Haiti is suffering from an unprecedented surge in gang violence. Since President Moïse was assassinated in 2021, armed gangs have proliferated and violence has intensified. Around 300 criminal groups are active in the country, controlling a territory inhabited by 2.7 million Haitians. Gang violence, reaching levels comparable to war zones, includes killings, disappearances, torture, arson, and systematic sexual violence, notably against women and children. This crisis is deeply rooted in Haiti’s colonial past, slavery, and the crippling independence debt imposed by France, which fueled long-term inequalities. This project, photographed by a resident of Port-au-Prince, captures the human elements behind the statistics of the ongoing crisis.
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2025 Photo Contest - North and Central America - Stories
Crisis in Haiti
Photographer
Clarens Siffroy
Agence France-Presse
Camera
D3400
Jury comment
The jury felt this project powerfully documents critical news from Haiti through the lens of a local photographer. In a country with the highest level of impunity toward the killing of journalists, the photographer's commitment and work are deeply impactful. The edit balances extreme violence with human elements, telling a compelling story across ten frames.