With Haiti’s interim authority set to dissolve and no new government in sight, political infighting and deepening gang violence leave the country facing another uncertain chapter.
The Transitional Presidential Council (TPC) ends its mandate on Saturday – after 22 months governing a country without a president.
With no elections organised during its tenure and more than 10,000 people killed since it was established in 2024, the transition it was supposed to secure looks far off.
A new electoral calendar was finally adopted in December 2025, setting general elections for 30 August 2026, with a second round scheduled for 6 December.
But between now and then, no one knows what form the next phase will take, how long it will last, or who will lead it.
As the TPC’s mandate expires, power struggles are intensifying. At the end of January, five of its seven members called for the dismissal of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé – a move blocked by the transitional president, Laurent Saint-Cyr, and opposed by the United States.
Washington has imposed sanctions on five members of the council, as well as a cabinet minister, who it accuses of colluding with gangs. The US has also sent a warship and three coast guard boats to patrol off Port-au-Prince, in a sign of growing concern at what may follow the TPC's end.
This week, members of the council held a flurry of political meetings in an effort to shape what comes next. But on the streets of the capital, patience has worn thin.
‘A total failure’
“It is clear that two years on, it is a total failure, an absolute failure. The situation has worsened,” said local resident Mysuel Tymothé, speaking to RFI in the suburb of Pétion-Ville.
“Before, there were still areas, neighbourhoods where people lived. Today, those neighbourhoods are lost, controlled by gangs. I think that 98 or 99 percent of the time, the TPC has done nothing serious for the country.”
Others echoed the same frustration. “The TPC is a total failure, a failure across the board,” said Johnny Baptisma, a Haitian journalist and TV presenter.
“First of all, on the administrative level, it’s total mismanagement. Several members of the Transitional Presidential Council have been implicated in shady corruption cases. We had hoped that they would overcome their differences and really think about the country, but in the end, it’s been a total failure.”
Haitians are still waiting for elections, which have not been held since 2016.
“Change is all we think about, all we dream about,” said Bedson, another Port-au-Prince resident. “We want elections to be organised, we want security. We want change. That’s what we’re waiting for, and nothing more.”
Gangs tighten grip on key towns in Haiti as violence and protests escalate
Spike in sexual violence
The armed gangs that have battled Haitian authorities since 2020 are now estimated to control up to 90 percent of the capital, and are extending their reach into other regions.
Their dominance has been accompanied by a spike in sexual violence against women and girls.
“Sexual violence is not new in Haiti,” said Diana Manilla Arroyo, head of mission for Doctors Without Borders (MSF). But since 2021, cases in Port-au-Prince have surged, according to an MSF report published last month.
“Not only are there more cases, but there is also increasing brutality,” Arroyo said.
Gang members are now responsible for 57 percent of recorded cases, according to the organisation's figures, while gang rapes have become more frequent. Gangs “use rape to control communities”, said Arroyo.
Port-au-Prince sees 'unprecedented' displacement as gang violence escalates
“When criminal activity increases, sexual violence – particularly gang rape – increases,” said Abigail Derolian, a lawyer who focuses on gender-based violence at Haitian women's rights NGO Nèges Mawon.
“Every time a neighbourhood falls under the control of an armed group, we find survivors of sexual violence committed during these attacks. It's a weapon of control,” she told RFI.
“When a rival gang takes control of another gang's territory, they use rape as a way of telling girls and women that they have 'changed masters' and to control their movements.”
This article has been adapted from original reporting by RFI's Peterson Luxama, Justine Fontaine and Achim Lippold in Haiti.
