone framework on Haitians. This transitional council effectively hands power to the political and business elite that has already demonstrated its inability to achieve consensus and stability. This will just consolidate power in the hands of those to blame for much of the country's problems.
WASHINGTON POST (LR: 2 CP: 5)
Nerd narrative:
- There's a 67% chance that Haiti will experience a successful coup d'etat before 2040, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
METACULUS (LR: 3 CP: 3)