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Thousands Protest in Haiti Over Crime and Inflation


A protester kicks a burning tire during a protest in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Aug. 22, 2022.
A protester kicks a burning tire during a protest in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Aug. 22, 2022.

Thousands of Haitians on Monday joined rallies around the Caribbean country to protest rampant crime and soaring consumer prices as its central bank reported that inflation had hit a 10-year high.

Protesters set up burning barricades in areas that included the capital of Port-au-Prince. Some said they were angry over the growing scarcity of gasoline and diesel, which could force some businesses to close their doors.

Jean Baden Dubois, Haiti's central bank governor, said the economy would likely contract by 0.4% this year, following a sharp depreciation of the gourde currency.

Demonstrators shout during a protest in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Aug. 22, 2022.
Demonstrators shout during a protest in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Aug. 22, 2022.

"If I take the numbers from June 2022, inflation has reached 29%," Dubois said during a press conference, referring to annualized inflation. "It's the highest rate we've had in 10 years."

The demonstrations coincided with the anniversary of a 1791 slave uprising that triggered a long struggle for Haiti's independence from France in 1804.

Demonstrators held rallies in cities including Cap-Haitien, Petit-Goave and Jacmel, many wearing red shirts emblazoned with the word "endepandans" or "independence."

Chronic gang violence has left much of the country's territory out of the control of government authorities, and outbreaks of bloody turf battles between rival gangs have left hundreds dead and thousands displaced.

Haitians in recent weeks have also struggled to find fuel, which has left some unable to work.

The country's fuel stocks have run low as fuel importers struggle to get paid for subsidies that keep fuel prices low in Haiti, and due to difficulties in obtaining dollars from the central bank, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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