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USAID/OTI Haiti Hot Topics

November 2005

Building Peace in Haiti: HTI Program Supports

Bel Air, formerly inaccessible to outsiders and dominated by gangs, is the site of new relationships and new possibilities for peace and reconciliation. Photo courtesy of Philippe Brancha.

Several months ago, the U.N. Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) used its military and police powers to suppress violent gang activity that was intimidating and immobilizing residents in Bel Air. Today, peacekeepers and community members are playing soccer together. Few would have dreamed that such a dramatic change was possible.

After last summer's "Play for Peace" camp attack in the Bel Air section of Port-au-Prince, KOTEBAB, a Bel Air community group, requested a MINUSTAH patrol near another project site. Soon, reports surfaced of peacekeepers playing soccer in the streets with locals. Now, MINUSTAH and residents are staging formal soccer competitions there.

MINUSTAH peacekeepers provided security for a Play for Peace soccer tournament sponsored by USAID/OTI. Photo courtesy of Philippe Brancha.

The Haiti Transition Initiative (HTI) continues to work with MINUSTAH to build upon this significant improvement in stability in Bel Air. As a lead-in to the holidays, a 16-day series of sports and social events, including sports tournaments, dance spectacles, "Rara" band performances and other youth activities, are planned. Events are taking place in Park La Paix, a central location at which residents from sub-neighborhoods St. Martin, Tokyo, Fort National, Solino, Ti Chery, Upper Bel Air, Lower Bel Air and Sans Fils gather together to socialize.

The community relations initiative behind this work is sponsored by ROSMA, a Haitian consortium of local organizations, with support from the secretary of state for youth and sport. ROSMA was critical to HTI success in the early days when Bel Air was impossible to access because of gang activity. ROSMA's work in creating political space in Fort National started a ripple effect that spread to most of Bel Air. ROSMA was essential to the program's ability to reach the population and engage residents in community- improvement activities with HTI and government partners.

For further information, please contact:
Katherine Donohue, OTI Haiti Program Manager, 202-712-0498, kdonohue@usaid.gov