PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- A provisional assembly charged with selecting fresh leadership for Haiti is adjusting its modus operandi in a move that caught many off guard as criminal violence engulfs the nation.
Instead of appointing a solitary council head, four seasoned politicians will rotate leadership of the assembly every five months, as revealed by two insiders who lacked authorization to publicly disclose the alterations as they had not yet been made official.
The informants informed The Associated Press late Wednesday that the assembly will also modify its threshold for majority rule, now requiring five members instead of four. The assembly comprises nine members, seven of whom wield voting authority.
"That's a genuine transformation," remarked Robert Fatton, an expert in Haitian politics from the University of Virginia, regarding the revisions. "I perceive it as a positive step toward power sharing... It's an exceedingly rare occurrence within Haitian political circles."
The quartet set to share leadership duties includes original council president Edgard Leblanc Fils, former senator Louis Gérald Gilles, erstwhile presidential contender Leslie Voltaire, and former Dominican Republic ambassador Smith Augustin.
These adjustments follow internal strife that jeopardized the assembly's stability after its inauguration on April 25. Disagreements surfaced five days later when four members announced not only a council president but also a prime minister, a move that shocked many.
However, the fate of former sports minister Fritz Bélizaire as the designated prime minister remains uncertain. One assembly member disclosed to AP that an announcement is anticipated next week.
Subsequent to the prime minister's appointment, the assembly plans to assemble a new Cabinet, a process likely to involve protracted negotiations with influential politicians.
"That will present another significant challenge," cautioned Fatton.
These alterations coincide with Haiti's preparations for the U.N.-endorsed deployment of a contingent of Kenyan police officers to aid in combatting the gangs that have ravaged swathes of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
On February 29, gangs launched synchronized assaults, setting ablaze police stations, attacking the main international airport (which has been shuttered since March 4), and storming Haiti's two largest penitentiaries, releasing over 4,000 detainees. The country's principal seaport remains paralyzed as supplies of food, medicine, and other essentials dwindle.
According to the World Food Program of the U.N., at least 1.4 million Haitians are teetering on the brink of famine.
Recent days have seen the arrival of U.S. military aircraft carrying supplies such as medicine and oral rehydration fluids, as well as civilian contractors in readiness for the arrival of foreign forces. Nonetheless, the timing of the Kenyan police deployment remains uncertain.
A delegation of senior Kenyan security officials is presently in Washington D.C. to finalize deployment arrangements, including the number of officers to be dispatched.
While Haiti awaits the arrival of foreign assistance, criminal violence has surged in recent days. Several communities near downtown Port-au-Prince have been targeted by gang attacks, compelling over 3,700 individuals to flee their homes.
On Tuesday, at least four individuals perished and numerous others sustained injuries when assailants opened fire on a bus traversing Martissant, an area under gang control in southwestern Port-au-Prince.
Incidents of abduction have also risen, with a female police officer losing her life on Wednesday morning while resisting abduction attempts by gangs, as reported by police union leader Lionel Lazarre.
According to the U.N., more than 2,500 individuals have been killed or injured in the initial three months of the year, marking a 50% surge compared to the same period last year.
