Child prostitution and human rights violations in Haiti

Human Rights and Child Prostitution in Haiti

The Republic of Haiti is a Caribbean country occupying smaller portion of Hispaniola Island. It shares the island with Dominican which is equally another Caribbean country with population of just over 600, 000. In 2011, the population of the Republic of Haiti hit 9 million-mark with chances of a tremendous growth projected in the subsequent years. With the capital located at Port-au-Prince, the country's total area is approximately 27, 750 square kilometers. Haiti was the first country in the Caribbean region and Latin American at large to attain political independence. The country holds the record as the first worldwide to gain self-rule under stewardship of a black president. Republic of Haiti has had various social, cultural and political problems that have culminated into gross violation of human rights. According to international observers and United Nations (UN), the country held one of the most peaceful general elections in 2006 for presidential and parliamentary candidates, which they unanimously termed as free and fair

. President Rene Preval and parliament took office in May 2006. Later in September, parliament confirmed Michele Pierre-Louis as the new Prime Minister filling the position that remained vacant following April elimination of the immediate former Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis. Despite the country holding one of the most peaceful, free and fair elections in the history of the Republic of Haiti, reports indicated gross violation of human rights. Half of Haitian population is struggling to get one meal a day. Child prostitution has become a major issue as harsh economic conditions have pushed most parents to the brink. They send their children as young as seven years to towns and cities to engage in prostitution and hard labor to earn a living

Violation of Human Rights

The Haitian National Police (HNP) supposedly participated in unlawful killings before, during and after the elections. Besides, the country had flawed and untimely parliamentary elections, ineffective mechanisms to address excessive killings by gangs and armed groups, and participation of HNP in series of kidnappings. Other human rights problems the country is yet to address include overcrowding and poor sanitation in prisons. The prisons department has been in the limelight for wrong reasons. Lack of proper infrastructure is the primary issue that has led to overcrowding in most country's local prisons. It is upon the government to provide adequate funding to the department to help enhance the process of building new prisons across the country. Congestion in prisons has compromised not only the social welfare of inmates but also the ability of prison warders to manage inmates. In retrospect, overcrowding is obviously total infringement of the fundamental rights of citizens. The department through adequate funding from government agencies as well as non-governmental organizations should take the initiative to ensure construction of additional prisons to cater for the escalating number of prisoners. Sanitation problems have also hampered efforts by the government to enhance proper welfare of those serving in the country's prisons. Lack of clean water for bathing and drinking has become a norm that inmates have to cope up with despite the glaring health risks most of them are likely to face. The department should realize the importance of the resource even as they continue to grapple with other sanitation challenges

The pathetic and horrible conditions under which prisoners live have further compromised their capacity to live normal lives like the rest of the citizens. Unlawful arrests and arbitrary threats have compromised efforts of Haiti to attain freedom and fully exercise democracy. Majority of citizens are indisposed to express their opinions in public for fear of arrest and intimidation by the law enforcement authorities. Most crusaders of human rights have gone through terrible situations after the Haiti National Police differs openly with their efforts to enlighten people about their rights and freedoms. A number of such crusaders have been through devastating moments in their lives owing to rampant unlawful arrests and persecution by police. The authorities argue that some of their campaigns and ideologies amounted to incitement and threat to national unity. In effect, citizens are reluctant to express their frustrations as well as opinions in public. Even government officials and politicians have expressed their concerns about the infringement by state security agencies into freedom of expressions of citizens, which has eventually contributed to many people withdrawing support or participation in matters of national importance. Divisions along ethnic lines have a fair share of blame as far as threats and intimidation are concerned. However, human rights bodies locally and internationally have stepped up efforts to curb the escalating levels of human rights violation mainly emanating from acts of political class. Apparently, most leaders are always skeptical about criticisms by the people directed at them. They are thus unwilling to accept or tolerate any form of criticism irrespective of the validity or soundness

