A country’s collapse is rarely a sudden event, and Haiti is no exception. The present issues in the country are a result of decades of political deterioration paired with continued corruption and internal pressure.
During the early 2000s, controversy surrounding the parliamentary election results quickly spiraled into crippling aid blockages and economic embargo placed upon Haiti by foreign nations that had previously offered aid. The slow economic strangling of Haiti led to public devastation and anger, creating the perfect storm for the 2004 coup d’état against then President Jean-Betrand Aristide. After Aristide was pushed out of office by the coup efforts, a large power vacuum opened, with multiple armed militia groups rushing to take control, turning the streets into a chaotic and lawless area.
The power struggle culminated in the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. Moïse, who was accused of involvement in a multi-million dollar embezzlement scheme related to PetroCaribe (a Venezuelan organization of oil programs), had all signs of his governance vanish after his grisly murder. Overnight, multiple Haitian gangs, fueled by the illicit flow of arms and ammunition smuggled into Haiti, quickly mobilized and seized control over the Haitian capital. Currently, a de facto gang regime occupies Port-au-Prince (Haiti’s capital), and coordinates attacks on the last remaining pieces of state infrastructure in an attempt to further destabilize the remaining government.
The biggest victims of the recent collapse are the civilians. Living in large urban areas where infrastructure that could be used for housing is in complete disrepair, families are under the constant threat of random gunfire and targeted massacres. In other portions of Port-au-Prince, housing is so badly damaged that it is left in disrepair, causing thousands to relocate into overcrowded and unsanitary housing sites. Humanitarian aid in these housing sites is also rare as essential health care services are limited, hyperinflation runs rampant, and food scarcity has reached catastrophic levels.
A similar wave of conflict is pushing through the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Poor government policy and exploitation of the Congo’s vast material wealth has led to an organized coup attempt against President Félix Tshisekedi in 2024. However, corruption within Tshisekedi’s government was not the only factor to blame. Foreign actors, including American nationals, were arrested in relation to the storming of the Congolese Presidential Palace, and Tshisekedi’s personal home. The coup attempt has led to great distrust between the current belligerents of the Congolese war: the Alliance Fleuve Congo Rebels and the Congolese Army.
The fighting has caused mass displacement, with over 7,000,000 being moved into crowded and generally poor living conditions. Living conditions such as a lack of emergency health services leave the population at risk for massive disease outbreaks. Common diseases in the region such as measles and cholera are particularly concerning due to their highly contagious nature, allowing these viruses to sweep through the population at lethal speeds. Aside from disease, human suffering is immense. Civilians in Kinshasa and the eastern region of the Congo face constant danger in crossfire between the fighting forces. Further escalation such as the deployment of neighboring Rwandan troops signals that suffering may continue unabated.
