Haiti

Madam President of the General Assembly, Mr. Secretary-General, Excellencies, Heads of State and Government, Ladies and gentlemen Heads of Delegation, Distinguished Delegates,

It is with gravity and great hope that I carry the voice of Haiti and the greetings of a dignified and resilient people, who, despite hardship, claim for themselves and for all of humanity three universal promises: development, respect for human dignity, and peace. Peace, which is TODAY the absolute emergency of the Haitian people.

On behalf of this people, I extend to you, Madam President, my most sincere congratulations on your election to lead this Assembly.

I also express my gratitude to Secretary-General António Guterres for his unwavering commitment to our Organization and his constant and multifaceted support for the Republic of Haiti.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The theme of this session, "Better Together: 80 years and more for peace, development and human rights," honors the remarkable work accomplished over the decades. It also recalls the imperative of remaining united and resilient in the face of unprecedented crises threatening the future of the planet, international peace and security.

Today, hunger threatens millions of lives. Armed conflicts are multiplying and extreme poverty is intensifying, causing forced migrations that shake international stability and that test the solidarity of nations.

To these challenges are added climate change, the rise of terrorism, mass atrocities, cross-border crime, the erosion of human rights, and disinformation.

We cannot close our eyes to the urgent need to strengthen health systems, ensure a just energy transition, and promote gender equality and youth inclusion.

These challenges call on us, the world's leaders, to assume our responsibility to build a United Nations better suited to today's challenges and tomorrow's hopes.

We must ensure that all our actions, including technological advances such as artificial intelligence, serve peace, development, and human dignity!

Ladies and gentlemen,

Just four hours' flight from here, a human tragedy is unfolding. One of the gravest in our hemisphere.

Every day, innocent lives are extinguished by bullets, fire, and fear. Entire neighborhoods disappear, forcing more than a million people into internal displacement and reducing memories, investments, and infrastructure to nothing.

Thousands of children are deprived of their fundamental right to education; thousands of young people are condemned to despair. Hundreds of girls and women who have been raped forever carry, in their flesh and in their soul, the scars of violence.

Nearly half the population faces acute food insecurity. The health system is collapsing. Hospitals are being vandalized, burned, or forced to close their doors. Doctors are fleeing. Lives are being sacrificed for lack of care; even the care of people living with HIV or tuberculosis is under threat.

This is the face of Haiti today: a country at war; a contemporary Guernica; a human tragedy at the gates of the Americas; just four hours' flight from here!

We must say it plainly: what is playing out in Haiti is a war. A war between criminals who seek to impose violence as a social order, and an unarmed population fighting to preserve human dignity and freedom. The response must be firm and resolute.

Today, the international community must, alongside Haiti, deploy major resources: not half-measures, but strong, coordinated, and immediate action. SILENCE OR INACTION IS NOT AN OPTION.

We must act quickly: to protect lives, to give children back their innocence, to offer young people a future, and to allow citizens to decide their future through the ballot box.

Every minute lost translates into human lives sacrificed and into a setback for democracy.

HAITI WANTS PEACE. HAITI AWAITS PEACE. HAITI HAS A RIGHT TO PEACE.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen,

Peace is today the most urgent need of the Haitian people. It is the very reason for the relentless fight waged by our security forces and the Multinational Security Support Mission.

Many police officers and soldiers have fallen in the war against criminal gangs.

TRIBUTE to these heroes, Haitian and Kenyan, who paid with their lives for their commitment to restoring peace and security in Haiti.

Today, of the 2,500 personnel initially requested and promised, there are only about a thousand members of the multinational mission on the ground. Their bravery, combined with our own efforts, has not succeeded in containing the security crisis. And yet, we have increased the budget of the security forces by 40%, recruited new classes, reinforced our ranks, and acquired equipment and materiel.

We must face the evidence: Haiti finds itself at the epicenter of an unprecedented regional threat. Powerful and heavily armed criminal networks are seeking to destabilize the country and to dominate the economies of our entire shared space.