Political class is essentially responsible for the gross violations of human rights as well as increase in the cases of child prostitution in Haiti among other Caribbean nations. Since they are skeptical about attempt by the public or human rights bodies to discuss the vice openly, they resort to intimidations and threats. In most cases, the media would resort not to report such unlawful and inhuman acts for fear of shut down. Yet other media houses would still proceed by reporting the instances of contravention and abuse of human rights particularly by state authority. The political class use threats and intimidation as a mechanism for maintaining citizens' allegiance to them and their ideas despite the potential negative effects. The government has to play its role of ensuring all citizens irrespective of social, cultural, or political backgrounds have adequate assurance of their safety and security. Pretrial detentions have also characterized Haitian societies. Detentions without trial form the climax of immorality and dissipation of security forces. It shows clearly their reluctance to allow culprits get a chance to defend their charges and allegation police have bestowed upon them in a court of law

The major target of detentions without trial is political prisoner. Human rights groups and the civil society have unveiled programs that seek to unearth the flaws of security agencies in the country. Such prolonged detentions deny the people the right to fair hearing and trial in a court of law. In reality, those advocating for freedom and democracy for all face torture and other forms of persecution to the extent of not getting a chance reunite with the rest of the members of the organization or family. Pretrial detentions are deliberate measures to silence the voices of the people amid plans to advance political interests of selected few. As different organizations charged with the responsibility of looking into agony and frustrations of the depressed members of the society strive to achieve their objectives of a fully liberal and democratic society, the political class uses the security instruments to ensure they take control over the rest of the population. The judiciary is equally ineffective in their effort to deal with rising cases of violation of the law and constitution. In spite of the Haiti being a constitutional country, many tribulations the country currently faces is sure indicator the republic is far from attaining true democracy and freedom for all

Although the country has managed to meet all the standards of human rights internationally, the judicial institutions and law enforcement agencies have failed to respect such provisions. Unofficial practices such as torture, kidnapping, political killings and unlawful incarceration have thwarted efforts of human rights groups to ensure adherence to the guidelines and international provisions for human rights. Despite the constitution upholding an independent judiciary, pretrial detentions have become rampant. The Haiti National Police (HNP) in particular has compromised the provisions of the constitution as regards fight for the fundamental rights and freedom of citizens of the country. Instead, the state has largely used the police force to propagate political killings, torture, and unlawful incarceration, which are all illegal practices. Similarly, the state has also compromised agencies in charge of the administration of justice in the country. Most of these agencies defend the rights of the less privileged in society at the mercy of non-governmental organizations and countries in the neighborhoods. Poor organization of the court system in Haiti together with court records has been the order of the day. It becomes difficult to determine the percentage of prisoners serving detentions without trial. The government in cooperation with Haitian police has capitalized on this loophole to detain as many prisoners as they can

Political prisoners bore the greatest wrath of the inhuman acts of police owing to their determination to fight for the rights and fundamental freedom of all citizens. They also suffered due to their efforts to seek redress and intelligibility as to what steps the government had taken to restore hopes of many citizens. Apparently, most Haitian citizens had given up in their quest to see a united country and a government that was willing to reach out to all citizens irrespective of their political or cultural affiliations. Unfortunately, the rich and moneyed few have always had their way primarily by using the security agencies to frustrate and intimidate the less privileged from expressing their rights and grievances. The country is yet to witness a fair trial despite assurance from the government to comply and commit to implementing the human rights to the international accepted standards. This is due to complete failure on the side of the government to fully respect, comply and commit to the constitution and written laws. Security agencies tend to work towards protecting rights and privileges of the political class as well-to-do members in the society at the expense of ordinary people who continue to languish in poverty. Such trend has dominated the social and political dynamics of the Caribbean country against a backdrop of the presence of a court system, a constitution, and the judiciary. Prolonged pretrial detention has been a common tool among the political class and influencing people in government towards making sure all critics of government, crusaders of human rights, and political freedom fighters do not succeed in the quest to influence people's thoughts about the government

