Haiti struggles with rise in kidnappings as general election looms

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- Kidnappings are on the rise in Haiti, with gangs increasingly targeting high-profile people and launching mass abductions as the country pushes to hold long-awaited presidential elections.At least 81 people were reported kidnapped between April and June alone, a 42% increase compared with the first quarter of the year, according to U.N. statistics. Those abducted include James Boyard, police inspector general and cabinet director of Haiti’s Defense Ministry. He was kidnapped during broad daylight in June from Bourdon, a Port-au-Prince neighborhood considered relatively safe. He has not been released.Also kidnapped are well-known attorney Caleb Jean-Baptiste and Stéphanie Paultre, director general of Haiti’s National Office for Educational Partnerships, according to local media reports.The kidnappings come as Haiti prepares to hold general elections for the first time in more than a decade. The country hasn’t had a president since President Jovenel Moïse was killed at his private residence in July 2021, and violence has only surged since then.“Elections act as accelerators,” said Romain Le Cour, head of the Haiti Observatory at the Global Initiative Against ...