The new front line of this fight is here, in Haiti. If we fail to confront them on our soil, it will be illusory to contain them elsewhere in the region.

That is why we must show the same determination, the same firmness, and the same unity that we have shown in the fight against terrorism. Haiti cannot, and will not be able to, meet such a challenge alone.

Today it is imperative to mobilize a robust force, with a clear mandate and adequate material, logistical, and financial means. In this regard, the lessons of the MMSS experience and the recommendations of Haitian experts must be put to use. We also need strengthened international cooperation, based on intelligence-sharing and rigorous customs controls, in order to stop the flow of weapons, ammunition, drugs, and financing to the gangs. Peace can only be restored if our partners in the region ensure, through concrete measures, that their territories no longer serve as points of departure or transit for this trafficking.

Approaches that bore no fruit yesterday will not save Haiti today. It is imperative to listen to the voice of the Haitian people, to dare new solutions, strong and adapted to realities on the ground.

In this spirit, we fully endorse the efforts under way to transform the Multinational Security Support Mission. We also call for the solidarity of the entire international community, and in particular for the commitment of the members of the Security Council, to vote in favor of the resolution establishing a Gang Suppression Force.

That is why I wish to express, on behalf of the Haitian people, my profound gratitude to the United States of America and to Panama for this initiative, whose realization will mark a decisive turning point in the fight against the insecurity that is suffocating our Nation.

I also extend my thanks to the Trump administration for the efforts made to bring support and resources to our common fight against the gangs — enemies that threaten both Haiti and the entire region!

TODAY, the complexity of the Haitian crisis must not serve as a pretext for endless pleading, interminable negotiations, or blockages dictated by geopolitical considerations. Every day of indecision benefits the criminal groups. Urgency demands that we be proactive, that we rise above our divisions to act together, in service of the values that unite us: peace and human dignity. Haiti would welcome with interest the organization of a high-level meeting to smooth out obstacles and move forward concretely.

To this end, we salute the countries of the region that continue to offer us their invaluable support, notably through statements within various regional organizations such as the OAS and CARICOM. We deeply appreciate their efforts with partners on the Security Council for a solution to the security crisis in Haiti. We also pay tribute to all the states that, during past crises, stood by our side, and we express the hope of being able to count once again on their commitment.

TOGETHER, WE CAN AND MUST RESOLVE THIS CRISIS, WHICH HAS ALREADY LASTED FAR TOO LONG! Twelve million men, women, and children await this commitment.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The Presidential Transitional Council was born of a political consensus reached through intense negotiations among the living forces of the Nation.

This Council, whose establishment was supported by important international partners and facilitated by eminent CARICOM personalities, has a clear agenda, at the heart of which is the organization of free and credible elections.

Despite the many challenges linked to the security crisis, the electoral process, for which the CPT and the Government are demonstrating real political will, is making significant progress. The Provisional Electoral Council has already identified more than 85% of polling centers, mobilized more than 70% of electoral staff, and national financing of 65 million dollars is guaranteed.

The Presidential Transitional Council is working closely with the Multinational Security Support Mission, the OAS, CARICOM, and BINUH to prepare free, transparent, and inclusive elections, reflecting the sovereign will of the Haitian people and guaranteeing the full and effective participation of women, youth, persons with disabilities, and marginalized groups.

In the interest of maintaining productive political cohabitation, constant efforts have been and will continue to be made to broaden dialogue with various sectors of national life, in order to strengthen consensus and prevent a vacuum that would be fatal to democracy and stability.

The Haitian people must be able to choose their leaders. The State wants to organize credible elections. Our greatest obstacle remains the restoration of security. The urgent and solemn appeal that we make, once again, to resolve the security crisis in Haiti must not remain a dead letter, nor be lost in speeches or unfulfilled promises.