Law and Order

Haiti government has one of the most corrupt, unreliable, and inefficient system of justice. The judiciary tends to be lenient and compassionate towards the political elites and privileged members of the society. This special group uses their political and economic power to influence and manipulate the decisions made by court as well as the law enforcement agencies such as the Haiti National Police. Although the constitution emphasizes the critical role of the judiciary of ensuring justice,, fairness, tranquility and harmony in the country, a few rich people use their economic power to exercise dominance over the people; particularly the less privileged who are arguably the majority in the country. It therefore proves cumbersome for justice system or courts to hear grievances of the poor members of the society or even give rulings that favor the poor over the rich members of society. Allegations of kidnapping and torture are reportedly on the rise in Haiti notwithstanding the presence of a judiciary mandated with the responsibility of ensuring all culprits of such vices face full force of the law. Even the national police seem very reluctant to handle the frustrations of ordinary Haitians who have been through corridors of justice but in vain. It is almost becoming a tradition for majority of political prisoners and human rights crusaders to face imprisonment without going through any legally recognized trial. The state security agencies always work round the clock not to protect the rights of ordinary citizens who are the majority, but instead focus on protecting the possessions, opinions and interests of the wealthy few

The state has constantly threatened the immunity of many lawyers instead of motivating and encouraging them to serve their clients diligently and as per provisions of the constitutions. During the regime of Duvalier, many lawyers faced series of intimidation and unnecessary frustrations from the national police. The president exercised his constitutional mandate of appointing the judges. Since they were appointees of the president, it was difficult for them to make independent rulings. Even today, the country has not yet guaranteed lawyers an assurance that it will respect all their fundamental rights. However, the international standards dictate that every individual has a right to expression including lawyers whose profession demands that they represent their clients well. The constitutional provision gives police the mandate to maintain law and order. However, maintenance of law and order should never be a selective process. In the context of Haiti, the national police body has become an instrument of the political elite essentially critical for protecting their interests in society. In essence, police involvement in the fight for human rights has become a controversial function. Detention of those perceived as threat to the rich members of the society has become a common phenomenon. In particular, the police would detain such people without undergoing trial as provided by the constitution and laws of the republic

Freedom of Expression

Every civilized society strives to give its people opportunity to express their thoughts, opinions, ideas, and reservations regarding state of affairs. Matters of discussion include political, economic, social, and cultural issues affecting lives of individuals. All of them have substantial effect on individual's ability to exercise their freedom of expression. The Constitutions has various provisions that guarantee citizens of Haiti freedom of speech despite the glaring differences in terms of race, ethnicity, cultural orientation, economic power or religion. Local journalists practice this fundamental right with caution and restraint owing to the reality that they face censorship in case of attempt to expose the executive, the judiciary or legislature in very negative way. Similarly, they have a daunting task of remaining relevant among readers (print media), listeners (radio), and viewers (television) in spite of the stringent measures the state agencies have bestowed upon them. Although the measures taken by state might amount to gagging the media, it is upon media houses to present only the content that promote cohesion and harmony among all citizens. The government's agenda should however not contravene the media ethics neither should the media agenda push the government to the limits. Attempts by Haiti government to censor radio, television or the internet have always turned violent

On the contrary, security forces in Haiti have constantly ignored the constitutional mandate of right and freedom of assembly and organization by dispersing civilians who engage in demonstration to express their reservations about certain critical issues or activities happening in the society or government. The government has however respected the freedom of everyone to religion though a person's belief or religious denomination should not violate rights of other people in different religions or denominations

