Haitian gang leader Jimmy Chérizier aka Barbecue is now calling for community dialogue, indicating it is the only option that can help stop violence in the Caribbean country.
In a video shared with journalists on Tuesday, Barbecue, a former police officer, spoke in Haitian Creole as Kenyan police troops touched down in Porto-au-Prince to begin leading the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission endorsed by the United Nations.
While it is unclear whether his was bait or genuine turnaround, Barbecue did say the new interim Prime Minister Garry Conille is a man he thinks could help end violence in Haiti using local solutions.
“We need dialogue today, Prime Minister. Prove to the world that you can make history as someone who did not contribute to the destruction of the country by distributing guns in poor neighbourhoods but who now pacifies the country,” said Barbecue, describing Conille as a man with no past dirt of gang violence or illegal arms importation into Haiti, something blamed on the rise of gang violence.
The 400 Kenyan police officers are the first batch of about 1000. They will be joined by troops from other countries, according to an initial plan which was delayed following the resignation of former transitional Prime Minister Ariel Henry.
Barbecue initially opposed to the MSS had overseen some of his gang members withdraw from parts of Porto-au-Prince, according to reports in local Haitian media. But he didn’t remove his threats on the mission yet, having declared the troops invaders.
Now he says that the Prime Minister was better placed to lead the dialogue as he was popular amongst citizens in Haiti. Conille spoke to journalists on Tuesday after he welcomed the Kenyan contingent. He assured them of cooperation, seeing it as a basis to start the country’s journey back to stability.
In his explanation, the gang leader had said Conille was better placed compared to other leaders because no one had accused him of any wrongdoing especially giving firearms to the people.
“I haven’t heard anyone with guns say you were the one who armed them. Don’t listen to traditional politicians who armed the country to destabilise previous governments and now want you to take back the guns by force,” he said.
He said they were being driven by fear of competition with other businessmen intending to cause chaos. According to him, those who armed the society were the ones who were now busy pushing Conille to disarm the community.
Barbecue said that he would be keenly watching the steps that the Prime Minister will be making in regard to ensuring that Haiti is peaceful.
“You can be the one to bring peace, retrieve the guns, organise elections, and set the country on the right path,” he said.
According to the gang leader if they realised that he was doing what was right then the gangs would stay out of his way and let him lead the Caribbean nation.
“We love this country and want change. If you come for change, we will stay out of your way. But if you do the same things, our guns are already in our hands,” Barbecue said.
He said that there was no prison any gang member would ever enter and that they were all out to see the rich die.
However, Conille is yet to respond to the request made by Barbeque and on Tuesday he was joyful for the arrival of Kenyan officers in Haiti.
The Kenyan police had been flagged off by President William Ruto on Monday.
Barbeque, who is opposed to the deployment of the Kenyan officers to Haiti, had warned that were it to take place then it would be a ‘massacre.’
“At last, the multinational force is here to support our national police. The work to retake the country would begin slowly without any major fights unless need be,” said the Prime Minister.
According to him, he was sure that in the coming months the state would be peaceful, and life will be brought back to normalcy.
In 2022, former Haiti prime minister Ariel Henry requested Kenya to assist him in restoring peace in his home country.
Kenya then agreed to lead a UN authorised international police force to Haiti.
However, the Kenya High Court said that the deployment was unconstitutional. The case was to come up next month.
The mission itself is set for review at the UN Security Council after nine months of approval elapsed this month. Its mandate ends in October unless extended by the UN Security Council.
