New Haiti PM named but powerful gangs demand seat at the table

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Haiti's newly installed transitional council has chosen a little-known former sports minister as the country's prime minister, as it presses forward in its monumental task of trying to establish a stable new government amid raging violence.

Fritz Bélizaire replaces Michel Patrick Boisvert, the former minister of economy and finance who was the interim prime minister. His appointment appeared to come as a surprise to some members of the council, with some confessing that they did not know him.

The nine-member transitional council, seven of whom have voting rights, was choosing a new prime minister and cabinet in an effort to help quell gang violence that is choking the capital, Port-au-Prince, and beyond.

But leaders of the powerful armed factions are clamoring for political influence and amnesties and have threatened violence if their demands are not met.

In an interview with CNN published on Monday, Vitel'homme Innocent, who heads the Kraze Barye gang and is accused of orchestrating the 2021 kidnapping of US missionaries, called for the council to listen to the gangs and find a resolution to the crisis "as soon as possible".

Kraze Barye forms part of a loose coalition of gangs known as Viv Ansanm, or "Live Together", who now control most of Port-au-Prince.

Viv Ansanm's leader, a former police officer named Jimmy Cherizier who is known as "Barbeque", warned of consequences if the gangs were ignored, in a message shared to social media over the weekend.

"Viv Ansanm is ready to talk. It's either we are all at the table, or the table gets destroyed with all of us," he said.

More than 90,000 people have fled Port-au-Prince in the span of one month, and overall more than 360,000 people have been left homeless in recent years as gunmen raze communities in rival territories.

The announcement of Bélizaire as prime minister came as a surprise. A murmur rose through the attendees as it was announced that four council members with voting powers had selected Bélizaire as prime minister.

Asked if he supported Bélizaire, Leslie Voltaire, one of the voting council members, said: "I don't know him."

Bélizaire served as Haiti's sports minister during the second presidency of René Préval from 2006 to 2011.

After the brief announcement, which was made nearly two hours after the event was supposed to start, the council went behind closed doors again to talk about their choices for cabinet. Voltaire, however, said he did not expect the council to announce cabinet selections on Tuesday.

The transitional council will act as the country's presidency until it can arrange presidential elections some time before it disbands, which must be by February 2026.

Haitians remain divided over whether they believe a transitional government can help calm a troubled country whose capital has been under siege since gangs launched coordinated attacks that began on 29 February.

Gunmen have burned police stations, opened fire on the main international airport that has remained closed since early March and broken into Haiti's two biggest prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates. The country's biggest seaport also remains largely paralyzed by gang violence.

The council is expected to support the UN-backed deployment of a Kenyan police force to help fight gangs, although it is unclear when that might happen.

Former prime minister Ariel Henry was on an official trip to the east African country when the coordinated gang attacks began, and he remains locked out of Haiti. He submitted his resignation last week.