Gender, disability, language and race

The Constitution of Haiti acknowledges diversity of culture and demographics in general. It does not contain provisions that in any way tend to discriminate citizens based on gender, race, disability or language. Instead, the Constitution gives everyone a chance to exploit their potentialities and interests irrespective of their cultural, racial, sexual, or physical disabilities. Although the Constitution as well as government agencies have put in place certain working standards to protect women, lack of adequate resources has widely compromised realization of sufficient enforcement. Mistreatment and all forms of abuses against women together with the children has become a common happening. It is upon the government and human rights organizations to put in place adequate structures to ensure no a single individual of certain gender or age. Rape, for instance, has become a common vice in Haiti. Women and children are at risk of falling victims of rampant cases of rape. The Haitian Ministry of Woman Affairs is a remedy for women fraternity who already lost hope and trust in government in solving various issues affecting them. For instance, assault cases against women as well as children have been on the rise. The Ministry has always responded swiftly by making sure all criminals of assault, insult, and rape against females in the society face prosecution in a court of law. Besides, it has been a revelation for women as it enlightens them on their fundamental rights and freedoms whether in marriages or single. According to the Haitian Law (Article 269), a husband is impervious against murdering a cheating wife

. Many men have however abused this provision by engaging their wives in fierce fights that sometimes results in death of the wide on pretext of punishing them against infidelity (adulterous affair).

Children

Children have been the greatest victims of financial constraints affecting most families in Haiti. Poverty is the major cause of problems affecting women together with children in Haitian societies. Chronic malnourishment has emerged as one of the most common ailments affecting children leading to deaths. Although the Constitution and laws of Haiti have provisions that demand proper care for children and adherence to their fundamental rights, poor parents or guardians lack the capacity to accomplish this goal. Some children even drop out of learning institutions because their parents lack finances to support their schooling. According to statistics, majority of families in the rural villages and towns live below poverty line. They are yet to take their children to learning institutions as they continue to grapple with basic human wants such as food, shelter, and clothing. To them, education is a luxury that is a preserve for the rich. The few children from less privileged families who found opportunity to join schools attend institutions whose quality of education is highly compromised because of poor infrastructure. Furthermore, Haitian children suffer physical abuse by parents, guardians, and relatives

A larger percentage of children from humble background had faced abuse by their close friends or relative at some given point in their lives. According to the ministry of labor and social affairs (2004), over 700 children called to report an abuse. Women assault their children as a way of punishing them for wrongdoing while men have largely been culprits of defilement or sodomy. Many of them are yet to face prosecution for such heinous acts against their own blood. Some unsuspecting women leave their children under care of close friends or relatives who mercilessly proceed to defile the minors. Child trafficking in Haiti has become another significant problem that the government is seeking its solution. The non-governmental organizations have particularly expressed their support and commitment to curb the menace. Rising levels of poverty is partly responsible for increase in cases of children trafficking in different parts of Haiti. Less privileged parents sell their children to merchants who again sell them to rich couples in need of children

Child Prostitution

Prostitution among Haitian children has been a common phenomenon for decades. Since majority of Haitian children do not find opportunity to attend school due to financial constraints, they resort to activities that could earn them some little income. Child prostitution has become a common happening in Haiti as young girls engage in commercial sex to earn cash for feeding the family and meeting personal needs. The future of Haiti is in danger as parents and guardians sell into prostitution children as young as 7 years. Considering the ages of such children, it is outright abuse of their fundamental rights. They miss opportunity of joining elementary school to pursue education. The parents of such children are equally facing many challenges including inability to meet the basic needs for average lifestyle. Since most of these parents are struggling to meet the basic needs, taking their children to learning institutions have always remained a dream, as they cannot even afford to pay school fees among other necessities. It is high time government intervened in the situation offering the dejected and holes children a chance to learn by offering free elementary school

Legitimacy of Prostitution

Although prostitution has emerged as booming business in certain Latin American countries and the United States, the Republic of Haiti has illegalized the immoral act citing gross contravention of the moral and cultural standards of Haitian societies and religion in general. To eradicate the menace, the state has a responsibility to ensure it provides incentives to parents to help in educating their children in schools within the neighborhoods. The most dependable strategy however is introducing school feeding programs where children from less privileged families receive food ration in their respective schools whenever they attend school. The program would also act as a strategy for enticing students to join local school. Since majority of minors join prostitution due to inability of the parents to provide for them the basic needs such as food and clothing, free education would become an effective means and strategy to trap as many children as the government would have wished

