Apat na bilanggo patay, dalawa nakatakas sa Haiti jailbreak
People flee their neighborhoods after after armed gangs terrorized the Delmas 24 and Solino areas on the night of May 1, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, May 2 ,2024. – Haiti’s transitional ruling council, which is leading the Caribbean nation amid a wave of gang violence, chose politician Edgard Leblanc Fils as its head on April 30, 2024. Announcement of the selection comes after the long-awaited council was sworn in last week, marking a step forward in restoring functional government. (Photo by Clarens SIFFROY / AFP)
Nagdulot ng lockdown sa mga kalye ng coastal city ng port-de-Paix sa hilagang Haiti, ang nangyaring jailbreak sa isang bilangguan habang tinangka ng mga awtoridad na muling mahuli ang dalawang bilanggo na kasama sa mga nakatakas.
Anim na pugante na ang nahul mula nang mangyari ang jailbreak, habang apat naman ang nabaril at napatay.
Ayon sa United Nations, ang karahasan na dulot ng mga gang na nagsimula sa pagtatapos ng Pebrero, na lalo pang nagpalubog sa Hati sa kaguluhan ay nagbunsod sa pagtakas ng mahigit sa 4,600 mga bilanggo mula sa mga piitan.
Sa North-West department ng Haiti, isang kalmadong lugar kumpara sa kabiserang Port-au-Prince na laging ginugulo ng mga gang, ay sinabi ni police spokesman Leonel Joseph, “of the eight escapees, six have already been caught.”
Dagdag pa niya, “Four inmates were shot dead while trying to escape from a 37-person cellblock, where the jailbreak originated.”
Ayon kay deputy government commissioner Jeir Pierre, “The cellblock holds inmates convicted of violent crimes who are considered dangerous.”
People flee their neighborhoods after after armed gangs terrorized the Delmas 24 and Solino areas on the night of May 1, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, May 2 ,2024. – Haiti’s transitional ruling council, which is leading the Caribbean nation amid a wave of gang violence, chose politician Edgard Leblanc Fils as its head on April 30, 2024. Announcement of the selection comes after the long-awaited council was sworn in last week, marking a step forward in restoring functional government. (Photo by Clarens SIFFROY / AFP)
Upang muling mahuli ang mga tumakas, inatasan ang judicial at police authorities na paalisin sa mga lansangan ang lahat ng mga residente ng Port-de-Paix.
Kuwento ng isang local resident, may narinig na mga pagsabog sa siyudad.
Sinabi ni Pierre na maaaring kapabayaan ang sanhi ng jailbreak.
Aniya, “A guard opened the door of a cell to help an inmate who had apparently become unwell, and it was at this point that fellow inmates took advantage of the situation to… force open the prison door to escape. Two police officers have been placed in solitary confinement while an investigation unfolds.”
Ang Haiti ay ilang dekada nang walang katatagan sa pulitika. Subalit simula sa huling bahagi ng Pebrero, ang mga gang ay naglunsad ng mga pag-atake sa mahahalagang lugar, at sinabing nais nilang patalsikin ang noon ay prime minister na si Ariel Henry.
Sa ulat ng UN noong mid-April, “Since the gang unrest exploded, more than 4,600 inmates have escaped from Port-au-Prince’s two main prisons, at least 22 police stations and sub-stations and other police buildings have been ransacked or set on fire, and 19 police officers have been killed or wounded.”
Si Henry ay nagbitiw na noong isang buwan, at isang transitional presidential council na ngayon ang namamahala kung saan tinatangka nito na muling itatag ang batas at kaayusan sa bansa.
