On May 2, 2025 a statement signed by representatives of the December 21 Accords and the EDE party emphatically welcomed the United States' decision to classify the Haitian gangs "Viv Ansanm" and "Gran Grif" as international terrorist organizations.
The signatories – André Michel, Pascal Adrien, Claude Joseph and Claude Édouard – described this decision by the Donald Trump administration as a "historic" act, presented as a direct response to their own diplomatic request addressed to Washington last January.
But what is really behind this enthusiasm? Is this truly a victory for Haiti? Or is it a political smokescreen designed to mask an overly simplistic – or even irresponsible – interpretation of the consequences of this decision?
While this designation responds to a clear need to recognize the seriousness of the crimes committed by these armed groups, it is far from ideal. Behind the hype, the risks are numerous and very real.
Several U.S. elected officials, including Congressmen Gregory Meeks and Sheila McCormick, recently expressed grave concerns about the humanitarian impact of this classification. They point out that this type of designation automatically carries legal and financial sanctions, likely to hamper or even block the work of NGOs and humanitarian agencies operating in Haiti. "If aid can no longer reach 85% of Port-au-Prince or the Artibonite department, it is the Haitians—not the gangs—who will pay the price," they rightly warn.
The collateral effects are already visible. Vital health programs, such as the Enhanced Health Service Delivery program, which benefited more than three million people, including 20,000 living with HIV, are being partially dismantled due to a lack of secure funding.
With this classification, the Haitian population today finds itself threatened in its most basic rights: healthcare, food, family transfers.
The diaspora's shadow economy is also at risk. As Brookings Institution researcher Vanda Felbab-Brown points out, this classification could deter banks, Western Union, and other money transfer operators from continuing to operate in Haiti, for fear of sanctions, the Miami Herald reported.
It is a fatal blow to an already depleted economy.
And yet the signatories carefully avoid these questions. Perhaps it is ignorance, or perhaps a quest for personal visibility. Regardless, they prefer to highlight their "January 24 correspondence," as if this decision belonged to them, deliberately obscuring the broader diplomatic and strategic issues.
No word on the necessary coordination with humanitarian actors, no mention of the concrete effects for the displaced, the sick, the children without school, the mothers without resources. The final call to "defeat" the gangs is more martial rhetoric than a call for planned, intelligent, and inclusive plan.
Designating armed groups as terrorists is a weighty decision with multiple repercussions. The decision should not be applauded, but analyzed, supervised, and supported with evidence. Without this, it is the innocent who will pay the price for ill-conceived political maneuver.
Actions matter more than words. Political courage does not consist of signing communiqués, but in anticipating the consequences of a decision and acting to protect every Haitian citizen.
History will judge the representatives of the December 21 accord and the EDE party, including André Michel, Pascal Adrien, Claude Joseph and Claude Édouard.
Does this press release commit Dr. Gérald Gilles, who represents the December 21 accord within the Transitional Presidential Council?
Translated by CHIP editors
Posted May 20, 2025