“I’m a child, why did this happen to me?”: Gangs’ assault on childhood in Haiti, documents how children are being subjected to a litany of human rights abuses including recruitment into gangs, rape and other forms of sexual violence, abductions, killings and injuries. The disproportionate impact on children with disabilities is also documented.

Since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021, violence by armed gangs has escalated significantly in Haiti, claiming an estimated 5,600 lives last year. Gangs control the majority of the capital Port-au-Prince, while more than 5.5 million people require urgent humanitarian assistance.

More than 1 million children are estimated to be living in areas controlled by or under the influence of gangs. Researchers interviewed 112 people and visited Port-au-Prince in September 2024. Interviewees included children, government officials, Haitian and international aid workers and UN staff members. The research covered violations and abuses in eight communes of the West Department.

In December 2024, Amnesty International wrote to the office of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, presenting a summary of the findings. At the time of publication, no response had been received.

Gang members have abducted, raped, and sexually assaulted girls during attacks on neighbourhoods or after taking control of areas. Attacking girls while they are out on the street and deliberately targeting them in their homes is common. Gang members have also sexually exploited girls in “relationships” and for commercial sex.

Amnesty International documented the cases of 18 girls subjected to rape and other forms of sexual violence by gang members. Some were attacked more than once. In 10 cases, the girls were subjected to collective rape; in nine cases, they were abducted. International law requires states to protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse, including prostitution.  

Two teenage sisters were abducted by gang members while on their way back from school and subjected to collective rape: one by five men, the other by six. One sister told Amnesty International: “I think about it and tell myself, I’m a child, why did this happen to me?”

Several girls told Amnesty International they got pregnant as a result of being raped. As abortion remains criminalized in Haiti, some resorted to unsafe methods to attempt to end their unwanted pregnancies.

In December 2023, a 17-year-old girl who lived in Carrefour-Feuilles was stopped by gang members when she went out to buy food one night. Dressed in black and with their faces covered, they took her to a house where five of them took turns raping her. She told Amnesty International: “They said, ‘You’re not going to talk about this. If you talk about it, we’re going to kill you.’ Then they told me to leave.” She found out later she was pregnant: “It destroyed me… I have nobody to help me with the baby.”

Amnesty also interviewed 11 boys and three girls who were recruited and used by gangs. They described being exploited in various ways, including to surveil rival gangs and police, to run deliveries, or to do domestic chores, construction work and vehicle repairs. All 14 children said they had no choice, and that they acted predominantly out of fear or hunger.

A 12-year-old boy said he was forced by Grand Ravine gang members to be an informant: “If I didn’t do it, they would have killed me.” Another pre-teen boy said he was forced by a gang to carry a gun to commit criminal acts. He told Amnesty International: “What I did, I didn’t do with all my heart. I didn’t understand what I was doing. I held a gun, not to hurt, but to provide for myself.”

Many survivors remain hopeful their lives will improve. One boy, who lost a leg after being shot by a sniper, said: “This story is not the end of my life… I hope my life will change.” 

“The Haitian government and international donors should collaborate to develop a comprehensive and inclusive child protection plan,” said Amnesty’s secretary general, Agnès Callamard.

“Programmes to effectively demobilize and reintegrate children associated with gangs, as well as to provide comprehensive health and legal assistance to survivors of sexual violence, are a priority. The government should also address impunity by expediting the creation of special judicial chambers for the prosecution of grave human rights abuses and violations.
 
“The massive flow of firearms into Haiti that enables gangs’ widespread abuses must be controlled. Countries must also stop forcibly deporting Haitians as long as the gangs’ campaign of terror and broader human rights crisis continues.”