For gratis or subsidized elementary tutoring scheme to become a reality, the state must avail funds. Sustainability of such programs would be a matter of concern to not only the government but also stakeholders in the ministry of education as well as that of youth affairs. If the state lacks capacity to finance the program, it might seek assistance from other countries and nongovernmental organizations. UNICEF would readily intervene partially or fully in solving the situation that has seen several children drop out of schools and join prostitution at a very tender age. Parents, guardians, and caregivers have to play critical party to ensure Haitian children most of which are slowly migrating to towns and cities to earn a living go back to school. Unfortunately, parents are equally to blame following the escalating cases of child prostitution and child labor. According reports released by UNICEF and state departments in charge of social affairs, parents as well as guardians have in most occasions contributed to the situation. Parents send their children of 7 years to go and work for people in towns and firms for a fee. Finding some of the works they do is somehow cumbersome and tiring, majority of the children resort to prostitution. A considerable number resort to the vice because of encouragement and motivation from parents and guardians

Solving Prostitution menace

Many children end up dying in the hands of those who drag them into committing the immoral act. The main objective of their parents and children themselves in to get adequate funds that could help the family purchase basic needs as well as other important things the family requires for survival. Exploitation by those offering them monetary support takes a completely different dimension when such people take advantage of their sexual innocence. All these happen because parents have absolutely abandoned their children. They also lack the capacity to care for them. Erosion has become a threat to parents who could have otherwise wished to grow crops for subsistence and use the surplus for commercial purposes. Excessive erosion worsens the situation as most families lack land where they can grow crops. Thus, they resort to sending their children to the streets to beg for money, work as laborers, and take part in prostitution for commercial purposes. Taking these children back to school would be more practical rather than just using them as sex materials for material gains

Similarly, it is incumbent upon the government to provide incentives as a way of compensating for the heavy losses they incurred due to erosion. Stopping child prostitution is inevitable as the immoral act only ruin the future of children who could have been pursuing other career channels interests upon completing their studies. Provision of free education alone does not help solve prostitution menace among minors in the Republic of Haiti. School feeding programs especially in areas with children facing severe hunger and starvation would not only ensure success of the program but also acts as an enticement to make sure children who could have otherwise engaged in prostitution among other socially unacceptable practices return to school. Government in collaboration with local communities should invest immensely in reforestation programs. The decision to plant more vegetation to the already eroded land would provide the locals with a chance to concentrate again in farming process. A brief intermission in the Dominican Republic indicates a growing number of Haitian children traded in this neighbor Latin American country (Dominica Rep.) for domestic service, agricultural work or prostitution

Conclusion

As domestic servants, these young minors work in the farms and houses of the rich Dominican families for paltry returns. In most cases, they payment that these children receive do not afford them even good food or proper clothing. Hence, most of them end up seeking alternative means of boosting the little that they get. In effect, they engage in farming activities as laborers where they earn an equally meager wages. Under extreme conditions, Haitian children end up participating in prostitution. According to reports released by the Haitian republic, considerable number of Haitian children engages in prostitution after receiving consent from parents. Apart from prostitution, parents also liaise with people involved in certain illegal trades like kidnapping as trap. Such parents often receive scouts to ensure safe passage of the children to a different world altogether in the hope of securing new beginning in life. Half of the Haitian population struggle to even once a day. When it rains, people have no option but sell their domestic animals such as pigs and goats to buy medicine. Eventually, they sell their land when starvation intensifies. Families with limited parcels of land send their children to towns and cities as a way of eliminating the burden of feeding several mouths. Since these children have no valid academic qualifications or specializations, they end up working as laborers in house and farms of the rich. Prostitution becomes the last option for children who fail to secure employment opportunities.