By Louis Chadrac, Le Nouvelliste, Oct. 22, 2024
Twenty days after the Pont Sondé massacre, which occurred during the night of Wednesday, October 2 to Thursday, October 3, 2024, orchestrated by the Gran Grif gang from Savien, conflicting reports of the death toll continue to emerge. They vary between institutions and media outlets. Unfortunately, state authorities have been unable to provide an official and definitive account of the tragedy.
Number of Deaths
While local authorities, NGOs, and international media have mentioned over a hundred deaths, Horace Derleus, president of the Funeral Services Association of Lower Artibonite (AEFBA), views these figures as "a deliberate exaggeration, since neither the state morgue nor private morgues were consulted".
Dr. Frantz Alexis, medical director of Saint-Nicolas Hospital in Saint-Marc (HSN), the only public hospital in the area, confirmed four days after the massacre that "no one inquired about the number of victims from the hospital staff." He informed the newspaper that "the morgue holds only 7 bodies," despite widespread claims that HSN was overwhelmed with cadavers.
Among the seven private morgues in the region, three have handled cases related to the tragedy. Fécky Estimé, CEO of Pavillon du Sacré-Cœur Funeral Services in Pont Sondé, reported counting "40 dead bodies found in homes, streets, and gardens," of which 12 were entrusted to him. Jean Osnel Monéstime, CEO of Chevaliers Funeral Services, located near Pavillon, also received 12 bodies. Bob Beaubrun Funeral Services, the only private morgue in downtown Saint-Marc involved in the incident, housed 3 bodies.
However, four private morgues—Saint-Martial (Martial Dorléans), À la volonté de Dieu (Wilguens Inacus), Total (Roland Dieudonné), and Oiseau funèbre (Dalencourt Aldorphe)—reported having "no victims from the Pont Sondé massacre" in their records or facilities, according to their respective owners.
Horace Derleus, president of AEFBA, stated that "the inflation of the numbers is a clear attempt to attract humanitarian aid and benefit as much as possible from potential state financial compensation."
Burial of the Bodies
Four cemeteries in Pont Sondé contain the remains of the massacre victims. The first, Latour Cemetery, is located along National Road 1 near the Catholic chapel. The second is near the Pat Chwal police station. The third is in Dessouliers, and the fourth is in Poterie. Cemetery workers from Pat Chwal and Dessouliers denied any irregular burials on the day of the massacre or the days following it. However, testimonies from Jeff Démosthène, responsible for Latour Cemetery, and Franckel Jean Jacques, manager of Poterie Cemetery, revealed that five massacre victims were irregularly buried "the same day" or "the following day." Comparing the lists of names or nicknames of the buried victims with those from the morgues, the AEFBA believes that "the massacre likely resulted in around fifty deaths."
Number of Injured
Some sources claim that hundreds were injured during the massacre, but hospital officials in Saint-Marc are unaware of such figures.
In addition to Saint-Nicolas Hospital, which, according to Dr. Frantz Alexis, treated "23 patients with gunshot wounds," three other health centers opened their doors to survivors: the Saint-Marc dispensary, Pivert Medical Complex, and New Hope Hospital in Frécyneau.
Dr. Ronsard Présendieu, director of the city's dispensary, told the newspaper that "initially, ten people with superficial injuries were treated," adding that "182 survivors were examined by a mobile clinic, but only five had minor scratches," and emphasizing that "none of these individuals were injured by bullets or sharp instruments."
At Pivert Medical Complex, available to the victims of Pont Sondé, "no injured persons were admitted," according to its medical director, Dr. Clerjour Roody.
Dr. Thomas Marie Migline from New Hope Hospital echoed the director of the Saint-Marc dispensary, noting that the hospital saw "15 patients between Thursday, October 3, and Saturday, October 5, 2024," all of whom "sustained minor injuries that were not directly related to the massacre."
Aside from the 23 gunshot victims treated at HSN, the 30 other injured individuals from the dispensary and New Hope Hospital sustained "minor fractures from falls, climbing fences, or from running through tree branches and thorns along the escape routes," revealed the doctors interviewed by Le Nouvelliste.
Number of Displaced Persons
The residents of Pont Sondé typically have familial, friendly, or social connections with people in downtown Saint-Marc. In this regard, "it wasn’t difficult for survivors to find refuge in the city," stated Charles René, a farmer and coordinator of the social movement Nou se Pon Sonde. According to him, it is almost impossible to know the exact number of displaced persons, "especially since municipal authorities have not established any registration process." The four temporary shelters that have been set up in Saint-Marc are all citizen-driven initiatives.
Survivors initially gathered in Philippe Guerrier square. It "is facing serious security issues", René explained. According to local notables who preferred to remain anonymous, on Tuesday, October 15, 2024, Pont Sondé "was invaded around 3 a.m. by heavily armed individuals who looted everyone present."
At the Tabernacle du Seigneur Church in Gardère, located in the upper part of Saint-Marc, 156 people are being housed, according to records from the shelter’s manager, Duval Raphaël. The breakdown includes: 22 girls aged 2 to 17, 29 boys aged 2 to 17, 35 elderly women, 15 elderly men, 2 pregnant women, and 2 people with disabilities. The Venotte shelter, managed by Dieusseul Romain, accommodates 289 people: 71 minor girls, 82 minor boys, 93 adult women, 43 adult men, and 15 infants.
At the White Rock Baptist Church in Granfon, the Association of Engaged Citizens for the Development of Upper Saint-Marc recorded 471 individuals: 70 girls aged 2 to 17, 79 boys aged 2 to 17, 180 elderly women, 142 elderly men, 2 pregnant women, and 3 people with disabilities. The Antoinette Dessalines National School, according to Lakay’s team data, hosted 1,080 people as of Saturday, October 19, 2024: 185 infants aged 0 to 3, 270 children aged 4 to 17, 656 women, 424 men, 28 pregnant women, 26 nursing mothers, 30 adults over 60, and 9 people with disabilities.
Thus, the total number of formally registered displaced persons in temporary shelters, based on statistics provided by shelter officials, is 1,996 people. Nou se Pon Sonde "doubts the claim of approximately 10,000 displaced persons."
The Pont Sondé massacre has an ironic twist. Local authorities are coordinating assistance for the victims and are preparing to organize collective funerals for the deceased, possibly with financial support from the Haitian government. However, more than 20 days after the tragedy, nearly all of the bodies have already been buried. Having attended the funerals, Le Nouvelliste can confirm this. Central and local authorities remain highly concerned about the situation "without ever visiting the locality of Pont Sondé," according to members of the Municipal Section Administration Council.
A week of special meetings with victims, their relatives, neighbors, members of the popular resistance, community leaders, local funeral entrepreneurs, healthcare professionals, and humanitarian shelter managers has revealed that the public accounts of the Pont Sondé massacre are still suspicious. Even "the shelter numbers have been deliberately inflated," Nou se Pon Sonde claimed, asserting that only 35 to 40% of the reported figures are credible.
For the sake of history and truth, and in the name of collective conscience, a serious investigation by the Haitian government would be crucial to establishing the real toll of the Pont Sondé massacre.
Translated by CHIP editors
Posted Nov. 13, 2024