IN HAITI, PEACE CAN NO LONGER WAIT.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The transitional period does not allow us to undertake all the major structural reforms the country needs, but the current humanitarian crisis must be addressed. To date, the Haitian State has provided 72% of the emergency aid intended for internally displaced persons and is supporting the relocation of families. We express our profound gratitude to the international partners mobilized alongside us in the humanitarian response, and we welcome with keen interest promising initiatives from those who, like the Association of Caribbean States, choose to join this momentum.

But our strategy is not limited to immediate assistance alone. We must move from aid to investment. In this regard, the Government intends to initiate the development of two major economic hubs — the Grand Nord and the Grand Sud — around strategic sectors such as agro-industry, textiles, renewable energy, tourism, and services.

Haiti intends to continue relying on its key partners to get through this difficult period and revive its economy. We call for their support, through the establishment of concrete mechanisms — such as the renewal of the HOPE/HELP Act or the launch of urban renewal projects — which will help create jobs, durably overcome the humanitarian impasse, and reduce Haitian migratory pressures in the region.

Ladies and gentlemen,

2025 marks the bicentennial of the ordinance imposing on Haiti the payment of a ransom for the recognition of its independence. Our voice rises to demand REPARATION, not in a spirit of revenge or bitterness, but out of a concern for justice and truth.

We welcomed with satisfaction the declaration of the French Presidency recognizing the need to open spaces for dialogue and historical truth, as well as the resolution of 5 June 2025 of the French National Assembly recognizing the injustice of this ransom. Haiti has established the National Committee for Reparations and Restitution. We ask that these advances be followed by concrete action.

France, homeland of the Rights of Man, today has the opportunity to write a new page in its history with Haiti, by honoring the ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity that unite us.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I must underscore the invaluable contribution of the Haitian diaspora across the world, and the often difficult fate reserved for them. Whether they live in the Americas, in Europe, in Africa, or elsewhere, the millions of Haitians abroad contribute to Haiti's development.

As we go through a multidimensional crisis, we call for the patience and understanding of our partners and friends, so that our nationals are always treated with respect and dignity. Behind every migrant, there is a face, a family, a story… and a contribution to the host country.

Haiti reaffirms its attachment to dialogue and bilateral cooperation, in a spirit of good neighborliness and mutual respect, in order to identify balanced and lasting solutions to the problems of the island.

The safe and regular movement of goods and people, particularly by air, is essential to a shared future and common prosperity.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The Haiti of tomorrow deserves peace and prosperity: a future founded on an independent judicial system, universal education, healthcare accessible to all, and an economy that offers everyone the same chances of success.

This future also requires COURAGEOUS REFORMS, AN INDEPENDENT JUDICIARY, AND AN END TO IMPUNITY. On 16 April 2025, we promulgated a decree establishing two specialized judicial units: one for the repression of complex financial crimes, and the other for the repression of mass crimes and sexual violence. We are making progress on their effectiveness.

We are ready to continue on this path. This is not the moment to give in to a feeling of "Haiti fatigue." The international community has no right to look away from the situation in Haiti. Faced with the scale of this crisis, silence would not be neutrality: it would be complicity.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Allow me to pay tribute to the Haitian people. To represent them here is the greatest honor of my life.

Beyond my duties as President of the Presidential Transitional Council of Haiti, I am an authentic Haitian citizen, committed and profoundly attached to this land. A land of freedom and dignity. Of courage, of talent.

Haiti is not a nation of the resigned. We are a great people. A people of solidarity. Women and men who have sacrificed themselves for their homeland and for humanity.

Haiti is not a territory abandoned to armed criminals, but a standing nation, made up of dignified and resilient families who, every day, despite the worst hardships, fight for a better future.

I pay tribute to my compatriots, who are without question among the most resilient people on earth. They deserve better. Restoring their hope is my sole mission.

That is why, at this moment, I call on you to stand alongside Haiti.

We must build peace in Haiti. For the Caribbean. For the Americas. For all of humanity.

Thank you.